Above and Below Stairs

by John S. Goodall

Illustrations without text contrast the life of servants and their employers from the middle Ages to the present day. Illustrations have a half-page flap that creates a new picture when turned over.

Genres: Picture Books

64 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1983

About the author

John S. Goodall (7 June 1908 – 2 June 1996) was a British author, watercolour painter and illustrator, best known for his wordless picture books such as The Adventures of Paddy Pork, although his output included more conventional pictures, and illustrations for a wide range of publications (including the Radio Times) and books by the "fictitious village schoolmistress Miss Read". Goodall became one of England's most beloved artists due to the subject matter of his works, the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

Reviews

[Shiloah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous wordless story! Next year I plan to own all of his books. They are exquisitely beautiful!

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wordless picture book that shows the contrast between the lives of the "upstairs" people and those doing all the work downstairs. Each double page spread shows a period in English history.

Read at the Bethulie Royal Hotel.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have become completely obsessed with these weird little books. The pictures are awesome. There're is no text. My favorite of all are the ones where it is one place through time, but seeing home the rich lived pre WWI is fun too lol.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always a pleasure to look at the artwork!

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love these little wordless books.

[Katelyn Krigbaum · Rating 3 out of 5]

Above and Below Stairs reveals the lives of the upper and lower classes of society throughout history. The upper, wealthier class is shown as never doing much work, just lounging around and enjoying each others company for the most part. They are shown walking through gardens, in a carriage, at elegant parties with people constantly waiting on them. The lower, poorer class is consistently shown working or having something to carry around on their backs. They show to be working their best in getting what education they could and shuffling around quickly to get their work done as efficiently as possible. The illustrations are paintings that seem to be like the paintings they would have in that time period which gives the tone an antique feel as you look through the older time periods. Although the story is unclear it is obvious that it is making a comparison between the different classes.