A new Woolworths book is always a cause for celebration for me and this time the girls are celebrating too, although that comes later in the book. The book opens on a momentous day in history as the death of King George VI is announced and although this is sad news, there's a coronation, a wedding and a birth in the offing so there is much to celebrate.

Some of the characters have moved on from Woolworths over the years and the course of the series, but the store is always there as a character in its own right. I love the tales of life on the shop floor and upstairs in the offices. Sarah Gilbert is struggling with the new temporary manager, who is a thoroughly nasty piece of work, not like when Betty Billington was in charge. Betty would like to come back to work but Freda's husband, Tony, is also looking for his own store to manage and it looks likely to be a bone of contention between the friends.

It was lovely to catch up with all the characters again. Elaine Everest writes about them so warmly and I feel as though I know them all. There's such camaraderie amidst the trials and tribulations of everyday life in the early 1950s. I really enjoy how historical events are weaved into the story, not just the major ones but more local ones too, and such things as the increasing desire for television sets which is good news for Alan Gilbert and his shop.

I'm hoping there's lots more to come for the Woolworths girls. Everest moves the series along skilfully with impeccable plotting which keeps the reader invested in the lives of the characters and their locale. Celebrations for the Woolworths Girls was just as wonderful a read as I knew it would be and the news at the end plus the thread about Vera's past left me wanting to know what will happen next for the residents of Erith. I thought this book was simply splendid. ( )