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Jam Butties and a Pan of Scouse
JAM BUTTIES AND A PAN OF SCOUSE is a gritty yet heart-warming memoir set against the backdrop of Liverpool's tightknit working-class docklands community. The story covers Maggie Clarke's upbringing in the tenements close to the docks, the River Mersey and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal: an area notorious for having the worst slums in Britain, yet the closest community as well.
At the tender age of 11, Maggie Clarke finds herself the matriarch of the family when her Irish mother runs off with another man. Leaving school at 14 to work at a local factory putting sticks into lollies, she is determined to make a better life for herself and her family - before starting her own family with her childhood sweetheart, who she marries at 19 after 'falling in the family way'. She has one night of married life with her husband before he is sent to India with the Navy and is devastated when she never hears from him again, presuming him a casualty of the war that is raging at home and abroad.
Another tragedy strikes when Maggie's brother Tommy is also claimed by the war, leaving her father inconsolable, but Maggie knows life has to go on and falls in love with Joseph, an Irish settler who she has 8 children with. But her happiness is short-lived as her first husband suddenly appears out of the blue demanding a divorce, and her new husband drinks away what little money they have, returning in fits of rage that leave Maggie and her children hungry and afraid. Many times she is only able to feed her brood by the kindness of neighbours putting a 'pan of scouse' on the range for her, or feeding her kids jam butties to help out.
Maggie's story sweeps across the changing face of Liverpool, from its squalid dock streets, the tenement blocks and cobbled roads to the decline of the docklands, new council housing, the rise of the Mersey beat, the Beatles and the energy and passion of a city that is home to a cast of colourful characters with the resilience to withstand the heartbreak and hardships that only the poorest can know.
At the tender age of 11, Maggie Clarke finds herself the matriarch of the family when her Irish mother runs off with another man. Leaving school at 14 to work at a local factory putting sticks into lollies, she is determined to make a better life for herself and her family - before starting her own family with her childhood sweetheart, who she marries at 19 after 'falling in the family way'. She has one night of married life with her husband before he is sent to India with the Navy and is devastated when she never hears from him again, presuming him a casualty of the war that is raging at home and abroad.
Another tragedy strikes when Maggie's brother Tommy is also claimed by the war, leaving her father inconsolable, but Maggie knows life has to go on and falls in love with Joseph, an Irish settler who she has 8 children with. But her happiness is short-lived as her first husband suddenly appears out of the blue demanding a divorce, and her new husband drinks away what little money they have, returning in fits of rage that leave Maggie and her children hungry and afraid. Many times she is only able to feed her brood by the kindness of neighbours putting a 'pan of scouse' on the range for her, or feeding her kids jam butties to help out.
Maggie's story sweeps across the changing face of Liverpool, from its squalid dock streets, the tenement blocks and cobbled roads to the decline of the docklands, new council housing, the rise of the Mersey beat, the Beatles and the energy and passion of a city that is home to a cast of colourful characters with the resilience to withstand the heartbreak and hardships that only the poorest can know.
- GenresFamily
288 pages, Paperback
Published May 2, 2017
62 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Clarke
1 bookJam Butties and a Pan of Scouse is the fascinating memoir of 95-year-old Maggie Clarke... and it's an at time heart-wrenching tale of family trauma, hardship and happiness grabbed in stolen moments. It's also an insightful chronicle of an ever-changing city.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 6, 2019
I loved this one so much! It is about a girl named Maggie Clarke (notice the author's name) whose mother was a drunk and left with another man when Maggie was only 11 years old. Maggie was left in the position of taking care of the household at such a young age, caring for her two younger siblings. Thomas is 8 when the story begins and Nellie is only 3.
Maggie did the best she could to create a home for the family and take care of her grieving father as well. At the young age of 14 years old she quits school to go to work for her family. At the age of 19 she marries and only one day after their marriage tragedy befalls them. There is so much heartache, especially knowing that this was based on Maggie Clarke's life. There is tragedy after tragedy, but as usually happens one's spirit rises and builds upon what is left.
I highly recommend this book and truly hope that others will read it!
Maggie did the best she could to create a home for the family and take care of her grieving father as well. At the young age of 14 years old she quits school to go to work for her family. At the age of 19 she marries and only one day after their marriage tragedy befalls them. There is so much heartache, especially knowing that this was based on Maggie Clarke's life. There is tragedy after tragedy, but as usually happens one's spirit rises and builds upon what is left.
I highly recommend this book and truly hope that others will read it!
July 26, 2019
Heart warming read
Maggie's story had me crying and laughing. Ever though I'm from a different town, it reminded me of stories that my Mam would tell me about her childhood. Her family must be so proud of her, thanks for a great read.
Maggie's story had me crying and laughing. Ever though I'm from a different town, it reminded me of stories that my Mam would tell me about her childhood. Her family must be so proud of her, thanks for a great read.
February 27, 2017
Lovely read
Loved this book cried and laughed lovely book to read x
7/19 had to read until the end scouse humour at its besT
Loved this book cried and laughed lovely book to read x
7/19 had to read until the end scouse humour at its besT
December 15, 2017
Great read
Such an easy read, ...really enjoyed reading about life in Liverpool before I was born. The women worked so hard back then and Maggie was a little treasure.
Such an easy read, ...really enjoyed reading about life in Liverpool before I was born. The women worked so hard back then and Maggie was a little treasure.
May 22, 2020
Just amazing!
An awesome read. Some funny and also heart breaking memories from years gone by. I really felt I was there with Maggie and her family and friends. Would highly recommended to anyone who is into history type reads and reading about how others lived in the past during WWII , rationing and dealing with hardship in slum tenements. Will definitely be reading more books by this fantastic author in future.
An awesome read. Some funny and also heart breaking memories from years gone by. I really felt I was there with Maggie and her family and friends. Would highly recommended to anyone who is into history type reads and reading about how others lived in the past during WWII , rationing and dealing with hardship in slum tenements. Will definitely be reading more books by this fantastic author in future.
August 25, 2021
I didn’t realise this was a memoir until about 3/4 of the way through. This is a heart warming and very real story of an extraordinary woman and the power of the human spirit. It isn’t sugar coated, it’s real, vivid and describes life in Liverpool in brutal detail.
I loved that what shone through the whole way through was her faith in her family and God. Maggie Clarke is a truly inspirational woman.
I loved that what shone through the whole way through was her faith in her family and God. Maggie Clarke is a truly inspirational woman.
April 8, 2019
A really enjoyable story. It was sad when she had to take over the role of mother and housewife when she was only 10 years old when her mum walked out on the family and then having to go through 2 marriages that didn't work out, losing her brother. But in the end she had her family and all the other women on the street to support her and she was a strong woman.
November 29, 2018
Captivating
A brilliant story spell binding just couldn't put the story down family love and drama really takes you in to the lives of the girls just brilliant Maggie Clarke at her best
A brilliant story spell binding just couldn't put the story down family love and drama really takes you in to the lives of the girls just brilliant Maggie Clarke at her best
March 4, 2020
Beautifully written book from an era close to my heart. Amazing story of a woman who really went through the mill, never having much in life but the love of and for her children. This book will hook you in send shivers down your spine and bring tears to your eyes.
May 6, 2022
I grew up on the outskirts of Liverpool to a scouse mum born in 1931. This book and Maggie's memoirs took me back to the time of my mum reminiscing on her upbringing in Duke Street. It was lovely to be transported back there once more.
December 29, 2024
Though the author bogs down a bit in repetitive wordiness and an excess of adjectives, her story is captivating and suspenseful when it becomes gripping. A must read for anyone interested in the lives of the "Scousers" in the Liverpool section near London.
April 7, 2019
Good read
This was a lovely story, I really enjoyed it. Good author, will read more of her novels when I can
This was a lovely story, I really enjoyed it. Good author, will read more of her novels when I can
July 13, 2019
This is what should be taught in history lessons in the UK. Grave but realistic view of life in Liverpool during and around the war years. Heartbreaking and uplifting at he same time.
July 19, 2019
Fabulous story
Well written true story about the lives and times of this lovely lady Maggie Clarke a book that you must read
Well written true story about the lives and times of this lovely lady Maggie Clarke a book that you must read
January 19, 2021
I loved this book so much! Growing up in Liverpool and learning about the war time was so interesting. It is a true story and I recommend it to everyone!
May 27, 2025
Very interesting and at times emotional story of her life
October 24, 2021
Great book of the life in Liverpool during the Second World War
February 19, 2017
Lovely book
Young Maggie finds herself in the role of housewife at a young age after her mother runs off with another man . Combining her school work and caring for her father and siblings is a daunting task .As an adult Maggie is let down by her first husband and fails to find happiness with her second marriage. Maggie had a kind and loving father and a good relationship with her siblings . The book covers the loss of her much loved brother , her faith in God and a life in the tenement slums of Liverpool .
Young Maggie finds herself in the role of housewife at a young age after her mother runs off with another man . Combining her school work and caring for her father and siblings is a daunting task .As an adult Maggie is let down by her first husband and fails to find happiness with her second marriage. Maggie had a kind and loving father and a good relationship with her siblings . The book covers the loss of her much loved brother , her faith in God and a life in the tenement slums of Liverpool .
January 4, 2022
My maternal ancestors lived in and around the "Scottie" (Scotland Road), Athol Street, and the courts and terraces Maggie describes so well, and the conditions in which the Clarke family lived existed beyond the middle of the 20th century, when Liverpool City Council decided upon a scheme of slum clearances.
Sadly, (as Maggie also relates) this destroyed the community spirit that existed, as families moved outwards or upwards (literally, in the new blocks of high rise flats). There is a saying in Liverpool that "what Hitler started, Liverpool City Council finished....".
Was Maggie's family story typical?
Yes, indeed it was, and there were many more families in more dire straits than hers (in the courts the amount of rent you paid depended on where you lived - at the top of the courts were the more expensive lodgings, the geography (down sloping) dictating that lower down were cheaper and dreadful (due to the outside drainage).
Highly recommended...........
Sadly, (as Maggie also relates) this destroyed the community spirit that existed, as families moved outwards or upwards (literally, in the new blocks of high rise flats). There is a saying in Liverpool that "what Hitler started, Liverpool City Council finished....".
Was Maggie's family story typical?
Yes, indeed it was, and there were many more families in more dire straits than hers (in the courts the amount of rent you paid depended on where you lived - at the top of the courts were the more expensive lodgings, the geography (down sloping) dictating that lower down were cheaper and dreadful (due to the outside drainage).
Highly recommended...........
December 8, 2023
Absolutely devoured this book really really enjoyed it and would highly recommend it to anyone! My family are from Liverpool and my Nan related to this book so much too, while reading this I laughed I cried and had so many emotions throughout it is such a lovely read would recommend to anyone wanting to read!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews