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mjmbecky's review against another edition
5.0
Such an amazing read. I stumbled across this novel on BBC Radio and decided that I wanted to read it. The varied storylines that weave together, reflecting the social & cultural expectations surrounding women, is so well done here. The pressure to marry, to support, and to follow the men in their lives is well developed in the story. Our main character, Muriel, allows us the inside view into her world and the strange hypocrisies we all accept.
absolutive's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a wise book from 1924 about a woman coming of age in England before, during and after the First World War. She lives in provincial Marshington where, to her family and community, she exists simply to make the right marriage. Though we see the harms this society has for women, as we do in E.M. Delafield's Consequences, this book continues beyond those fatal consequences, as a persistent woman leaves this oppression and makes a life for herself with another woman, modeled on Vera Brittain, as activists in London.
Holtby is clear-eyed about Marshington society and the goals it has for girls' lives: "The thing that mattered in Marshington was neither service nor love but marriage, marriage respectable and unequivocal, marriage financially sound, eugenically advisable, and socially correct." But she also shows the perspective that comes from living and leaving such socially correct and eugenically advisable upbringings: "This is not as it should be, she felt. But nothing ever is what it should be in a world where the best conclusion is a compromise." How to make the right compromise without compromising what you feel to be right is the subject explored in this frustrating, touching and ultimately empowering novel.
Holtby is clear-eyed about Marshington society and the goals it has for girls' lives: "The thing that mattered in Marshington was neither service nor love but marriage, marriage respectable and unequivocal, marriage financially sound, eugenically advisable, and socially correct." But she also shows the perspective that comes from living and leaving such socially correct and eugenically advisable upbringings: "This is not as it should be, she felt. But nothing ever is what it should be in a world where the best conclusion is a compromise." How to make the right compromise without compromising what you feel to be right is the subject explored in this frustrating, touching and ultimately empowering novel.
sophiegs's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
han_cat's review against another edition
5.0
Absolutely loved this book, it is just stunning. Serious yet witty, it is a perfect examination of human lives. Beautifully written, perfectly imagined.
The closer I got to the ending, I worried that it would end in an unsatisfactory way. But the author knew her objectives and purpose in the story, and was not swayed by the easy or cliche choice.
Also worth mentioning it is a very useful text if you want to understand just how simple the womens liberation movement was at the beginning. Forget feminism this 20s book illustrates perfectly the tiny bit of equality women strove to achieve and how difficult and costly it was to get.
The closer I got to the ending, I worried that it would end in an unsatisfactory way. But the author knew her objectives and purpose in the story, and was not swayed by the easy or cliche choice.
Also worth mentioning it is a very useful text if you want to understand just how simple the womens liberation movement was at the beginning. Forget feminism this 20s book illustrates perfectly the tiny bit of equality women strove to achieve and how difficult and costly it was to get.
lnatal's review against another edition
3.0
From BBC Radio 4 Extra:
Dramatisation of Winifred Holtby's novel about Muriel Hammond's journey to womanhood and independence
Dramatisation of Winifred Holtby's novel about Muriel Hammond's journey to womanhood and independence
libs's review against another edition
4.0
Reading this book was such a relief. Isn't it a wonderful thing about books, that they can take place 100 years ago and yet still feel like a strangely comforting answer to questions you're struggling with today?
The Crowded Street covers 20 years of Muriel's life, from 9 to 29. We meet her first as a shy young girl, nervous but excited to go away to school and learn maths and astronomy. But - it's the 1900s, and that's not the reality. Whilst one girl in her village, Delia, goes away to Cambridge University, all the other girls are expected to stay and find a nice boy to marry. Muriel's plagued by the lack of love in her life - she loses her ambitions and her drive through a series of events. World War One happens here at some point, barely noticeable,coming 'to Marshington with the bewildering irrelevance of all great catastrophes'. By the end, Muriel is vaguely involved in something political, is mostly indepedent - and has rejected a proposal!
And it's weird, because 100 years later, I feel like things should have changed - and they have, a little. No one's expecting me to get married, but everyone is expecting me to have a serious boyfriend, and to consider limiting myself in some capacities for this hypothetical boyfriend. ("Don't study so far away, what if you meet a nice boy this year and you have to go long distance, or break things up?") It's a comfort, to read stories like this. It's a largely autobiographical novel based on Holtby's experiences, and it's not exactly a joy to read. The last line is so depressing. It takes Muriel almost the entire book to get her arse in gear. But it's still so lovely to see women who become independent - and remain single.
It still feels so weirdly uncommon in literature, even though it's everywhere in life.
The Crowded Street covers 20 years of Muriel's life, from 9 to 29. We meet her first as a shy young girl, nervous but excited to go away to school and learn maths and astronomy. But - it's the 1900s, and that's not the reality. Whilst one girl in her village, Delia, goes away to Cambridge University, all the other girls are expected to stay and find a nice boy to marry. Muriel's plagued by the lack of love in her life - she loses her ambitions and her drive through a series of events. World War One happens here at some point, barely noticeable,coming 'to Marshington with the bewildering irrelevance of all great catastrophes'. By the end, Muriel is vaguely involved in something political, is mostly indepedent - and has rejected a proposal!
And it's weird, because 100 years later, I feel like things should have changed - and they have, a little. No one's expecting me to get married, but everyone is expecting me to have a serious boyfriend, and to consider limiting myself in some capacities for this hypothetical boyfriend. ("Don't study so far away, what if you meet a nice boy this year and you have to go long distance, or break things up?") It's a comfort, to read stories like this. It's a largely autobiographical novel based on Holtby's experiences, and it's not exactly a joy to read. The last line is so depressing. It takes Muriel almost the entire book to get her arse in gear. But it's still so lovely to see women who become independent - and remain single.
It still feels so weirdly uncommon in literature, even though it's everywhere in life.
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