Our Street

by Gilda O'Neill

Gilda O'Neill's Our Street focuses on the lives of Londoners in the East End during the Second World War. Showing the concerns, hopes and fears of these so-called 'ordinary people' Our Street illustrates these times by looking at the every day rituals which marked the patterns of daily life during WWII. It is an important book and also an affectionate record of an often fondly remembered, more communal, way of life that has all but disappeared. 'Every page is a delight. Every chapter made vivid by a writer who has poured heart and soul into her book' Daily Mail 'A rich tapestry... a finely detailed examination of our not so distant past. Her book is as much a piece of history as the accounts it contains' Time Out Gilda O'Neill was born and brought up in the East End. She left school at fifteen but returned to education as a mature student. She wrote full-time and continued to live in the East End with her husband and family. Sadly she died on 24 September 2010 after a short illness.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, War, London, Autobiography, British Literature

Paperback

First published September 4, 2003

Reviews

[Brown Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Also a book about the war, like the last one I read, but this time a collection of real people's memories, compiled by theme. Sobering, and useful for gratitude practice. We are blessed to be living the lives we are. When life is improved by war, because you're so damn poor that rationing helps your family get MORE food, and you "get on with it" while everything and everyone is being bombed out of their minds and lives, well, you don't have it as good as we do.

[Fionnuala · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid little sort-of oral history. It was nothing overly remarkable, but it was interesting enough and collected a variety of insights and voices to further illustrate the very specific period of time it covers. I think maybe it suffers from riding on the coattails of O'Neill's previous book, as the whole "our street" thing felt a little forced -- this wasn't about her in particular, but more a general "our street" to mean the whole area. Therefore the range of focus is broader than you might expect, though it's still decent enough.

A good accompaniment to bulk out understanding of the time period, it could also provide easy reading for somebody not as knowledgeable, though wider context and detail is lacking. Still, the stories are interesting and varied, and it's an important testimony.

[Darla Ebert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read for anyone either unfamiliar with the suffering of the people of Great Britain during WW 2, or anyone who is familiar but wants to learn more. It gives an appreciation for a brave country, a brave people. And they stood alone for so long which, looking back, is unthinkable. Some of the stories were very hard to read but it seemed betrayal NOT to take in the lines of horror and deprivation, of grief for family who lost sons, husbands and fathers. I read it, but I do not think I could read it again.

[Daniel Kukwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book pre-dates the resurgences of oral histories by at least a decade...and it does it in a very readable style. About my only complaint with this otherwise enjoyable book is that I was hoping for a bit more context/commentary in between the long passages of first hand accounts. But it's a minor complaint.

[Stevie Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Descriptions and photos of life in the East End of London during WWII from people who were there at the time and had to live through it. The people were resilient, and often made light of their suffering even though many were made homeless and had lost loved ones. Very interesting and well researched.

[Patricia McBride · Rating 5 out of 5]

fascinating read

The real stories from people who lived during WW2 is fascinating. Sometimes harrowing sometimes hilarious it gives great insight into the lives of ordinary people then.

[Susan Gosselin · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who's read a great deal of books surrounding WW2 I was unfamiliar with the suffering endured by the people of great Britain who weren't sent to war. Its fascinating to hear so many first hand accounts of what life was like surrounding this time.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

nice first person accounts of East London during WWII

author makes odd choices when it comes to attribution (sometimes just an initial, sometimes full names and places) but it does not detract from the compelling stories told

[Rose]

Very readable; lets you feel very close to the people recounting their own histories. I know the author was careful to maintain anonymity but I would have liked some way of recognising who said what - perhaps they could have been given pseudonyms. As it was the short snippets of testimony often seemed disconnected and out of context because you did not know who was saying it.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many lives were affected by the blitz. This was difficult reading because of the realities of day to day life for those who survived the worst of London's war years. Yet it puts a human face on the ravages of war, frequently recalling experiences of women and children who were left to struggle and cope.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one that I'm really taking my time with and so it's marked as read though not finished.

A very good reminder of how the ordinary people managed during the endless bombing of London during WWII. I found it very poignant that the East Enders, despite their poverty had very cohesive neighborhoods and such a strong sense of community. So much of that was lost in the rebuilding of the areas.

[Helen O'Mahony · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would grade this between 'ok and I liked it'. It was a very informative book all about experiences from World War 2 of those living in London. It was very interesting and I learnt alot more than I already knew. It was a very in-depth book and not one for light reading.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good one.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating