Delighted to share my review for the latest book by Alex Craigie. A nostalgic trip down memory lane for those born in the post war years. The Rat In The Python: Book 1 The Home
About the book
If you haven’t heard of a liberty bodice, believe that half-a-crown is something to do with impoverished royalty and never had the experience of slapping a television to stop the grainy black and white picture from rolling, then this series might not be for you. Please give it a go, though – I suspect that most of it will still resonate no matter where you were brought up!
The Rat in the Python is about Baby Boomers who, in the stability following the Second World War, formed a statistical bulge in the population python. It is a personal snapshot of a time that is as mystifying to my children as the Jurassic Era – and just as unrecognisable.
My intention is to nudge some long-forgotten memories to the surface, test your own recollections and provide information and statistics to put it all in context.
Are you sitting comfortably?
Then I’ll begin…
My review for the book June 10th 2023
This was certainly a trip down memory lane for me, and I am sure for anyone born in the post-war years in Britain. It is also an excellent reflection of the social history of the 50s and 60s and how the slow, but impactful introduction of new technology changed the lives of the population, and in particular women.
The descriptions and the anecdotes about life in the home, the household chores and the diet in the 50s illustrate how far we have come in the last 70 years. They used to say ‘A woman’s work is never done’ and that was certainly the case. The author does a great job in bringing the era into sharp focus based on her own experiences and research, along with a touch of humour.
Keeping the house clean, washing by hand, using a mangle to get as much water out as possible, hoping for a dry windy day in winter to dry the laundry or hanging on racks over the stove. No fridges, freezers to keep food fresh so shopping every day. Outside toilets, tin bath for washing with one batch of hot water used over and over for the whole family. No double glazing or central heating with coal fires still the main form of keeping the house warm during the day, leaving the job to blankets in freezing bedrooms overnight. Not to mention that human fuel, especially in the cities was basic and had to be budgeted for carefully. In fact rationing was still in place of many food items until the early 50s and some to the mid 50s.
The late 1950s also saw the beginnings of the new look in furniture and the introduction of home help in the form of kitchen appliances and the start of social housing, although it is clear from the chapters on this governmental attempt to address the issue of lack of housing, that not all projects were successful or safe.
Televisions not only brought entertainment but also broadcast programmes from the USA which highlighted the stark differences between lifestyle and amenities between the two countries with Britain still repaying war loans.
Reading this book brought back memories of my own childhood and although I was brought up in the country and had access to a different diet it did make me realise how far we have come in my lifetime, and also how dependent we have become of the luxuries of modern life. It have given me a greater respect for the women of that generation who worked so hard to keep their families fed and cared for.
There are many photographs throughout the book and at the end a trivia quiz that underlines some of the key issues of the day. A fascinatingt record of home and life in the 1950s and 1960s and also a very useful reference guide for authors who write in that period in Britain. I can highly recommend and look forward to more in this series.
Head over to buy the book: Amazon UK – And: Amazon US
Also by Alex Craigie
Read the reviews and buy the books: Amazon UK – And: Amazon US – Follow Alex: Goodreads – Alex Craigie via: Facebook
About Alex Craigie
Alex Craigie is the pen name of Trish Power.
Trish was ten when her first play was performed at school. It was in rhyming couplets and written in pencil in a book with imperial weights and measures printed on the back.
When her children were young, she wrote short stories for magazines before returning to the teaching job that she loved.
Trish has had three books published under the pen name of Alex Craigie. The first two books cross genre boundaries and feature elements of romance, thriller and suspense against a backdrop of social issues. Someone Close to Home highlights the problems affecting care homes while Acts of Convenience has issues concerning the health service at its heart. Her third book. Means to Deceive, is a psychological thriller.
Someone Close to Home has won a Chill with a Book award and a Chill with the Book of the Month award. In 2019 it was one of the top ten bestsellers in its category on Amazon.
Thank you for dropping in today and I hope you are leaving with some books… Sally
Excellent review, Sally. I’m not surprised that you enjoyed Alex’s book and that it brought up so many memories for you. Though I was born in the 50s, I was really a 60s kid, but there was still so much I could relate to, even in the US. Congrats to Alex on another wonderful review. ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Diana and the 60s particularly saw so many innovations and we certainly appreciated you guys trying them out first…. ♥♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s about a very interesting topic. Now without doing a research by ourselves.;-) Past mothers must have been busy like hell, without all these machines a household is offering today. Thanks to Alex for such a interesting look back. Thanks to you for another excellent review, Sally! hugsx Michael
LikeLike
Thanks Michael and they were very busy without those machines you are right… glad you enjoyed the review… hugsx
LikeLike
Reblogged this on https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much for sharing Michael.. hugsx
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Thorne Moore.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Many thanks, Thorne! xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much for sharing Trish’s review Thorne x
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Judith Barrow.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Many thanks, Judith! xx
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks for sharing the review Judith.. ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Congratulations to Alex and thanks for your review, Sally. It sounds like a must read.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks Olga and elements of the events, home life and lifestyle will resonate with anyone from the era.. ♥
LikeLike
Many thanks, Olga. I’m delighted with Sally’s review!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Weekly Round Up June 5th – 11th 2023 – Darlene Foster, Powerscourt, Big Band Era, Spiritual Energy, Green Kitchen, Podcast, Book Reviews, Health, Bloggers and Humour | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine
Sal, what a fabulously comprehensive review of Trish’s book. Woohoo! Congrats again to Trish. ❤ ❤
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m thrilled with it, Debby. A review like that isn’t thrown together in fifteen minutes! I’m so grateful to Sally for all her time and trouble. ♥♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
That’s for sure Trish. I know how long it takes me to put together a review. Sally’s is top-notch! ❤
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks Debby ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much Debby.. glad you enjoyed ♥♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
❤
LikeLike
Oh this sounds wonderful! Thanks for the recomendation, Sally.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It is a wonderful trip down memory lane Colleen xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Colleen. I love Sally’s review, and if you do get a chance to read it, I’d love to hear how it compares with what you know of life in the 1950s and 60s where you are.
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Congratulations to Alex for being featured today! Great review, Sally! Thanks for sharing!
Yvette M Calleiro 🙂
http://yvettemcalleiro.blogspot.com
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Yvette a definite winner ♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
Many thanks, Yvette. I love Sally’s review and she deserves credit for the responses I’ve been getting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think your name on the cover had a great deal to do with it Trish ♥
LikeLike
If only! 🤣 (But I’ll take the compliment!)
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
This book sounds like an accurate chronicle of life in the 50s and 60s. Thank you for sharing your review, Sally. And a huge congratulations to Trish!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Very much so Jan and it makes me realise how much I take what we have today for granted. Especially time saving devices and hot water and heating.. ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥
LikeLike
Many thanks for the comment, Jan. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great review, Sally, and I’m about halfway through this one right now. I’m enjoying learning more about life in Trish’s part of the world, but I have to say, I’m amazed at the differences in what was going on here in the U. S. at the same time. I had no idea that some of the everyday things we took for granted weren’t in use over there yet.
I have very clear memories of my mother coming home from the hospital with my younger brother in 1947, so I can date my memories of the house we lived in for several more years after that. Many of the things Trish talks about were things we’d had for years by the time the 50s arrived. This has been a real eye-opener so far, and I expect to learn much more as I finish reading it.
Trish, well done, my friend! You’ve opened my eyes about so many things, from appliances to toilet paper, and with exactly the right amount of humor thrown in, as well. I’m truly surprised at most of what I’ve learned, but you’ve done a brilliant job of educating me on these subjects.
Congratulations on a great book folks need to read, and here’s wishing you at LEAST a kajillion sales! 🤗❤️🤗
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks very much Marcia, and as I mentioned in my comment to Liz, there were still huge differences even by the mid 80s when we came to live in Houston. We hadn’t had a washing machine growing up and we didn’t have one until we moved into the apartment complex and had a washer and a dryer on the balcony. I thought I was in heaven lol at 33 years old. I was born in 53 so was immediately transported back in time… So pleased you are enjoying ♥♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s really great to hear the comment you make about the differences you experienced when you went to live in Houston. As I say, the younger members of the family find it hard to believe that things were genuinely like that! ♥♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was an eye opener Trish… trouble was we then came back to the UK two years later and of course I had to have a washing machine lol.. My mother refused to have one and still sent her bed linen to the laundry each week until her late 90s when I bought her a combined washer dryer and set it up in the conservatory but it had to be covered when there were visitors!! ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love it! A nice tablecloth is great for keeping up appearances! ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
♥♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks so much for reading, Marcia, and for the comment! You are confirming what I suspected and so it’s more a case of social history your side of the pond as opposed to nostalgia on this. I love your hope of a Kajillion sales – it’s put a huge grin on my face. 🤣 ❤️ 🤣
LikeLiked by 2 people
I am looking forward to reading Trish’s book, Sally… Memories by the bucket load!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Absolutely Jaye.. brought back so many memories ♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think it will resonate, Jaye – I hope so, at least! It was a cusp between post-war austerity and 1960s freedoms and prosperity. My children and grandchildren find it hard to believe the contents! ♥♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
So much has changed since then. It is hard to believe…
LikeLiked by 2 people
I looked up some statistics about basic amenities such as bathrooms and there were some real shocks!
LikeLiked by 2 people
It makes me wonder what the next hundred years will bring…
LikeLiked by 2 people
I know! I’m glad I’m not a teenager at the moment – there’s so much they have to contend with that we didn’t. Most of us were still building dens and playing tag into the teens and now they’re bombarded with adult rhetoric, selfies and influencers.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Not much fun to be a child these days. Mind you, I think that applies to everyone now…
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi Sally and Trish, I am going to read this. I already know the Boomers had the best experience of all living generations. I am interested to learn more.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Wonderful Robbie and I am sure you will enjoy Trish’s wonderful reminders of that era… it certainly struck many a chord with me…♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
Many thanks, Robbie, and I hope you find it enlightening. It was an amazing time to grow up – but perhaps less so for our parents. It would be interesting to hear how it compares with what you know about South Africa at the time. ♥♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, my dad talks about his childhood and teenage years here in Johannesburg.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Looking forward to the comparison!
LikeLiked by 2 people
That sounds like a good challenge 😉💖
LikeLiked by 2 people
💖😉Hehehe!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I plan to dive into this one in the coming weeks. I’ve already read three of Alex’s other books, and it’s no accident I keep coming back for more.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Great Pete and thanks for the lovely boost for Alex’s other books too.. Have a great weekend..xx
LikeLiked by 2 people
Pete, that comment might just be pastered over the covers of all my books! What a lovely thing to say. Hugs.
LikeLiked by 2 people
What a wonderful review for Alex’s book – a fantastic trip down memory lane
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks Toni, I thoroughly enjoyed joining Alex on her trip ♥
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks, Toni. I had a lot of fun writing it and I’ve found some pretty impressive advertisements to illustrate it!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’ve already dipped into the book, and what I’m seeing is how different England was from the US during that time. It’s good to have my assumptions challenged!
LikeLiked by 4 people
Thanks Liz.. those differences were still very apparent when we came to live in Houston for two years in 1985. Even having watched tv dramas and films the reality was very different in in some areas such as the abundance of food in the supermarkets.. xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome, Sally.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Liz, I hoped to hear comments from elsewhere in the world about similarities and differences and so this comment is brilliant! Many thanks!
LikeLiked by 2 people
You’re welcome, Trish!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I agree, Liz. I’m reading (and enjoying this one right now, but I had NO idea things were so different in Trish’s part of the world. It’s been an eye-opener, for sure.
LikeLiked by 2 people