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The Cook's Tale
Told in the first person by a woman who lived the hard life as a cook in a number of England's country houses, this is the true story of what life was really like below the stairs
People talk about feeling as if the modern world is split into "us and them" but they don't know what they're talking about. If you worked as a cook or as any kind of domestic servant when I was young you knew what "us and them" really meant.
In some houses in the English countryside, the cook had a lot more to do than just the cooking—and Nancy Jackman experienced it all. She was expected to kill the chickens, oversee the pig-sticker, deal with the tradesmen, and shout at the kitchen maids. Born in 1907 in a remote Norfolk village, she left school at the age of 14 to work as a cook for a local farmer. He forced her to stand in the rain when she made a mistake, physically abused her, and eventually tried to rape her—and that was only her first such experience in the world below the stairs. In this at times heartbreaking, at times hilarious, tell-all about the life of a cook and a kitchen maid, Nancy goes into detail about what it was like working for people who had no idea how to care for themselves—and how deeply things in the world of upstairs/downstairs changed in the 1950s, following the end of the Second World War.
People talk about feeling as if the modern world is split into "us and them" but they don't know what they're talking about. If you worked as a cook or as any kind of domestic servant when I was young you knew what "us and them" really meant.
In some houses in the English countryside, the cook had a lot more to do than just the cooking—and Nancy Jackman experienced it all. She was expected to kill the chickens, oversee the pig-sticker, deal with the tradesmen, and shout at the kitchen maids. Born in 1907 in a remote Norfolk village, she left school at the age of 14 to work as a cook for a local farmer. He forced her to stand in the rain when she made a mistake, physically abused her, and eventually tried to rape her—and that was only her first such experience in the world below the stairs. In this at times heartbreaking, at times hilarious, tell-all about the life of a cook and a kitchen maid, Nancy goes into detail about what it was like working for people who had no idea how to care for themselves—and how deeply things in the world of upstairs/downstairs changed in the 1950s, following the end of the Second World War.
247 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
June 13, 2023
*3.5 stars*
I enjoyed reading about life 'below stairs', and what was in fact a completely different world, definitely a case of 'Them and Us!
I thought there could have been a bit more in the way of detail, but nevertheless it was a good read.
I enjoyed reading about life 'below stairs', and what was in fact a completely different world, definitely a case of 'Them and Us!
I thought there could have been a bit more in the way of detail, but nevertheless it was a good read.
November 15, 2017
Very easy and enjoyable read and an interesting glimpse into the life of a cook in England both pre and post both wars 1 and 2.
January 8, 2021
My first book finished in the new year. This was a lovely account of a lifetime in service in large society houses both as a kitchen maid then as a cook. Nancy Jackman was a really charming, lovely person with no airs or graces and I was besotted by her tales as she moved from job to job. It’s always so fascinating to me to see how things have changed from the beginning of the 20th century when it comes to servants to the later days. One thing is for sure though, they definitely didn’t earn enough money or respect and I find that terribly sad.
December 2, 2017
I just loved this! Thanks to my GR friend Kim who said she really enjoyed this, too.
I felt like I was hearing Nancy Jackman's story in her own voice and that I was getting to know her in this memoir, which reads like an oral history.
Jackman was a cook in several large houses in the early to mid-20th century, and tells what "life below stairs was really like" during the time she worked for wealthy employers. Some of the people she worked for reminded me of characters from "Downton Abbey," although it sounds like the reality of the upstairs/downstairs relationship between servants and the wealthy families was not as warm and cuddly as depicted on the show.
I especially enjoyed learning about Jackman's life as she talked about how much culture and society changed in the way people lived and thought about their lives over the period before, during and after World War II. She also shared interesting tidbits about how certain things in old kitchens used to be managed -- like killing chickens, cleaning pheasants and cooking woodcock -- ew. I won't say more.
This was a really sweet story, and I've been interested to see that there's a whole sub-genre of non-fiction about people who worked in domestic service in the years before many of the grand estates faded as single family homes.
I felt like I was hearing Nancy Jackman's story in her own voice and that I was getting to know her in this memoir, which reads like an oral history.
Jackman was a cook in several large houses in the early to mid-20th century, and tells what "life below stairs was really like" during the time she worked for wealthy employers. Some of the people she worked for reminded me of characters from "Downton Abbey," although it sounds like the reality of the upstairs/downstairs relationship between servants and the wealthy families was not as warm and cuddly as depicted on the show.
I especially enjoyed learning about Jackman's life as she talked about how much culture and society changed in the way people lived and thought about their lives over the period before, during and after World War II. She also shared interesting tidbits about how certain things in old kitchens used to be managed -- like killing chickens, cleaning pheasants and cooking woodcock -- ew. I won't say more.
This was a really sweet story, and I've been interested to see that there's a whole sub-genre of non-fiction about people who worked in domestic service in the years before many of the grand estates faded as single family homes.
September 10, 2021
Delightful and very readable memoir by a woman born in 1907 in Norfolk who worked her way up from a scullery maid to being a cook in various middle-class houses. The book was ghostwritten by Tom Quinn, but he has managed to keep himself out of it and let Nancy Jackman's voice really speak, so it's like sitting down and having a cup of tea with her and listening to her reflect on her life.
August 25, 2021
Wonderful read. If you love Downton Abbey and the like, you will love this true story as told by a real life Mrs Patmore.
July 25, 2022
I enjoyed so much the "Aprons and silverspoons" memoir by Mollie Moran that I read a few years ago and I have been looking for more books in the same category ever since. I love history, I love memoirs and I love cooking so this book seemed the right read for me.
However, with the exception of a few interesting facts and anecdotes, I found the book boring and felt that many details weren't necessary. Especially at the beginning when Nancy talks about her childhood before going into service, it just seems like a list or random memories.
Also, Nancy often emphasizes the importance for a kitchen maid to start a cooking notebook to collect all the recipes learned on the job, so why none of Nancy’s recipe is included in the book? It would have been a great addition.
Lastly, despite the title of the book, there's much less about cooking than one would expect, so it seems yet another instant book to meet market demand (perhaps because of the success of Downton Abbey?).
However, with the exception of a few interesting facts and anecdotes, I found the book boring and felt that many details weren't necessary. Especially at the beginning when Nancy talks about her childhood before going into service, it just seems like a list or random memories.
Also, Nancy often emphasizes the importance for a kitchen maid to start a cooking notebook to collect all the recipes learned on the job, so why none of Nancy’s recipe is included in the book? It would have been a great addition.
Lastly, despite the title of the book, there's much less about cooking than one would expect, so it seems yet another instant book to meet market demand (perhaps because of the success of Downton Abbey?).
February 3, 2017
I absolutely adored this book and am almost sad that I finished it. Nancy Jackman is a wonderfully captivating story teller and you truly feel as though you are sitting over a cup of tea having a chat. Her tale begins from when she was young up until around her late 50s. She is pithy and witty and extremely quotable. I definitely recommend this for anyone interested in social history or English history. My only wish is that I knew the connection between Nancy Jackman and Tom Quinn, the joint author.
July 30, 2012
Like the book about the maid, this was an interesting look at the real life of English servants.
July 28, 2019
A simple, honest tale of working as a cook in England in the first half of the 20th century. Mrs. Jackman or Mrs. Cook was a single, low-born girl who must leave school and work. Though not educated, she was wise and able to “keep a book” of recipes and processes in the kitchen.
I rarely read a print book (Hooked on audio books so I can knit or garden or hike and listen), so if I do start and actually finish a book it means I opted to not garden or knit and sat down and read so it MUST be worthwhile.
Mrs. Jackman (never married) describes the monotonous, industrious life in vivid detail. I wonder if Fellowes used her as the model for the cook, Mrs. Padmore, in Downton Abbey.
While speaking of her daily life she answers a lot of questions about the treatment and workings in a house where owners could afford help and the changes that happened with the war. She has every right to be bitter and a victim, yet she is not either.
I would love to give this to every millennial out there. Yes, put down the phone and read this.
I rarely read a print book (Hooked on audio books so I can knit or garden or hike and listen), so if I do start and actually finish a book it means I opted to not garden or knit and sat down and read so it MUST be worthwhile.
Mrs. Jackman (never married) describes the monotonous, industrious life in vivid detail. I wonder if Fellowes used her as the model for the cook, Mrs. Padmore, in Downton Abbey.
While speaking of her daily life she answers a lot of questions about the treatment and workings in a house where owners could afford help and the changes that happened with the war. She has every right to be bitter and a victim, yet she is not either.
I would love to give this to every millennial out there. Yes, put down the phone and read this.
August 31, 2017
Life below the stairs. Nancy Jackman was born 1907 - 1989. She left school and home at the age of 14. Soon after, she found a job as a domestic Kitchen Maid and later as a Cook. She grew up poor but had a great gift for storytelling and being an artist.
Nancy's dream was to save her money and to buy a small cottage for herself. She worked hard and saved as much as she could. Being a cook was hard work, long hours, low pay and very little time for yourself. Always having to live-in with the wealthy families. I enjoyed the book, the stories were interesting. This book was well written .and easy to follow. The end is something you will remember about Nancy Jackman.
Nancy's dream was to save her money and to buy a small cottage for herself. She worked hard and saved as much as she could. Being a cook was hard work, long hours, low pay and very little time for yourself. Always having to live-in with the wealthy families. I enjoyed the book, the stories were interesting. This book was well written .and easy to follow. The end is something you will remember about Nancy Jackman.
August 23, 2019
This was an absolutely fascinating book for me. The food she had to prepare for the rich people she worked for was unbelievable. Very gross! And here I thought "pheasant under glass" was the most exotic thing a rich person would want to eat.
It gives you and account of what it would be like to be a live in cook in the days of the grand houses in England. Most of the people she worked for were absolutely depraved, and their personal lives were known to the people who served them. I respect and admire her for the way she managed to find a way to a better life without much help from anybody. I rarely ever reread a book, but I would this one.
It gives you and account of what it would be like to be a live in cook in the days of the grand houses in England. Most of the people she worked for were absolutely depraved, and their personal lives were known to the people who served them. I respect and admire her for the way she managed to find a way to a better life without much help from anybody. I rarely ever reread a book, but I would this one.
July 15, 2020
I had high hopes for this, but it turned out to be too much an echo of other, similar books--innocent young girl goes out to service and works her way up to a head cook position, working for aristocratic (or close to) folk in 1930s England. It didn't hold a candle to that one I read a year or so ago, Minding the Manor: The Memoir of a 1930s Kitchen Maid. Not that there can't be two people's experience of a time and place, and not to say this one isn't significant. It's very interesting, too. But it's not gripping or engaging. Except the part about the maggots.
August 14, 2022
Of all the books I've read from the servant's perspective, this was the most insightful and entertaining. Nancy Jackman entered service at the age of 14 during the early 20th century. She shares her perspective of life in those days when not much else was available to uneducated women. She encounters situations that she shouldn't have been expected to deal with. She works her way into a cook's position thanks to the cook who trained her. The story has added interest with her tales of the eccentrics she works for and meets. She's honest about the mistakes she made and her naiveté.
November 5, 2019
Excellent
I really enjoyed reading this book. I had previously read “The Maid’s Tale” and although I liked it this was better. I tend to find novels and non-fiction more interesting when written in the first person. The Cook’s life was extremely difficult. She worked long hours from the age of fourteen. Her acceptance of her struggles was amazing. I came to feel that I knew that woman and was sorry to turn the last page of the book.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I had previously read “The Maid’s Tale” and although I liked it this was better. I tend to find novels and non-fiction more interesting when written in the first person. The Cook’s life was extremely difficult. She worked long hours from the age of fourteen. Her acceptance of her struggles was amazing. I came to feel that I knew that woman and was sorry to turn the last page of the book.
December 6, 2017
This book is an easy read, quite fun. It is sort of like looking at the family pictures of another with commentary from a family member telling you who the people were. Nancy Jackman began as a domestic servant just after WWI. She worked as a domestic cook until 1963. Over the years, she acquired a great many memories and stories. She shares some of them in this book.
February 24, 2019
I loved this memoir. Very educational but conversational. Nancy brings. back a long ago era with such ease, that each page flows along.
I would have enjoyed recipes, descriptions of dinners, more party preparations to have been included. This book shows how extraordinary, an ordinary life can be when told with honesty.
I would have enjoyed recipes, descriptions of dinners, more party preparations to have been included. This book shows how extraordinary, an ordinary life can be when told with honesty.
October 19, 2020
Fascinating peek into a lost time!
The Age of Servants was vanishing, swept away by the changes before and after WWII. Nancy Jackman started as a young kitchen maid and recounts her life and times. Her book is a delight with her sense of humor, insight and strength of character shining through on every page.
The Age of Servants was vanishing, swept away by the changes before and after WWII. Nancy Jackman started as a young kitchen maid and recounts her life and times. Her book is a delight with her sense of humor, insight and strength of character shining through on every page.
December 13, 2018
A Delightful Read
A lovely tale , especially for me being brought up by my very Victorian grandmother ; a tale that I could so very easily live and looked forward to the next chapter.
A lovely tale , especially for me being brought up by my very Victorian grandmother ; a tale that I could so very easily live and looked forward to the next chapter.
October 19, 2020
This isn't something I would usually pick up but I did like it, an easy to read memoir from a woman born in 1907 and the life she led. History tends to focus on the wealthy so its was interesting to read a first person account from someone who worked below stairs.
December 1, 2021
Wonderful account of cooking for the English "upper classes"! Her voice sounds authentic, but loving, humorous, and kind. I wish she'd had time to leave more of her history for us to enjoy. What amazing memories of the poverty and constrained horizons for rural working people before the war....
May 5, 2023
I love history and particularly reading about women's lives and how they fit in an era. Nancy Jackman's life story is fascinating and this "life below stairs as it really was" is written as if you'd sat down with her and listened to her talk over a cuppa.
June 24, 2018
What a wonderful story of a simple, straightforward kind of girl. I enjoyed reading the narrative which was almost like hearing the stories from Nancy herself over a cup of tea.
January 22, 2019
Disappointing ending a lovely insight in to domestic service
February 3, 2019
Good book that gave an insight into life as a cook and growing up in the 1900’s. Only reason it got 4 stars instead of 5 is because it was a very short book and could have had a lot more to it.
May 11, 2019
Another good read of life downstairs.
May 24, 2019
A cooks tale
Great read! Loved reading about the ways of household help in days gone by. Very interesting even though a bit heartbreaking...
Great read! Loved reading about the ways of household help in days gone by. Very interesting even though a bit heartbreaking...
March 22, 2020
Loved it
What a wonderful story. I was so disappointed when it ended, but so glad it ended as it did. A lot of insight into the workings of the Victorian home.
What a wonderful story. I was so disappointed when it ended, but so glad it ended as it did. A lot of insight into the workings of the Victorian home.
February 16, 2021
The cooks tale.. Enjoyable. Some things I kinda had an idea that went on in kitchens but other things were news to me about some of the food and makings.
August 15, 2021
Extraordinary peek into an ordinary life. Recommended for anyone who likes autobiography/memoir.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews