[books 2009] Call the Midwife

[inulro]

10. Call the Midwife: A true story of the East End in the 1950s by Jennifer Worth

Account of being a trainee midwife in the East End in the 1950s - the author came from a middle class life and moving to the East End was a real eye-opener for her. This is probably the most balanced account of pre-dock-closure East End life I've read yet - Worth has a real affection for (most of) the people she lived and worked amongst, but doesn't get all rose-tinted-spectacles about them. She is not afraid to highlight issues like domestic violence & how brothels and prostitution transformed Stepney into a living hell. She shows that there was a fair income spread in the East End - skilled occupations such as river pilots paid very well, but due to long working hours they still had to live in the area, and that the vast majority of people were hard-working and obsessed with "respectability". Some of the stories are angry-making, some really heart-warming. Worth also writes a lot better than a lot of authors in this genre.

Comments

[noondaydemon.livejournal.com]

I lived in Stepney in 2007 - if I see this book in my travels I'll pounce :)