“I told Helen my story and she went home and cried.” So begins Our Spoons Came from Woolworths. But Barbara Comyns’s beguiling novel is far from tragic, despite the harrowing ordeals its heroine endures. Sophia is twenty-one and naïve when she marries fellow artist Charles. She seems hardly fonder of her husband than she is of her pet newt; she can’t keep house (everything she cooks tastes of soap); and she mistakes morning sickness for the aftereffects of a bad batch of strawberries. England is in the middle of the Great Depression, and the money Sophia makes from the occasional modeling gig doesn’t make up for her husband’s indifference to paying the rent. Predictably, the marriage falters; not so predictably, Sophia’s artlessness will be the very thing that turns her life around.

Will the war be over by Christmas? As the war moves into 1945 the lives of the women of Woolworths continue. When store manager, Betty Billington, announces she is expecting Douglas’s baby her future life is about to change more than she expects. Freda has fallen in love with the handsome Scottish engineer but will it end happily? Maisie loves being a mother and also caring for her two nieces although she still has her own dreams. When her brother appears on the scene he brings unexpected danger to the family. Meanwhile Sarah dreams of her husband’s return and a cottage with roses around the door but Woolworths beckons. Will our girls sail into times of peace, or will they experience more heartache and sorrow? With a wedding on the horizon, surely only happiness lies ahead – or does it? A Gift from Woolworths is the fourth instalment in Elaine Everest's much-loved Woolworths series.

A century of Americana is brought to life with more than 150 photos of the famous five-and-dime--with remembrances of everything from the background of its founder, Frank W. Woolworth, to the store's legendary lunch counters and historic skyscraper. color photos.

Can romance blossom in times of trouble? It's 1938 and as the threat of war hangs over the country, Sarah Caselton is preparing for her new job at Woolworths. Before long, she forms a tight bond with two of her colleagues: the glamorous Maisie and shy Freda. The trio couldn't be more different, but they immediately form a close-knit friendship, sharing their hopes and dreams for the future. Sarah soon falls into the rhythm of her new position, enjoying the social events hosted by Woolies and her blossoming romance with young assistant manager, Alan. But with the threat of war clouding the horizon, the young men and women of Woolworths realize that there are bigger battles ahead. It's a dangerous time for the nation, and an even more perilous time to fall in love . . . The first in Elaine Everest's Woolworths series, The Woolworths Girls is followed by the festive sequel, Christmas at Woolworths.

The Woolworths girls have come a long way together . . . Fun loving Maisie, is devoted to her young family and her work at Woolworths. But her happy life with her RAF officer husband, their baby daughter leads her to think of the family she left behind . . . With the war now into its fourth year, what will she find when she sets about searching for them? Sarah and her husband, Alan, are blissfully happy and long for a sibling for their daughter. But dark days lay ahead for this close family. Freda heads home to Birmingham, to go in search of her family, back to the life she fled – far from the safety of Woolworths and her new friends. With families’ separated by war, will the Woolworths girls be able to pull together? Wartime at Woolworths is the third moving instalment in the much-loved Woolworths series by bestselling author Elaine Everest.

Even though there was a war on, the Woolworths girls brought Christmas cheer to their customers Best friends Sarah, Maisie and Freda are brought together by their jobs at Woolworths. With their loved ones away on the front line, their bonds of friendship strengthen each day. Betty Billington is the manager at Woolworths, and a rock for the girls, having given up on love . . . Until a mysterious stranger turns up one day – could he reignite a spark in Betty? As the year draws to a close, and Christmas approaches, the girls must rely on each other to navigate the dark days that lie ahead . . . With so much change, can their friendship survive the war? Following on from her bestselling debut The Woolworths Girls, Christmas at Woolworths is the heartfelt second book in Elaine Everest's Woolworths series.

Tender and heartwarming, Wedding Bells for Woolworths is the fifth instalment in Elaine Everest's much-loved WW2 saga. July 1947. Britain is still gripped by rationing, even as the excitement of Princess Elizabeth’s engagement sweeps the nation. In the Woolworths’ canteen, Freda is still dreaming of meeting her own Prince Charming. So far she’s been unlucky in love. When she has an accident on her motorbike, knocking a cyclist off his bicycle, it seems bad luck is still following her around. Anthony is not only a fellow Woolworths employee but was an Olympic hopeful. Will his injured leg heal in time for him to compete? Can he ever forgive Freda? Meanwhile, Sarah's idyllic family life is under threat with worries about her husband, Alan. Does he still love her? The friends must rally round to face some of the toughest challenges of their lives together. And although they experience loss, hardship and shocks along the way, love is on the horizon for the Woolworths girls . . . Wedding Bells for Woolworths is the fifth instalment in the Woolworths series. The series continues with the prequel story A Mother Forever, available now.