Below Stairs By Margaret Powell

Product Description

As a kitchen maid ï ½ the lowest of the low ï ½ she entered an entirely new world; one of stoves to be blacked, vegetables to be scrubbed, mistresses to be appeased, & even bootlaces to be ironed. Work started at 5.30 a.m. & went on until after dark. It was a far cry from her childhood on the beaches of Hove, where money & food were scarce, but love & laughter never were. Yet, from the gentleman with a penchant for stroking the housemaids' curlers, to raucous tea-dances with errand boys, to the heartbreaking story of Agnes the pregnant under-parlourmaid, Margaret's tales of her time in service are told with wit, warmth & a sharp eye for the prejudices of her situation. Brilliantly evoking the long-vanished world of masters & servants, Below Stairs is the remarkable true story of an indomitable woman, who, though her position was lowly, never stopped aiming high.