The Upstairs People - Hardcover
A young daughter sees through her mother's self-dramatization and pretensions when she is warned against people who do not see what a wonder it is to be alive. The author's first book, "The Ha-Ha", won the James Tait Black Memorial Award and was produced on television and stage.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly:
Dawson carefully crafts this World War II-era novel set in London. Alma Gerber, a young girl, slowly discovers the shocking cruelty of her mother, whom her children have nicknamed Cossey. From the beginning, disturbed by Cossey's reminiscences of WW I and her strict upbringing, Alma suspects ``something funny about our mother.'' As the global war rages, Alma does battle on the home front as Cossey nearly destroys everyone in the family through acts ranging from marital infidelity to ordering the lobotomy of Alma's older sister, Vivian. Dawson artfully captures the minutiae of a repressive, sexist, classist England in the '30s and '40s, with details such as signs posted in railway stations and snippets of songs children learn (``We are but little children weak / not used to any high degree''). Alma's witty child's-eye view of adult conventions lends some humor to a dark story. In the final chapters, however, Cossey becomes too terrible to be believed or understood.
Copyright 1991 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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- PublisherTime Warner Books UK
- Publication date1988
- ISBN 10 0860689972
- ISBN 13 9780860689973
- BindingHardcover
- Rating
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The Upstairs People
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Virago Press Ltd
(1988)
ISBN 10: 0860689972
ISBN 13: 9780860689973
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. The Upstairs People This book is in very good condition and will be shipped within 24 hours of ordering. The cover may have some limited signs of wear but the pages are clean, intact and the spine remains undamaged. This book has clearly been well maintained and looked after thus far. Money back guarantee if you are not satisfied. See all our books here, order more than 1 book and get discounted shipping. . Seller Inventory # 7719-9780860689973
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The Upstairs People
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Virago Press Ltd 12/05/1988
(1988)
ISBN 10: 0860689972
ISBN 13: 9780860689973
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Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Shipped within 24 hours from our UK warehouse. Clean, undamaged book with no damage to pages and minimal wear to the cover. Spine still tight, in very good condition. Remember if you are not happy, you are covered by our 100% money back guarantee. Seller Inventory # 6545-9780860689973
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The Upstairs People
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Virago, London England
(1988)
ISBN 10: 0860689972
ISBN 13: 9780860689973
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First Edition
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Book Description Cloth. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Condition: Fine. First Edition. Jaunty, iunconventional and full of fun, Cossey seems to be the perfect moth4er, captivating her children with stories of her children with stories of her past and her escape from the 'cold, angry and loveless world' of the Evangelical vicarage of her childhood.(We carry a wide selection of titles in The Arts, Theology, History, Politics, Social and Physical Sciences. academic and scholarly books and Modern First Editions ,and all types of Academic Literature.). Seller Inventory # 022791
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