I love history, particularly social history that explores the lives of women, and this book fits really well into this area of interest. Wendy James has taken the real life story of a young girl named Maggie Heffernan who lived in Australia at the turn of the twentieth century and added a fictional background to the crime she was tried for. To complement Maggie’s story we also have Elizabeth Hamilton’s story, a slightly older woman, an unwilling spinster, who works as a governess and later at a school run by Vida Goldstein. For those of you who know as little about Australian history as I do, in 1903, Vida Goldstein was the first woman in the British Empire to stand for election in a national parliament, woman having been given the vote much earlier in Australia than either the UK or the US. As Elizabeth’s story unfolds she gives an insight into the suffragette movement in Australia at this time as seen through a bystanders view rather than with the full force of Vida’s passion for the cause.
Maggie’s story is told in the first person and follows her movement from eldest daughter helping her rather cold mother out at home in the fabulously named Dederang, to being shipped off to the nearby town of Yackandandah to help out relations before moving away on her own accord gaining a permanent position as a servant. All through her narrative I knew that her love affair with Jack Hardy was doomed and yet I still hoped that the ending would be different so affected was I by the voice Wendy James gave her.
Being caught out in this dress is shame enough, but just as he comes by I am squeezed right down the front of the cart, poking about as if hunting for something or other, so he comes upon me unawares an when he asks, ‘Is everything all right miss? Can I help you with anything?’ I am not expecting it and hit my shin hard on the bench.
When I have recovered enough to speak, I ask him what he thinks he is doing, what sort of fool is he to come creeping up on a person in such a way?
‘My apologies, miss,’ he says, ‘but I wouldn’t say I was creeping – this is a public path, y’know, an thee was nowhere else for me to walk. I just thought you might have been in some difficulty, being all doubled over like that…’
‘It was nothing,’ I tell him. ‘I had… dropped my glove, is all, an was hunting for it.’ This is so plainly a tale – it is as warm a day as we ever get an there’s not a single glove in evidence – that I add in a tone that Ma would be proud of, ‘Which a person’s got a perfect right to do without being frightened out of her wits by a complete stranger.’
Elizabeth’s story is told through her journal entries and letters to her brother who is in New York, far away from their birthplace in Edinburgh, this is much drier in tone and consequently it took longer for me to get as emotionally involved in her story, which although much less dramatic than Maggie’s, illustrates how for many women the only way they would feel fulfilled was to marry but Elizabeth’s fiancé had died in a tragic accident shortly before she moved to Melbourne. Elizabeth’s story also gives us the insight into Vida’s life, a woman who has decided that improving the lives of woman and children was her goal and this couldn’t be combined with marriage. In fact all three women were fighting against not only circumstance but the freedom to have any real choices about their lives.
9 May
First typing class today. Girls very enthusiastic. Only one parent objecting to it calling it an unnecessary evil. The same parent, incidentally, who opposed his daughter’s algebra lessons. The girls father is a member of the lower house, formerly a grocer who mae his fortune during the gold rush. She tells us he can’t see the point (and nor can she for that matter). Why train her to do things she’ll never need? not as if she’ll ever have to earn her living he says. Which is fortunate, really…
These lives collide when Maggie is arrested and Vida organised a campaign both during and after the trial which successfully proved to her country that she was able to run such a sustained media blitz, helped by the fact that she didn’t fit the stereotypical view of a suffragette. With Elizabeth on hand to help Vida out with the campaign and accompanying her on visits to Maggie these three women, with very different backgrounds meet.
Wendy James doesn’t judge any of the three women featured in this book, although the facts are overlaid with fiction and maybe Maggie’s story is given the most positive spin possible, it was still eminently believable and I didn’t get the feeling that sometimes happens in these types of books, that the author wanted me to come to a certain conclusion, rather she had confidence that her story was enough and the reader could make their own mind up about the choices made by each of the women.
I can’t wait to read more books by Wendy James, this is easily my favourite read of the year so far, admittedly aided by my keen interest in the subject matter but definitely enhanced by the sheer quality of the writing.
More Historical Crime
The Murder Tree – Alan Veale
Not Guilty – Christine Gardner
Death at the Priory – James Ruddick
Quiet Dell – Jayne Anne Phillips
Great review. This sounds really good. I love books about women pulling together.
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Ah thank you! I love books that accurately reflect real women’s lives and this does that exceptionally well without ever forcing the issue.
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I’m so glad to hear that you liked this as well as you did, Cleo! I think Wendy James is extremely talented, and this one’s a fine example of that. Fine review 🙂
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I had a feeling I would enjoy this one but I didn’t realise how much – my daughter who did her dissertation on this subject has read it while on her travels on my recommendation and is grateful too! I’m definitely looking forward to reading more from this talented author.
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I like the sound of this book and I didn’t know the history of the women’s movement in Australia either. I also like books that include diaries/letters. Nice review!
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The structure combined with the content made this a fascinating book to read. Elizabeth’s story is a little dryer than Maggie’s but that reflects their different outlooks on life. I can’t recommend this highly enough.
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That sounds fascinating! I love historical fiction. This goes on my list.
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I really do think this is something special and if you enjoy historical fiction, especially when it’s based on real events you can’t go wrong with this one.
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This sounds really interesting. Historical isn’t my strong point in reading and yet this does sound really well done.
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I was spoilt with this one because it covers an area that interests me, that said the way the author combined the three women’s lives was outstandingly portrayed.
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Great review! There’s really no point in me adding it to my already overloaded TBR at the moment, but I’ll definitely look out for the author in future…
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To have a book written about an area of history I’m most interested in was a real treat and my gushing review reflects that in part and most of all I did like the fact that the author wasn’t trying to tell me what to think! I’m going to be trying something else by this author before too long!
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Yes, I like when the author trusts the reader to form her own opinion! And I love gushing reviews! 😀
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This is the next Wendy James book on my TBR list. I’ve read The Lost Girls and The Steele Diaries, two excellent books. James is a recent discovery for me and a wonderful one at that. She is an excellent writer ad a superb story teller.
You might be interested in reading this interview with James.
http://carolbalawyder.com/2015/02/20/how-i-got-published-wendy-james/
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Sounds great Cleo, I love books like this 🙂
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