I really enjoyed this book. I'd read Crooked Heart and enjoyed it so I was looking forward to Old Baggage. It didn't disappoint. I was engaged from the start and found the historical elements of the story really interesting. I liked the characters and the relationships between them. I would recommend this book.

I really enjoyed this book. A new perspective on the suffragettes asking ‘what happened next?’ to a number of those involved in the fight for women’s suffrage. The historical setting feels real and the characters are believably complex. Highly recommended.

Following a life in the militant Suffragette movement, Matilda 'Mattie' Simpkins and Florrie 'The Flea' Lee, are living a more sedate existence together in Mattie's house on Hampstead Heath. The two women live the lives of intellectuals, giving lectures and talks on their history and encouraging an equally forward-thinking future. A chance encounter with a young girl leads Mattie to take a more hands-on approach with the local girls, and she starts a club called The Amazons, to encourage independent thought, and interest in the world around them. Lissa Evans' characters leap to life through their sparkling dialogue, sympathetic trials and very human flaws. This is thought-provoking, funny and moving, I loved it.

What do you do next, after you’ve changed the world?
So I haven't changed the world, but I feel like I live in a perpetual cycle of what next so this book spoke to me. A former Suffragette looking for her next challenge in the year of the centenary anniversary of the right to vote. This book was released at just the right time.

Filled with strong characters that haven't dimmed with age or lack of cause these women are sharp, funny and a force to be reckoned with.
The story is not just one of a cause or lack of a cause but a story of friendship, drive and determination. The story is filled with uplifting moments and times that will kick you in the butt.

Grab this book for a dose of determination and a reminder that we can do it all if we just get up and do it.

Matilda Simpkin used to be a Suffragette, she was imprisoned for her cause and still fights for votes for women. However in the genteel Hampstead of 1928 Mattie is a bit of a rebel without much of a cause. She lives in company with a Health Visitor, Florence Lee (The Flea), and writes a column for the local newspaper. However when Mattie decides to fight for the education of young woman then she becomes impassioned. Forming a group called 'The Amazons', Mattie believes in health and education but her counterparts are influenced by Mussolini and nationalistic pride.
I really loved the majority of this book. Mattie is a complex character with a huge backstory and I loved the descriptions of the Suffragette movement. I also liked the fact that Mattie could not read other characters well, The Flea's unrequited passion, her brother's lechery and the presumed innocence of Major Lumb. My biggest issue with this book was that after the incident in the competition between the two youth groups on the Heath the book lost its way. Too many jumps and unheralded switches in plot made the last section confusing and it lacked the verve of the majority.

What do you do when the Suffragette Movement, to which you had given your youth is not more? And the First World War killed off many men and left many women single - which was not a considered a 'natural' state in the early part of the 20th century? And then, you still had not achieved all that you wanted to when you joined the movement, but society was not set up for you to achieve those aims - such as actually being given a degree in a degree awarding ceremony, such as running a business and obtaining a loan in your own name, or even taking part in the Olympics such that a Women's Olympic Games was set up...

In this book we follow the stories of some of these women in the 1920s. Now middle-aged they are single - most of them - or have 'settled' into a marriage. And they find that young girls are rather unadventurous. And  Right Wing politics were beginning to advance into the local area - which happens to be Hampstead in London.

All of which story is dear to my heart as a graduate of Mary Buss schooling.

This is a gentle story but with some serious points to make about how insidious the politics of the right can be, and how easy it was, and still is from time to time, to belittle the work of women and their ambitions - hence the lack of women on Boards - still!

I really enjoyed reading this book and found the characters believable and empathetic and was reminded - again - about my own youth and the restrictions that there still were on girls then in general.

So enjoyable., and such an interesting insight into the suffragette movement. I particularly like Lissa Evans' brilliant sense of humour, gentle and clever, her well defined characters, especially the slightly flawed or misguided ones. They are human, fallible and so endearing. If you are looking for a heartwarming story that sweeps you along to another place and time - look no further!

Thank you netgally.com for a Kindle download that was such a joy to read. An excellent website. Pure pleasure, another lovely book from Lissa Evans

Utterly delightful, Old Baggage has all the brittle shine of the period but hidden depths that lurk to totally immerse you in the tale. Mattie and her housemate, the Flea, are veteran suffragettes who have battled authority, been jailed, been physically abused for the cause. Nothing daunts them. Mattie decides to start a girls club to bring out leadership qualities and initiative in young girls but it is in competition with The league of youth, a fascist organisation for young men and women. The indomitable Mattie discovers her Achilles heel and has to search even deeper for courage and strength than ever. Wonderful period details and sketches of real people from the time woven into a heart-warming story.

In many ways the title, Old Baggage, gives a clue to themes explored in the book. For example, some of those who come into contact with Mattie Simpkin, with her no-nonsense attitude and forthright manner, would probably regard her as a bit of an ‘old baggage’. Mattie believes in the benefits of physical exercise, the great outdoors and that, despite the changes brought about by the women’s suffrage movement, the fight needs to carry on if women are to achieve true equality. As she says: “The battle is not yet over; every day brings fresh skirmishes.” The reader can’t help but admire Mattie’s spirit, whilst at the same time admitting it might be quite exhausting to live with her.

Luckily Mattie has Florrie, nicknamed The Flea. I defy anyone not to fall in love with Florrie who is, to my mind, the most sympathetic figure in the book. Her contribution to making the lives of women better is achieved through actions rather than words. In her role as a health visitor, she dispenses practical advice about domestic problems and the rearing of children to women often living in poverty and poor housing. Florrie is Mattie’s most loyal supporter, her self-appointed ‘shield-bearer’. Florrie understands Mattie’s moods and is able to exercise a restraining influence on her wilder schemes, schemes that, as with early motor cars, often require ‘someone to precede her with a red flag’.

There’s plenty of emotional ‘old baggage’ in the book too. The legacy of past actions from their campaigning days in the suffragette movement looms large in the lives of some of Mattie’s and Florrie’s comrades. The government’s response to their protests – imprisonment, force-feeding – has wrought physical and psychological damage in some cases. In addition, Mattie discovers an unexpected legacy of those years much closer to home – ‘a hand from the past, reaching out to grasp hers’. In trying to set right what she sees as the mistakes of the past, she acts in a way that is completely out-of-character and that will have unforeseen consequences. Unfortunately, what Mattie doesn’t realise is that she’s not the only one with emotional ‘old baggage’.

Old Baggage is a touching depiction of female friendship, a rallying cry for women’s equality and for setting your sights high in life. As Mattie concludes, ‘Better, always and ever, to raise one’s eyes to the road ahead’. I really enjoyed it. (By the way, I reckon Dame Maggie Smith and Dame Judi Dench would make a marvellous Mattie and Florrie in a film version.)

I received a review copy courtesy of publishers, Doubleday, and NetGalley in return for an honest and unbiased review.

What can I say I just love this book. Nd as for mattie,what a girl. Would highly recommend this book. Fab read from start to finish.

Be careful what you wish for! Mattie had spent a lot of her years as a suffragette now in 1928 she struggles to find a purpose. When she finds an old wooden club she muses on the past and as she talks to young women she wonders if her struggles were worth it. She decides to start a club for young women, teaching them all sorts of things to develop them physically & mentally.

The character of Mattie leaps off the page, she really is a larger than life character (although I think living with her could be very exhausting!) Many of the characters find their way into your hearts- I particularly liked The Flea (Florrie Lee0 the patient, gentle but amazingly strong in her own way.

All in all this was an enjoyable read. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this.

A beautifully written book set in the late 1920s. Indeed, the language is such that it could have been written then too.
Although this lends a charming air of authenticity, it sometimes means it proceeds perhaps too slowly for modern tastes.
I loved reading about the lives of former suffragettes and Ifascists but I did wish it would speed up in places.
Nevertheless, a very interesting read.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. These women built the foundations of women’s freedom. Like all single mined people we don’t always see what’s closest to us, we do our best and sometimes it's not enough. Sometimes others let us down. We make mistakes but own up to them and grow as a person. All this happens in this book and the result is a warm feeling that as long as we have tried our best we should not give ourselves a hard time.

What’s a woman to do when the cause to which she’s given the best years of her life is now a historical curiosity to most people, and merely an incident from which to move on from to those she fought alongside? Mattie Smith is a former suffragette, now reduced to giving talks on what it was like to be a suffragette or rattling around her house on Hampstead Heath, while beyond the garden wall, others from the campaign have families on which to devote their energies. Even her one remaining companion from the old days, the woman who she shares her house with, has a job besides helping Mattie at her evening lectures. Florrie Lee, known almost universally as The Flea, is a health visitor, and while her reduced circumstances mean she is forced to live with the often abrasive Mattie, with whom she is hopelessly, unrequitedly, in love, she does at least have a definite purpose for getting out of the house every day.

Two chance encounters lead Mattie toward a new project. First she meets a young working-class woman – not under the most auspicious of circumstances – and realises that there’s a whole generation of women about to finally get the vote, but in no position to know what to do with it. Shortly afterwards, Mattie runs into a former comrade, now married, who is setting up a youth group with decidedly Fascist leanings. Mattie resolves to form a group of her own – purely for girls – that will provide opportunities for discussion, education, and healthy outdoor activities. And no extreme politics of any sort.

The two groups become sworn rivals, not helped by the animosity between their leaders; however, Mattie soon develops another obsession, becoming convinced that one of the girls in her group is the child of her brother, long since deceased as a consequence of his war wounds. Mattie’s favouritism toward a girl with no particular skills or talents causes ructions amongst all those who know her, and soon it seems she will lose more than she can ever gain.

Mattie isn’t one to suffer defeat easily, though, and her struggles to regain some of her standing leads to yet more adventures and eventually a whole new purpose to her life.

I loved this book very much. Mattie was a character I couldn’t help but cheer on, even when she was behaving atrociously. She has a strong disregard for the law – as a result of her various periods of imprisonment in the struggle for female suffrage – but also a healthy sense of right and wrong. I was also cheered by mentions of Conway Hall: a building whose history I only recently discovered, but which has strong links to a whole bunch of historical reform movements.

Although this isn’t technically part of a series, one of the author’s earlier books takes up the story of Mattie and one of her companions some years after the events of this book. I plan to track down a copy of that very soon.

Entirely apposite at this moment in time with the celebration of the centenary of the suffragette movement. An enthralling insight into the thoughts of those who faught so hard for what we take so lightly.

I was really interested in the premise of this book but, sadly, it didn't click for me. I found the plot slow and the story lacked pace.

A very amusing and witty story about Mattie, who has been a suffragette, and is still itching to change things. She shares her home with Miss Florrie Lee (known as the Flea, who is a public health inspector as well as a health visitor.
Mattie starts up an organization for girls called "The Amazons", who she teaches to try and make them self-sufficient. All is relatively OK until another organization for boys challenges them to a competition. They end up winning, but losing, when one of the girls realizes that Mattie has cheated by giving one girl the answer to the last clue in the treasure hunt.
I learnt a lot about the suffragettes, and their stories from this novel, and realize how passionate they were for votes for women, and equal rights, and pay - which is still going on in the present day. The characters were well drawn, and the plot was easy to follow, and made you laugh out loud at times.
Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for allowing me to read this splendid book.

A veteran of the suffragette movement who refuses to give up the fight.

Matilda ‘Mattie’ Simpkin is a one-woman battalion – referred to by an ignorant young man as ‘old baggage’ who has a heart of gold, sharing her house – the Mousehole – with all. She is a veteran of the suffragette movement, now in her middle age who is quite prepared to fight off pickpockets and stand up for injustices. Mattie does not dabble; dabbling implies half-heartedness. She brings the full weight of her beliefs to everything she does, and she decides to start a club for disadvantaged young women that is dedicated to healthy open-air activities such as archery, javelin throwing and enthusiastic conversational interchange on Hampstead Heath – The Amazons. The club is a huge success, but Mattie is human, and at times she oversteps the boundaries of friendship, is thoughtless, and when a rival club for boys and girls begins to encroach leading to a showdown, she loses her moral focus causing the club to break up.

I enjoyed reading about life in 1928 and all the historical snippets about the suffragette movement and the light-hearted tone that the book is written in. Mattie and her friend Florrie are two ladies that I would love to meet in real life, their passion for all they do, their firm belief in their convictions and their determination to help others make the best of themselves, despite their circumstances are traits that are not that common these days. I also love the fact that despite being middle aged these ladies do not let that stop them from doing anything. I love the fact that Mattie does not judge people for what they do but for who they are and she is a true friend, something that not everyone has.

Saphira

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

I so enjoyed this book with its wonderful,indomitable central character,Miss Mattie Simpkins,and it was so appropriate to be reading it in the year of the centenary of some women getting the vote.
Lissa Evans' use of language is so witty and clever,as is the story of what Mattie did when her days as a suffragette were over.She sets up a club for girls,The Amazons,ably assisted by The Flea,her devoted and long suffering friend ,but things go wrong when a rival group,of Fascists set up a group in competition .
The period detail is meticulous,and the book held my interest to such an extent that I read it in a weekend..Highly recommended.

This is a clever and thought-provoking story packed with great characters, humour and history. A perfect rad during the centenary year of the suffragette movement.