Shadows of the Workhouse ~ a book review

 

Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth is the second of the books she wrote, with the first being Call the Midwife.

This book was such a good read in its 293 pages that it was hard to put it down.

I learned so much about the workhouses, sometimes referred to as "the poor house".  When I was growing up in the 1950s (which is the time period that this book covered) I remember hearing the term "the poor house", but never really understood what it was all about.  Now I do.

The first book, Call the Midwife, dealt expressly with some of the different cases that the nurses and Sisters at the Nonnatus House attended.

This book, Shadows of the Workhouse, dealt with three individuals who entered the workhouses at a young age when their parents either died and there was no place for the children to go, or if their parents were "down on their luck" and without a way to pay their bills and were set out on the street when their rent wasn't met.

In this book, the reader will meet Jane, who actually worked at the Nonnatus House and Jennifer explains about how "different" Jane was.  Jennifer, along with some of the other nurses there, thought Jane odd and at times made fun of her...until Jennifer learned from Sister Julienne Jane's story.  I have to admit that reading Jane's story was heartbreaking, but hers did indeed have a happy ending.

Peggy and her brother Frank are the two other life stories that Jennifer presents.  They, too, were residents in the workhouse...and knew Jane.  Peggy and Frank were separated when Frank turned seven and was required to move into the older group.  Their father had died a few years prior and their mother, who wasn't in the best of health herself, worked long hours, doing her best to keep them out of the workhouse.  She contracted pneumonia and died when Peggy was around two years old.  The neighbors contacted the police, who in turn had no choice but to put the children in the workhouse because there were no relatives to take the children in.

After a separation of many years, Frank remembered a promise that he'd made to his mother and father...that he would look after Peggy.

The story is intriguing how he came to find her.

Peggy did the cleaning at Nonnatus House and Frank did odd jobs.

It's also sad to think of some of the things they both endured.

The last of the four individuals that Jennifer writes about is in reverse of Jane's, Peggy's, and Frank's life stories.

It is about an elderly man by the name of Mr. Joseph Collett.

He was someone whom Jennifer attended on a regular basis due to sores that he had on his legs.  Someone had reported his need for care, and the Nonnatus House was contacted.  Sister Julienne assigned Jennifer to do the daily calls to change the dressings on Mr. Collett's legs. 

 He reminded Jenny of her grandfather, and they became good friends.

Jenny began visiting him as a friend in the evenings and she ended up being with him until the end of his life.

Mr. Collett's health declined to the point that he could no longer live by himself around the time that the tenements in Poplar were being demolished. In 1958 and 1959 notice was served to thousands of the tenants because the buildings in Poplar were being demolished and alternative accommodation was offered.

Mr. Collett went to St. Mark's in Mile End.  He told Jenny that when he was young, it had been a workhouse.

Jenny continued to visit Mr. Collett once he moved to St. Mark's and found that even though it was no longer a workhouse by design,

it was still the workhouse mentality in theory.

It is where Mr. Collett died.

The review probably sounds like it's a depressing book, but it was such a good read for me.  If nothing else, one comes away from reading this book realizing just how blessed you are that none of these experiences were ones that you had to endure.

Sprinkled throughout the book are stories pertaining to Sister Monica Joan.  

She is an elderly nun who keeps things lively around Nonnatus House.

She keeps everyone guessing as to whether she's eccentric or just putting on an act.  I came to love her, as I read more about how she gave up a luxurious lifestyle and was shunned by her family when she became a nurse and even more so when she became a nun.

So even though there is sadness involved in these real-life stories,

there's also some humor sprinkled throughout the entire book. 

Would I recommend?

Yes.