The Porter’s Wife
Manchester, England
Lisa Brown’s intimate, lightly-plotted novel’s action unfolds in the bleak, dirty world of 1901 Manchester, England, a hopeless place for its working poor. Among those working poor is Thomas Berry, an overworked porter whose death leaves his wife Sarah stunned and desperate for the means of providing for her five children.
The bulk of the novel follows Sarah’s quest for survival, and although the narrative slumps in a few places, Brown keeps it moving along and fills her story with carefully-rendered period detail.
The separate story lines involving Sarah’s children are interesting, and the story of the slow journey Sarah herself takes toward finding love again, although at times a bit maudlin, is observed with an intelligent delicacy.
