Wendy R. (WMRod) reviewed Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired 'Upstairs, Downstairs' and 'Downton Abbey' on + 171 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Loved, LOVED this book. If you want to know what it was like being a scullery maid and rising to position of Cook in an English household, this book is an absolute must to read. It's a hard life with long hours and little respect from those above stairs, and she tells about her life with complete candor. I can see why her books have been used as reference for some of the best BBC period movies and mini-series in the last 30 years.
Hard to put down and absolutely brilliantly presented.
Hard to put down and absolutely brilliantly presented.
Lynn W. (ladylynn) reviewed Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired 'Upstairs, Downstairs' and 'Downton Abbey' on + 100 more book reviews
Read this book because I'm a Downton Abbey fan. I wonder if Ms Powell would have been less whiney and bitter if she had found better situations.
Jessica S. (messyjessieduh) reviewed Below Stairs: The Classic Kitchen Maid's Memoir That Inspired 'Upstairs, Downstairs' and 'Downton Abbey' on
This is a quick and easy read, but still endlessly enjoyable for a Downton Abbey fan like myself. I don't know if it will evoke the same feelings in someone who has not watched Downton Abbey, but for me, each page was accompanied by a vicarious nostalgia for the days of Lord and Lady Grantham.
