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Sto caricando le informazioni... One pair of hands (edizione 1939)di Monica Dickens
Informazioni sull'operaOne Pair of Hands di Monica Dickens
500 Great Books by Women (181) Books Read in 2019 (2,521) Sto caricando le informazioni...
Iscriviti per consentire a LibraryThing di scoprire se ti piacerà questo libro. Attualmente non vi sono conversazioni su questo libro. Hilarious! After literally deciding "I'm bored" and getting a job in the servant class, she bumps her way up the kitchen career ladder in just a couple years, making almost every mistake that she possibly could along the way. Her poor ability at execution means that the good employers send her away and she's left with (mostly) the bad employers who can't afford anyone else. It's a good thing she didn't actually *need* these jobs. ( ) Former society girl Monica Dickens (great-grandaughter of Charles) decides her life of leisure and gaiety has no point and takes a series of jobs as a cook-general. She has no real qualifications and bluffs her way into various places and is suprisingly competent most of the time. However, it is her howling mistakes that make for the fun of this little memoir. Very enjoyable and lightweight. This is such a surprising story for its time. Monica Dickens decides to go and find a job--because she's bored! Not only does she find a number of jobs, she sticks with a ridiculously difficult profession even though she has little need to do so. Her determination is admirable, and her insights into herself and others are sharp, uncompromising, and very funny. it's interesting to compare this to the BBC Upstairs Downstairs series, which I'm currently watching on DVD; the Bellamys' servants had a life of unyielding hard work as well, but fared better than Monica in part because they worked together and relied on each other. Being a cook general was a lonely and thankless job no matter who the employer was.
It is interesting that this book has recently been republished having first been published in 1939, perhaps because of the current popularity of Downtown Abbey and the fascination with Upstairs Downstairs life. Monica Dickens wrote this book aged only 22, already a lively and interesting writer with a subtle sense of humor. For women who now work outside the home as well as cook and do their own housework today the chapters devoted to Monica’s stories of working as a full time cook general in quite small households are amazing, perhaps less so when she mentions the all- prevailing grime and soot of pre war London. Kevin Peterson http://www.schoolanduniversity.com Elenchi di rilievo
'Life was a wordless battle of wits between us, with her keeping a sharp look-out for signs of neglect, and me trying to disguise my slovenliness by subterfuge. I became an adept at sweeping dust under the bed, and always used the same few pieces of silver' Unimpressed by the world of debutante balls, Monica Dickens shocked her family by getting a job. With no experience whatsoever, she gained employment as a cook-general. Monica's cooking and cleaning skills left much to be desired, and her first few positions were short lived, but soon she started to hold her own. Monica discovered the pleasure of daily banter with the milkman and grocer's boy and the joy of doing an honest day's work, all the while keeping a wry eye on the childish pique of her employers. One Pair of Hands is a fascinating and thoroughly entertaining memoir of life upstairs and downstairs in the early 1930s. Non sono state trovate descrizioni di biblioteche |
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Google Books — Sto caricando le informazioni... GeneriSistema Decimale Melvil (DDC)823.912Literature English English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1901-1945Classificazione LCVotoMedia:
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