“WITH FRIENDSHIP ON THEIR SIDE, THEY CAN WIN ANY BATTLE”
- Book: Courage Of The Railway Girls ( The Railway Girls #7)
- Location: Manchester
- Author: Maisie Thomas
I have been privileged enough to have followed this classic WWII series from its beginnings, through to this, its seventh episode, and it just keeps on giving and getting better with each new storyline. A social and moral narrative and dialogue, which although touching briefly on some of the events from the frontline fighting, is set predominantly in Manchester and is very singularly focussed around life on the British home front during hostilities. Beginning at the outbreak of war in 1939, we are now up to 1943 and after the initial couple of books having been spent setting the scene and introducing us to the core cast of characters, each subsequent title has taken a small group of the ladies and given them a storyline all to themselves. But don’t worry, if it is needed, support and solace for any one of them, is never further away than their friends in the railway canteen.
By now you might be thinking that this is a series which needs to be read in order and in it’s entirety, and whilst I am certain that, wherever you begin your relationship with The Railway Girls, you will find yourself wanting to take that complete reading journey, if becoming locked into a relatively lengthy reading marathon just isn’t for you, then each instalment works beautifully as a stand alone story, with any necessary back-story ‘need to knows’ being sprinkled in just the right places and in perfect detail.
So, this time, let’s meet Emily, Persephone and Mabel…
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The Railway Girls are a group of women from all walks of life and social standing, whose ages vary by several decades, and who have been thrown together by necessity, to keep life on Manchester’s rail network running as smoothly and in as good a state of repair as possible, whilst the men are away at the frontline. Many of them also volunteer at night time or weekends, as first-aiders, fire-watchers, or with the land girls Civil Defence. Some also have regular domestic duties, caring for family who are not away fighting, but who have preferred occupations; or caring for the elderly or younger family members.
Emily is the newest addition to this exclusive club, the daughter of Cordelia one of its founding members. She is the youngest and the latest arrival to work on the railway, after deciding to leave an apprentice position within her father’s law firm. The family hold a respected ‘white-collar’ status within the community and whilst early on Cordelia shunned the more gentile war efforts of her class, in favour of a manual job on the rail tracks, it has taken her husband and daughter a couple of years and a near death experience, to relax their stand-offish attitude and accept that true friendship can be found in the most unexpected of places. Emily, who is nursing the broken heart of an unrequited first love, has secured a position as a station porter; a job which she surprises herself by enjoying and at which she is darned good. However, she soon faces a real dilemma, when she notices that not all is happening ‘by the book’ regarding the freight consignments some of the other porters are taking delivery of. When she realises that her self-appointed mentor, a gentle man she respected as a grandfather figure, knows more than he is letting on, she is thrown into a spin, not knowing who to confide in or what to do for the best, as with rationing taking a firm hold, such items are literally a matter of life and death for many families. After much soul-searching, Emily knows what she should do and not wishing to involve her mother, she seeks advice from one of the other matriarchs of the group, Colette. When the problem appears to have been resolved and the dust has settled and without telling anyone why, all the ladies become unwittingly, but willingly involved in helping Emily to salve her bad conscience, hopefully regain the trust of someone she so respects, and lift her spirits, whilst helping others at the same time. But will this be enough to make her feel like one of the gang on the station platforms once again?
Mabel, a wartime railway lengthman, is now preparing to leave the ladies’ group, as she is embarking on a new life, marrying a serviceman and moving to join him in married quarters in another part of the country. New mum, Joan, a former member of the canteen ladies’ club, desperately wants to break the hitherto normal of being a stay at home mum and return to her job, however childcare is still an almost unknown and very unpopular phenomenon. Mabel, whose family are part of the fast emerging, nouveau riche club, had wanted to leave a legacy behind to remind her friends just how much they meant to her, so Joan’s predicament provides her with the catalyst of a plan, if only she can get some very short-sighted council officials on her side. Wanting it to be a surprise, Mabel finally has to concede that many heads are better than one, so who better than the ladies to show the authority what’s what, this time with the added legal clout of Kenneth, Emily’s father. However, Mabel is harbouring a secret about her fiance Harry, which she is just too ashamed to share, even with the gang, although she believes that she and he have sorted the matter out to both their satisfactions. She does eventually feel the need to confide in Persephone, when her problem is made very public and vitriolic and it is inevitable that her parents will discover the hurt she had hoped to spare them. Persephone discovers that she has unwittingly been the architect of Mabel’s distress and contrives to help set the record straight. As she is an only child, Mabel’s father faces a difficult moral dilemma and takes the most drastic of mitigating action, which will affect his daughter’s happiness and maybe even her future with Harry. Will the couple be able to prove to him that their relationship is good and that their impending marriage will be starting off on a sound footing?
Persephone, a debutante who was never brought up to work for a living and who finds herself working on the station ticket barrier, is titled and wealthy, although she has no ego or side to her and would give her all to help her newfound friends in whatever way she could. It is expected by her parents and her rather stuck up sister Iphigenia, that she will return to her ‘proper’ station in life when hostilities are over, where she will make a marriage befitting her status. Persephone however, can’t help who she is attracted to, so when, in the process of outing some rather nifty fare dodgers, she is helped by Matt Franklin, one of the railway firemen, an instant rapport develops between them. No matter how refined and self-educated Matt is, his lack of breeding is an instant barrier for both their families, although for obviously very different reasons. Whilst Persephone learns a hard lesson about just how bitchy her upper class, so called friend can be when her path is crossed, Iphigenia also chooses this time to stick her oar in and offer her sister some very class conscious advice about her emotional attachment, which would no doubt shake Matt to the core if he ever got wind of it. So can and how will they reconcile their differences, or is their friendship doomed to failure?
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The Railway Girls stories seem to flow so effortlessly and regularly from author Maisie Thomas’s pen, that I shall feel bereft when I have to say goodbye to the ladies for the final time, as I am sure will Maisie herself. A consummate storyteller, from the outset she knows exactly where she is heading with each new storyline, so that it fits in beautifully both with its preceding episode and with the next instalment which I know is already on the drawing board. As always, this well-structured, multi-layered storyline, which seamlessly blends fact with fiction, results in a wonderfully textured, rich in atmosphere, immersive and perceptive work, with true visual depth and range and a lovely sense of time and place. Maisie also never forgets those touching, unscripted moments; the ones which are filled with spontaneous heart and humour and which she poignantly captures to perfection. Given the times the railway girls are living in, this is a wonderfully perceptive and strangely comforting story to escape into. The pages to the short, seamless chapters, simply turned themselves and passed by in the blink of an eye. There was never a dull moment and I was quite surprised at just how short a distance on the physical timeline I had actually travelled.
This delightful series highlights the slowly creeping change in attitudes brought about by the necessities of war and with each new adventure, author Maisie Thomas, manages to sympathetically focus the spotlight on one or two of the societal and cultural mores and norms of the times, although subtly and not in so much detail as to distract from the main path of the story, but nonetheless helping to make the individual storylines and the series as a whole, very special and beautifully nuanced pieces of social commentary. Each of the episodes reinforces what the ladies learned long ago, that war is the ultimate leveller, which largely renders wealth and class irrelevant, whilst respecting the values of friendship and moral and emotional support during such unstable times, with their combined strength, compassion and resilience getting them through the hard times together. Even though, when war is declared over, each of them will return to their former lives, they will have formed a lasting bond, which will always be important to them, with people they can always rely on to help them out in a crisis – or is life really going to be that simple? Yes, the long established conventions of the class divide appear broken down forever; as women from all walks of life grouped together for the common good as the back-bone of the home-front, to help those who were giving their lives on the fighting frontline. However, for their titled and entitled families, despite their rather ‘behind the scenes’ and gentile contributions to the war effort, the conventions of class distinction are still never far from the surface, together with the expectation and firm belief that a return to life as they know it, is a foregone and inevitable conclusion.
This time, Maisie weaves in the concept that this war has also irrevocably sown the seeds of change with regard to the notion of women staying at work when peace is declared, combining a paid job with their domestic responsibilities, which has so far been a morally reprehensible suggestion to a society where a woman’s place is seen as very much in the home. The idea of paid for childcare facilities is one not to be considered and the mere thought that the men of the house should share the household responsibilities, out of the question. Linked with that, is the ever-growing demand for the modernisation of a health system which will allow single women access to birth control before they are married, rather than leaving them no choice but to accept the consequences of a ‘honeymoon baby’, before they are entitled to seek advice as a married woman who needs to know about such things.
Over time, Maisie has developed a compelling cast of characters, who have been afforded the strongest of voices with which to tell their story. Given the circumstances of the troubling times they share, it is inevitable that some relationships will change and evolve over time, either as a consequence of the ravages of the war itself, or through changes in personal circumstances. Either way, Maisie is really adept at giving departing characters a good send-off and welcoming newcomers into the fold, ready to add their own unique blend of strengths and bonds to the mix and keeping the spirit of the Railway Girls alive. The camaraderie, dynamics and synergy between the characters is very evocative and tangible, making them easy to connect with and relate to. Whilst I didn’t necessarily invest in every single one of them individually to the same degree, much as I wouldn’t with any group I was introduced to or joined, as a collective they formed a special representative snapshot of the fabric of society, which could have been picked up and moved to any place in the country at that moment in time, where the resultant spirit of endeavour, cooperation, friendship and ‘pulling together’, would have shone through the heartbreak of war. Yes, they are as complex and emotional, raw, vulnerable and passionate as the next person; however, there are definitely no ’empty’ emotions, as they are always vibrant, genuine and believable, addictive and authentic, often with a great sense of fun, despite the difficult and busy lives they lead and the personal challenges and tragedies they must endure. When characters are this realistically drawn, well defined and engaging, I find myself, without thinking, assigning each of their personalities, mannerisms or appearances, to people I know or have known in my own life, making this story all the more personal and intimate.
For those readers who relish the ‘armchair traveller’ experience which comes along with an interesting premise and intriguing characters, this storyline might not seem quite enough to satisfy at first glance, as its physical footprint is not vast. However, Maisie always makes the most of an opportunity to use enough wonderfully descriptive narrative and dialogue, combined with her personal passion for all things railway related and her obvious affinity to her home city of Manchester, to make me feel as though I am walking the streets with the characters; working alongside them in the amazing Victoria Station; sitting in the station buffet having tea around the table with the gang as they swap gossip and offer moral support to one another if any of them are suffering with any aspects of their many wartime obligations, or of course, any ‘man trouble’ they might be having; or visiting them in their homes as they make the most of getting by on wartime rations. Seeing and experiencing life through their eyes.
I read for enjoyment, entertainment and escapism, although ideally, I also like my storylines to be engaging, emotional and educational. So, when each new book in such a heart-warming series can evoke all those feelings, time and time again without losing its edge, whilst still taking me on unique and individual journey, which fires my imagination and stimulates my senses, then I know I am on to a winner!
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