A Store At War by Joanna Toye

2.5 Stars

Rightly or wrongly, from the title I was expecting something a little more Mr Selfridge from this book.  The setting of Marlow's Department Store is really just a device to bring together Lily with Grace, Jim and Betsy and there was sadly little about the store within the book.  I was hoping for tales of internecine warfare between departments and spiteful spinsters enforcing strict regimens on the junior staff.  It is far more gentle than that, and, probably less interesting because of it.

Even worse I got really confused about Lily.  The point is heavily stressed that she just left school in order to start work because her widowed mother needs the income.  This means she is 14 - let that settle for a minute Lily, our heroine is 14 years old.  Now, I know there is a war on and the teenager hadn't been invented yet but 14 is 14 and from the tales my Grandmother told me nothing really ever changes.  So, she is hormonal and irrational and to be quite frank a child.  No, our Lily has a poised self-assurance and is a stalwart to her new friends and family.  Honestly, she reads more like a worldly mid-twenties than a mere slip of thing of 14.

That then leads to my second big issue with it.  Just how old is Jim?  It is clear from early on that there is flirting going on between him and Lily but he certainly seems to be much older than her.  The only thing that perhaps belies this is that he is clearly hale and hearty and hasn't been called up yet so he is likely under 20 (yes, I did just google conscription age).  However, he reads much older and even the thought that he could well be 18 (or more) makes the flirtation seem a little off.

The book does deal with some issues that were relevant to the times.  How to deal with the privations of war, how to organise a celebration under rationing, the part the Black Market plays in every day life, unmarried mothers.  One unusual topic that was more or less just tossed in there was the treatment of disabled people at the time (I did like the little bits we found out about Susan and her family).  Nothing that hasn't been covered before or will be covered again - sort of unavoidable in this time period.

It was just all kind of underwhelming, which is a shame as there are some interesting themes explored.  Robert and Cedric's relationship was outlined in sketchy detail but I felt that much more could have been made of this - certainly the motherless son and grieving older father angle was interesting.  The bending of Government Legislation to make a fast buck and give the "gentry" the service they still felt entitled to was also only lightly touched on, again this could have been explored further.  In fact, the whole Black Market that was flourishing is mentioned and everyone seems to universally accept it as a good thing for the housewife - this is not what I have been led to believe from family members who lived through it.  Mixed messages there really as the scam at the store is vilified whilst the desire for some tinned salmon off ration seems to be okay.

The characters were also rather difficult to pin down.  It doesn't help that they fit very distinct formats.  So you have Grace - frumpy and rather downtrodden, wouldn't say boo to a goose and desperate to get a boyfriend; so much so she fixates first on Lily's brother and then on one of his service mates.  Betsy - blowsy and thinks she is so much better than she, determined to climb socially but turns out to come from a tragic background and really has a heart of gold.  Dora - tough Matriarch, can turn her hand to anything, loves her children dearly but never shows it in traditional ways.  I don't think I really need to go on. 

Rather more miss than hit I'm sad to say and I will readily admit to more or less scan reading the last half of the book as it all felt like a bunch of stereotypes thrust together, none of whom really gel.  It doesn't help that although there is a plot it was very loose and seemed to have been allowed to wander wherever it felt like going.