Author: Victoria Purman
Year published: 2025
Category: Adult fiction (historical)
Pages: 368 pages
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Location: (my 2025 Google Reading map): Australia
Summary: Martha Berry is on the brink of fifty years old, unmarried, and one of an army of polite, invisible women who go to work each day at the country’s national broadcaster and get things done without fuss, fanfare, or reward.
When the network prepares to launch a new radio serial in the style of their longest running and most successful show, Martha is transferred to assist the newly hired Quentin Quinn, the man who will write and produce the drama. But Mr. Quinn is wholly unprepared and ill-equipped for the role, clueless about radio and work in general. He’d rather enjoy his cigarettes and imbibe over lengthy lunch breaks and cannot be bothered to call his secretary by her correct name.
Rather than see the new show canceled, Martha steps in to hire a cast and write the scripts for the new show. Her authentic, women-focused storyline snags an ever-growing audience of loyal fans—and causes a stir with management. And Quentin Quinn is more than happy to accept the credit. But Martha’s secret cannot remain hidden. All too soon she faces exposure and must decide if she will politely remain in the shadows—or boldly step into the spotlight.
The Radio Hour is at once a sharp satire exposing the lengths men once employed to keep women out of the workplace and a hopeful tale about how one woman proves her worth and unwittingly outsmarts them all.
Review: This was the perfect book for me to read this weekend; I loved it. I always enjoy a good historical fiction that shows what life was like in a place and time different from my own. I didn't know anything about radio in its heyday that's a fun thing to learn about.
1950s Australia isn't really all that far from my life in the US, but quite a bit has changed for women (unfortunately, not changed enough, but at least there has been some progress). Purman did a wonderful job of describing what it was like to work in radio, in particular for women. They were not allowed to work if they were married, they were paid poorly, and they were sexually harassed. I guess none of this is a surprise, but reading stories of characters that I admired and liked makes it tough to read about.
I got teary near the end of this book (spoiler coming) due to the women supporting one another (something we don't always do, shame on us), speaking up, and being heard. I felt a sense of pride and happiness as I finished this book (yes, I was that invested). Highly recommend.
Challenges for which this counts:
- Bookish--script writing
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