Publisher's Synopsis
Walter Mann was born in poverty in 1867 and, despite a lifetime of back-breaking work, died in poverty in 1947. His wife Mary suffered similar hardships but was further disempowered by patriarchy. Their children received only the most rudimentary education and were never taught to think critically about their world. And yet, in spite of these multiple miseries and deprivations, the human spirit remains intact, expressed in an unremitting care for each other, exquisite tender love and wonderful humour in the face of the toughest adversity. The experiences of the Mann family are vividly set against the backcloth of historical developments in the Labour Movement and struggle for women's suffrage. The failings of capitalism are eloquently and dramatically caught in the sufferings of Walter, his family and neighbours. This historical novella pulls no punches in putting the case for radical social change.
