{"product_id":"2026200018429-secondhand-a-girl-at-government-house-an-english-girls-reminiscences-below-stairs-in-colonial-australia","title":"A Girl At Government House: An English Girl's Reminiscences 'Below Stairs' In Colonial Australia","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: Worn\/faded, no tears\u003cbr\u003ePages: Good\u003cbr\u003eCondition remarks: Condition as shown in image\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStep behind the grand doors of colonial power and into the quarters of those who kept them running — A Girl at Government House presents the vivid, first-hand reminiscences of an English girl who served 'below stairs' in one of Australia's most prestigious colonial residences. Through her candid and often surprising recollections, the narrative uncovers the daily rhythms, social hierarchies, and hidden tensions of colonial Australian life as seen through the eyes of a working-class domestic servant, offering a rare and intimate portrait of an era typically viewed from the top down.\n\nEdited with care and scholarly sensitivity by Helen Vellacott, this account stands as a remarkable document of social history, illuminating the intersection of class, gender, and empire in nineteenth-century Australia. The prose carries an unaffected authenticity that no formal history could replicate, drawing the reader into a world of starched uniforms, whispered gossip, and the ever-present weight of colonial propriety. For anyone captivated by the lives of ordinary people in extraordinary settings, this memoir asks a quietly provocative question: who truly ran Government House?\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50620322513115,"sku":"2026200018429-SECONDHAND","price":30.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/1f92cec1-d625-4dc3-a52c-a9892f55c256.png?v=1791873256","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026200018429-secondhand-a-girl-at-government-house-an-english-girls-reminiscences-below-stairs-in-colonial-australia","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}