Life Below Stairs: True Lives of Edwardian Servants - Softcover

Maloney, Alison

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1782434356 ISBN 13: 9781782434351

Publisher: Michael O'Mara, 2015

Synopsis

Upstairs, an Edwardian home was a picture of elegance, sophistication and serenity, filled with social engagements and lavish dinner parties. Downstairs was another story; a hive of domestic activity, as servants strove to ensure that life ran as smoothly as possible for their employers.

Life Below Stairs paints a detailed picture of what really went on downstairs, revealing the true-life trials and tribulations of the servants in a typical Edwardian household. Thoroughly researched and containing first-hand stories from staff of the time, this book looks at the daily life of the servants, the household structure and hierarchy, pay and working conditions, hiring and firing, and the backgrounds of the people working in these houses.

Looking at the lives of servants from the scullery maid to the butler, bestselling author Alison Maloney presents a vibrant account of a way of life from a bygone era.

About this title

About the Author:

Alison Maloney is a journalist and author whose books - for both adults and children - have included the Number 1 Sunday Times bestseller The Mums' Book. As well as a long stint on The Sunday Post newspaper, she worked as a children's book editor for two years. Alison lives with her husband, also a writer, and two children in Kent.

From Booklist:

Capitalizing on the popularity of Downton Abbey and the revival of Upstairs Downstairs, social historians have rushed to take a new look at the everyday lives of Victorian and Edwardian servants. Maloney casts a journalist’s eye on an old subject, weighing in with this slim volume detailing the daily grind without benefit of the glamour and the intrigue that has hooked millions of viewers on these highbrow soap operas. Although not much new information is provided, this handy compendium is a digestible introduction to the dos and don’ts of the highly stratified upper-class households of the era. Especially revealing are the interspersed anecdotal snippets culled from the memoirs of both domestic staff members and their well-heeled employers. --Margaret Flanagan

About this edition

• Publisher: Michael O'Mara
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1782434356
• ISBN 13: 9781782434351
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192