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Helen Glew, Women at Work, 1860–1939: How Different Industries Shaped Women’s Experiences, by Valerie G. Hall, The English Historical Review, Volume 130, Issue 547, December 2015, Pages 1584–1585, https://doi.org/10.1093/ehr/cev269
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In her penultimate paragraph, Valerie Hall argues that her book ‘is as much labour history as it is women’s history’ (p. 173). Although the book is ostensibly about women, it is also a means to understand the impact of three key industries—mining, inshore fishing and agriculture—on the Northumberland communities of which they were part. The book delineates the structures of work—at the level of the working day and over the course of a lifetime—as well as its economic rewards and drawbacks, the impacts on family life, the opportunities and limitations for subsequent generations, and the effects on the community and its wellbeing. These themes are explored through the myriad contributions of women of all ages to these industries, whether this be sharing tasks with their husbands, working at specific roles within the industry, keeping the household running for husbands or parents or, in many cases, a combination of all three. Although, as Hall points out, there were distinctive elements of each of these industries, one marked commonality was, of course, the domestic and childcare burdens that women were expected to shoulder more or less alone, in addition to their contributions to the household through paid work.
