Swansea Girls - Catrin Collier

This is a novel set in the 1950s, about the lives of four eighteen-year-old girls who live in the same street in Swansea. It's in the days when the highlight of the week for girls of this age was the Saturday night dance. It's also at a time when dating was a fairly formal procedure with a definite etiquette, class consciousness was still somewhat strong, and most boys had to do army service.

So the setting is historical, but with ...
...too unfamiliar. I found the characters to be quite believable, although it took me a few chapters to distinguish the four girls completely, and longer still to sort out their parents, brothers and friends. Primarily the book is character-driven, and charts the day-to-day life, family squabbles and romances of these girls.

Helen is spoilt and immature, wanting to draw attention to herself and not do any work. Her father is a relatively ... more

This is a novel set in the 1950s, about the lives of four eighteen-year-old girls who live in the same street in Swansea. It's in the days when the highlight of the week for girls of this age was the Saturday night dance. It's also at a time when dating was a fairly formal procedure with a definite etiquette, class consciousness was still somewhat strong, and most boys had to do army service.

So the setting is historical, but with just the right amount of description that it didn't feel too unfamiliar. I found the characters to be quite believable, although it took me a few chapters to distinguish the four girls completely, and longer still to sort out their parents, brothers and friends. Primarily the book is character-driven, and charts the day-to-day life, family squabbles and romances of these girls.

Helen is spoilt and immature, wanting to draw attention to herself and not do any work. Her father is a relatively wealthy clothes merchant, and she is somewhat envied because he is generous and mild-tempered. Lily is shy, and immensely grateful for anyone spending time with her. She has been brought up by a guardian brother and sister, after they took her in when she was a three-year-old evacuee. Nobody came for her after the war so she has no idea who her birth parents were.

Katie comes from a violent home: her father gets drunk every evening and regularly beats her mother. She has two brothers who hate their father, and she herself is extremely nervous and anxious to please, determined that she will never marry. Judy has been brought up by a determined feminist mother, and works for her in her hairdressing salon as general dogsbody although she wants to break free and become truly independent.

As the book opens, they are preparing to go to a dance, and discussing a boy called Adam who is good-looking, friendly, and who has just returned from the army. Helen is determined to snare him as a boyfriend so she has 'borrowed' a glamorous and rather revealing evening gown from her father's warehouse. Her friends are shocked at how much flesh is shown by this gown, and also by her having taken it without asking her father first; however their shock does more to goad Helen into wearing it than dissuading her.

At the dance, the 'nicer' boys are also shocked at Helen's attire, which is quite out of place for a local gathering of friends. The other three girls find dancing partners easily and enjoy the evening, while she has to endure stares from some, and being ignored by others. Eventually a lad called Jack - who has something of a bad reputation - talks to her and they decide to go outside for a chat. Jack goes to buy drinks, and Helen is spotted by a drunk upper-class young man who has just arrived at the dance, and who thinks she is a tart. He attempts to seduce her, and Jack comes to the rescue...

This event is the chaging-point of many lives, and is the catalyst for the unfolding of the rest of the book. Gradually we get to know all the families involved, discovering more and more interconnections between them.

I found myself quite immersed in this novel as it progressed, both wanting to know what would happen to the people concerned, and also interested in the general historical background. Several issues were covered in a realistic way, giving me quite an insight into the society of the time.

For instance, there was the bias of the police - something often discussed these days, but apparently nothing new. Because Helen's attacker is wealthy and educated, he can afford an excellent lawyer who would require Helen in the witness box, which would make her feel even more violated. Lily's guardian is a policeman, as is their lodger; while they are sympathetic towards Helen, I found myself saddened at the thought of money and class being able to overrule fairly clear facts. However, later in the book another situation occurrs where circumstances are again 're-interpreted' by the police, this time to positive effect.

It was also interesting seeing the perspective on snobbery and legitimacy. Helen's mother cares more about appearances than about other people; she has paid for expensive educations for her children, and particularly wants her son Joseph to 'get on' in life. She encourages him to associate with his upper-class university friends, and is unimpressed when he starts going out with Lily, whom he's known all his life, because nobody knows who her parents are. Whereas nobody today cares much about anyone's parentage, and single parents are not at all unusual, fifty years ago legitimacy was very important, and it could be difficult for a girl in Lily's circumstances to get married.

I found myself, rather to my surprise, reading this book at every spare moment. It wasn't that the various plotlines were particularly exciting, but I was caught up in the everyday lives of these people, wanting to know what would happen next. There were one or two moments when I found tears in my eyes, which is always a good indicator that I found the characters truly sympathetic. I cared what happened to them, and felt sad when they were hurt or upset.

The conclusion of a book is important to me too, and this one was entirely satisfactory. Threads were drawn together well, with a positive outlook for those involved. Obstacles had been overcome, albeit not necessarily in the expected or obvious way, and there were things to look forward to.

Having said all that, I still can't quite give it five stars, but it's a good solid four, perhaps even four-and-a-half. It's a book I may well read again one day, but it didn't inspire me enough to look up other books by the same author. I read it in every spare moment, but when necessary I could put it down and concentrate on other things. And when I had finished reading, I didn't find myself thinking about the girls or the issues raised for more than a few minutes afterwards.

In conclusion, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys character-driven books, particularly those set in the post-war years. It would be good as a holiday read for someone who wants a little more than the average 'chick-list': it's a good example of low-key social history, and it's well-written. But don't expect great excitement or depth.

Published in paperback by Orion with ISBN 0752844849, this book sells for £4.79 from Amazon.co.uk, or £4.49 delivered from Play.com.  

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