Why do you think that District Nurses have such a strong hold on the public’s imagination?
Perhaps because in one way they are ordinary women who are doing their job and yet in other ways they act heroically, facing danger as an everyday part of that job. They never know what the next day will bring. They face the task of dealing with death or bringing new life into the world, all within the setting of patients’ homes.
Did they face particular challenges during the Second World War?
The ones working in the East End certainly did – or in any parts of the country that were under attack. They carried out their work while the world they had known crumbled around them – the roads were often impassable, gas and water would often be cut off. During the Blitz it would have been hard to guarantee a good night’s sleep, and just like everyone else they had to cope with rationing and restrictions on everything from food to their favourite clothing. And yet somehow they kept going.
Did you find out anything surprising about them?
I think one of the things that’s easy to forget is that there wasn’t free healthcare for all in those days. I was taken aback when reading the wartime magazines to see how often the subject of getting patients to pay came up. Also, so many of the medicines we take for granted had not yet been discovered or weren’t generally available, so that what to us might be a minor inconvenience could have been life-threatening in those days, particularly for a very young or elderly patient.
You have taken on the legacy of writing the Annie Groves books after the death of Penny Halsall, the much-loved creator of the series, what has that been like?
Pretty daunting at times, as Penny was such a wonderful storyteller, but also exciting, to have the chance to develop characters and settings as she used to do. I always remember how she could describe a room and make you feel you were right there in it, and especially a kitchen. So I always start by imagining where the characters would cook and eat, even if in wartime they might not have had much choice of food.
Why do you think readers love the Annie Groves books so much?
Penny, when she wrote as Annie Groves, was always warm and generous and that came through in her writing. Even if a character did bad things you always felt she understood why. She created people we want to get to know, be friends with and follow through all the complications of their lives. She could write a love story to make your heart beat faster but could also describe the complex dynamics of families, with rivalries and betrayals alternating with fierce loyalties. She could take you through the full range of human emotions with apparently effortless skill. She’s a very tough act to follow.
Have you got any ‘desert island’ books?
I feel I should say something noble, such as all the classics I failed to finish while at school: the complete works of Dickens or War and Peace … but really I’d want something to make me laugh, as being stuck on an island might otherwise be a bit miserable. Unless there’s a book called What to Eat That Grows on Sand and Won’t Kill You?
What’s next for the District Nurses?
That would be telling. But some of them are going to face the dilemma that if they want to get married then they officially should give up nursing. Some take the view that they haven’t studied for all that time to turn their back on their profession, others have the heartache of being separated from or losing their men and so it isn’t an issue, but for plenty of the young women it’s a very real question. We’ll have to wait to see how they resolve it.
Also by Annie Groves
About Annie Groves
Annie Groves is the pen name of Jenny Shaw, an accomplished writer of fiction who has been published previously under a pseudonym. For many years she lived in the East End of London and is fascinated by its history.
Annie Groves was originally created by the much-loved writer Penny Halsall, who died in 2011. The stories drew on her own family’s history, picked up from listening to her grandmother’s stories when she was a child. Jenny Shaw has been a big fan of the wonderful novels by Annie Groves for many years and feels privileged to have been asked to continue her legacy.
Also by Annie Groves
The Pride family series
Ellie Pride
Hettie of Hope Street
The WWII series
Goodnight Sweetheart
Some Sunny Day
The Grafton Girls
As Time Goes By
The Campion series
Across the Mersey
Daughters of Liverpool
The Heart of the Family
Where the Heart Is
When the Lights Go On Again
The Article Row Series
London Belles
Home for Christmas
My Sweet Valentine
Only a Mother Knows
A Christmas Promise
The Empire Street Series
Child of the Mersey
The Mersey Daughter
Winter on the Mersey
The District Nurses
The District Nurses of Victory Walk
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