Our Kate is the autobiographical accounts of Dame Catherine Cookson, struggling with her demons and early childhood memories made the writing of the book especially difficult. In fact it took her over 10 years to complete and was only published in 1969 after her mother passed away. Nothing came easy for this amazing woman, born Katie McMullen in 1906 she talks of her desperate childhood in the North East of England.... There was poverty and below that there was Jarrow, this was where the McMullen family lived in one of the poorest communities in the western world. Catherine commented frequently and with humour on the fifteen streets where she was raised and where some of her later novels were based, Poverty is comparative. There were those who did not live in the fifteen streets who considered people living there to be of one stratum. However in the fifteen streets you have three levels, the McMullen's prided themselves on belonging to the upper level, which Catherine proclaimed 'to be the breeding ground on snobbery'. Such poverty cannot be imagined as Catherine recalls with horror her belief that her 'parents' may at any time be taken to the workhouse.
She was born illegitimately and brought up to believe her grandparents were her ma and da. In fact it was her sister Kate, who was her mother. Everyone in this drab close knit community knew and so did Katie, when at the age of seven a girl down the road chanted in the childlike way children do 'you ain't got no da, and yer sister's yer ma.' Describing this knowledge in later years still makes Catherine emotional and bitter. From that point onwards Catherine had an unusual and unnatural relationship with her biological mother who would cause most of her heartache and guilt.
Like Frank McCourt who lived a similar life in Ireland, Catherine was catholic, poor and seemed to have an overwhelming urge to better herself. A titanic achievement for anyone let alone someone of her humble beginnings, she worked in domestic service from age thirteen saving her meagre wages somewhat until at 20 she moved to Hastings in the south east of England using her hard earned wages to cover the fare and started taking voice coaching lessons to cover her Geordie dialect. Working in a laundry she describes the way in which her colleagues ignored her and called her 'stuck up' Amazing considering her beginnings, however, Catherine would not allow people to pity her and never divulged information on her past, such was the shame she felt. It was not until a considerable amount of years later when being the successful author that she became, that she allowed an insight into her childhood and how she had finally 'made it'.
This success came at a late age for Catherine, she recalls bouts of depression in her late thirties due to the fact she could not bear children and the hereditary illness, haemorrhagic telangiectasia which she coped with. In these dark days she started writing and her first novel Katie Hannigan was published in 1950. Not until the 1970's did she become a household name, known worldwide with the TV productions of her works. With over 90 novels written in her career and over 95 million novels sold.
Our Kate is compelling reading for lovers of social history in our country. Catherine Cookson allows you to gain knowledge into her triumphs and all too often tragedies. She overcame literary critics disdain that had in the past dismissed her work as romantic nonsense. She took offence to these comments and I agree as Catherine Cookson put a little part of her life into each book whilst challenging the hypocrisy of her own catholic faith and confronted many taboo subjects which horrified her peers at the time. I cannot call myself a huge fan of her novels, although there are exceptions with The Fifteen Streets and Colour Blind but an autobiography like hers is a compelling read to find out what true poverty was like in our time. So even if you have not, or have no inclination to read any of her books, Our Kate is worth your time to find out what a truly strong, courageous and inspirational woman she was.
Catherine Cookson felt she had to write and write, it was an obsession. Not for the money or the fame, just the satisfaction. In her own words;
Everything in life has to be paid for, and fame is the dearest commodity, it's not worth the candle - believe me.
Available from Amazon in paperback from 5.99 GBP.
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