Customer Reviews

Through Charley's Door

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3 star:		(1)
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Ms. Kimbrough's first job was at the Marshall Field & Company department store in Chicago. She began in the advertising department in 1923, knowing nothing. Through her eyes and experiences, we learn with her all about the people and inner workings of such a place. Her vivid and amusing style catch you up and make you crave for (as she did) her daily chats with dept. store "heads." During her her 5 years there, she worked on the bimonthly Field's magazine "Fashions of the Hour". Her anecdotes of trying to write copy for it will have you laughing on the floor. Before I tell too much, maybe I should just stop and say: Read it!

The book is beautifully written - a history of Marshall Field and a piece of life in 1920's Chicago. By the way, Charley was the doorman at the Wshington street entrance that she knew since she was a child.

I loved the content as well as the writing.It is a joyful little book without being corny.It offers a rare glimpse into Marshall Fields form the perspective of the doorman.It's sublime reading and a great choice for a gift especially for a Chicago resident.But everyone loved Fields and for that matter Chicago is beloved as well.

A fabulous read and excellent story of Marshall Field's in the 1920s. The author worked at the store for 4 years in the mid-20s. The story follows her career in a mostly humorous way including her early foibles. But Kimborough also relied on interviews from the Marshall Field archives to create a vivid portrait of the store. At times the book can't decide if it's a history or a story (some of the historical bits are a bit awkward -- when the narrator stops by a clerk's counter and suddenly gets an awkward bit of history or statistics inserted). But a fun, fast read and probably the best book at capturing the feel and personality of the great Chicago department store.

Emily Kimbrough, born in 1899, was one of the relatively small number of women in her generation to attend college. Later on she became a writer and chronicled many periods in her life. This book details her first job at a large department store in Chicago in the 1920's. She worked in the advertising department and took great delight in her job, unlike many of us today. The outlook is refreshingly naive and paints a portrait of a simpler time. The books have a certain nostalgic appeal.