The Women/Ladies in Black

I have yet to see the movie Ladies in Black which has been very popular with audiences, but I was aware that it was based on a bestseller 1960s novel by Australian author, Madeleine St. John, and decided I'd like to read the book first before seeing the film.

Not unexpectedly due to the film's success, my library has a lengthy wait-list for the current edition of the novel titled Ladies in Black, but it seems people don't realise it was originally called The Women in Black, which I found instantly available as an e-book on the library's website.

It's a charming read, about a group of women who work in a prestigious Sydney department store called Goode's, but which Australians will immediately recognise as a clone of David Jones in Elizabeth Street. You may need to be a certain age to remember such things as "cocktail frocks" as it dates back to the days when clothes were not the cheap ill-fitting and throw-away imports of today and when women were expected to dress well - and behave well for that matter - and when they had to put their faith and futures in the hands of their men.

Working in the frocks, there's Patty, the childless wife with a galah * for a husband, and Fay, who has just about given up on finding Mr. Right, due to too many bad experiences with similar galahs. There is the clever teenage Lesley (who prefers to be called Lisa) who hopes to go to university but whose galah father squawks at the idea. And then there is Magda, all European sophistication and sass, who serves exotic foods such as salami and knows attractive, suave and intelligent men who are far from being galahs.

Written before the feminist and sexual revolutions of the later 1960s took off, it is obvious why St. John's novel was such a success in an ultra-conservative British-centric Australia that was only just starting to come to terms with foreign migrants with different views on life (and food!)

A short read, delightful in its insights, its way of poking fun. A little patchy where the author seemed a bit rushed to get through certain scenes, but overall a solid 4 stars and highly recommended. 

* Galah, actually a type of parrot known for its silly antics, but used in this connection as per the definition from Australian Dictionary of Colloquialisms: "An ass or nincompoop"

Amazon.com.au

Amazon.com

​Amazon.co.uk

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