After watching Call the Midwife, I was really curious as to what workhouses were really like. From everything I've ever heard they were horrible and those that were lucky to outlast them, always carried the trauma with them. 

I found this book incredibly well-done. Fowler seemed to have done his research in spades. The picture painted was one of absolute suffering. Before reading this I thought I knew how awful the Victorian workhouses were--I came away with a whole new appreciation for what those stuck in them went through. Fowler did a great job of bringing the reader into what life was like.

A well researched and interesting look into the workhouse system.

I enjoyed the book and had no issue with the pace and style of writing.

I thoroughly enjoyed this - it was such a fascinating account of life in the 19th century workhouse. It provided a lot of interesting facts and serves as a solid introduction to the history and impact of these dreadful institutions.

I wanted to read this book because one branch of my family had members who were inmates in workhouses, whilst the other side of the family were involved in making sure they were run properly. I found the book interesting and would recommend it.

Simon Fowler's The Workhouse was a fascinating and useful account of life in the workhouse of the nineteenth century with many interesting facts. It is a great introduction to these dreadful institutions.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
For as long as I remember I have had a fascination about the workhouse. It seems incredible to think that you could be shut away for simply not having the means to provide for yourself and your family. Some heartbreaking stories. Recommended.

An insight into what Workhouses were like to live or work in, considering why theirs came to be in the and how they were managed. Quite often heartbreaking , but always an honest assessment Raises a lot of questions about welfare and how the poor are treated now as much as in the past. A very interesting book.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This is one of my favorites I have gotten so far. The writing was excellent and the research was done well. I would love to read more from this author.
Thank you to NetGalley for this copy in exchange for an honest interview.

Great read for history fans and those that want to learn more about class and society in the past. Definitely recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pen and Sword for granting my wish to read The Workhouse by Simon Fowler!

5 stars- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐- This book follows extensively and truly well detailed about workhouses in the 19th century and tells you about the poor who had to go here to seek refuge or even a job! Tells the story of many tens of thousands of men, women and children and even the elderly whom worked in these grim and poor and shocking conditions and their life within workhouse walls which is utterly shocking and so sad to read the conditions they had to live and survive in! While the people running these workhouses letting this happen and is okay with it.. which is very disgusting, Explains and shows how inhumane the workhouse system was!

Very interesting but very saddening read about what they had to live survive and work in such conditions!

An interesting book for anybody with an interest in Victorian history, in depth studies of the nemesis of the poor The Workhouse. The book tries to explain both sides of the arguments by using facts rather than opinions. A book you can dip into to research aspects of the period.

Someone looking for a book containing every single thing there is to know about the workhouse in 19th century England will love this. For someone who is only mildly interested in this topic it will sometimes be a bore and you might give this one a pass.
The book goes into very great detail and only from about 40% in I found the writing style to become a bit more engaging. The first 40% felt like an info dump with all life sucked out of it.

From 87% onwards you will find the appendix, bibliography, articles used, and some photographs and maps. This information could come very much in handy for people interested in family genealogy and any research relating to that.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a fascinating look at the Workhouses and the author has done extensive research. Too many books focus on the negatives of Workhouses but this author has done a great job explaining the good points and not exaggerating or sensationalizing the negatives. He states the good intentions of why the Workhouses were created but just like today's time, there is so much corruption that greatly hinders these good intentions.

What a nightmare this system was. The work house was a place of last resort for the poor, elderly, ill, children, babies, families and of really very little use to anyone. Much like later orphan homes , there really was no over site of them. Suffering continued unabated for a too long a time on both sides of the Atlantic. Industrialization brought about much suffering. No real societal safety nets, other than charity. And charity never covered very much. Work houses were a nightmare for their inhabitants. Though this book deals primarily with English Work Houses, the early American colonies also had established poor houses. Some even existed in the 1970's! Ours weren't any better... Well documented and researched book. If you ever wanted to learn about them this book is a very insightful read.

I received a free e-ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Workhouse by Simon Fowler is a well-researched, fascinating (though somewhat grim) account of life in Britain's workhouses.

Today the workhouses conjure up images of abuse and horror, and rightfully so, but they actually began as charitable institutions to look after the poor, elderly, disabled, and unmarried mothers. In effect, they functioned as an early type of social welfare, something that was not seen in many other Western countries until much later. Like many well intentioned ventures, the workhouses were not without their problems, and many of the same problems still occur today - like 'concerns' about people becoming too reliant on welfare to the point where they 'decide' not to work, or the overseers taking cuts of the money or produce to fund their own lifestyles.

Fowler explores all aspects of the workhouse, including (but not limited to) the working conditions, daily life, and the organisation of the workhouses. There are also images, and inclusions of memoirs and letters by people who lived and worked in workhouses.

The Workhouse was extremely easy to read (writing wise, not content wise), and is a valuable resource for those who are interested in history (and family history in particular.)

A fascinating and well-researched book into the truly dreadful institutions known as Workhouses. I cannot imagine the desperation of many of the inmates to allow themselves to be subjected to incredible humiliation, abuse, and squalor, rather than starve on the streets.
From my perspective, the treatment of unmarried mothers and their 'bastard' children was appalling in every respect. From research, I understand that my grandfather was born in a Workhouse, it was quite emotional to read how his mother would have been treated by the staff and the system.
We are fortunate that Workhouses no longer exist and that we have reasonably good social services in place in the UK. However, I am really concerned that with the dual impacts of Covid and the economic collapse due to Brexit, we may see similar institutions being put in place to cope with the rising levels of poverty, destitution, and homelessness.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I learn alot about what is was like living in a work house. This book was well researched and packed with information and descriptions of workhouse that were even local to me which amazed me. At the end there is a very useful guide on how to look up if your ancestors were ever in a work house.
Already posted on goodreads and facebook

THE WORKHOUSE by Simon Fowler
In the nineteenth century, if you were poor, had given birth to an illegitimate child, or were unable to take care of yourself, you could be placed in a workhouse or voluntarily go there. It was not a pleasant place to be. Corruption ran rampant among the wardens and people in charge of the inmates. They would siphon off funds and even food or clothing meant for the most destitute of the population and sell off the products so that they would be able to live a gluttonous life or in order to leave tidy sums to leave to their heirs when they passed on.

The inmates toiled for ten hours a day for a few crumbs and no creature comforts. They were abused, beaten, molested, and otherwise humiliated.

It is good to read about the horrors of these poor people's experiences so that these are remembered and never allowed to occur again.

Thank you to #netgalley for the complimentary copy of #theworkhouse I was under no obligation to post a review.

I'd like to say that I enjoyed this book, that is far too cheerful a word. Equal parts heartbreaking and fascinating, it was a very worthwhile read, and I appreciated the way that the individual stories augmented the history.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

The Workhouse is full of information. The details are interesting although readers should be aware that this is more of a reference book than one might be commonly used to from Pen & Sword. It would be a good resource for academic research.