Poor Cow

Nell Dunn's technique reminds me of some episodic pieces I've read on-line. Each chapter is stark and sharp. We learn about the gritty reality of life for young girls in the 1960s who didn't have time or money to be Mods or intellectuals protesting the social inequalities that surrounded them. Joy makes many wrong choices in love and life. What struck me the most is that she keeps on going. She has a good heart and a dreamer's view on life: always looking ahead or envisioning some small detail to brighten up her life. These details range from a dressing table between two curtained windows to a layette in Spanish lace she plans for a baby should she get preggers again. I'd recommend this book for anyone wanting a window into what it may have been like in 1960s England. Dunn was a Chelsea heiress who went to live in South London or thereabouts when she started her writing career. I think her observations in that enviornment helped give this book the authentic-like details.

Is Joy, the main character, a pathetic, short-sighted loser or a passionate, loving mother, or both? I had trouble deciding. This is the joy of the book. (No pun intended!) You never know what you'll find in the next paragraph--Joy's poor choice of male companionship is frustrating for the reader, yet understandable given her need for affection. Her relationship with her son Jonny is chronicled over a couple of years and is incredibly touching; her intense feelings for Jonny, which could easily have been resentment given Joy's youth, were the highlight of the book for me.