On the day of her 13th birthday Hannah ‘Birdie’ Bird arrives as the under-laundry maid at Angus Hall. The work is arduous, and Birdie uses the dank corridors to sneak into the rooms in the family home. She shares a bed in the attic with meek Mary who accepts her servitude gratefully, but Birdie aspires to a better life because she was taught to read and speak French by her mother who had been banished from the ancestral home with nothing but her baby and a red silk gown. She truly believes this is her real family.
At night she reads aloud the Penny Dreadfuls ‘borrowed’ from the family, and when she meets the enigmatic Joe, she naively believes that life imitates art.
Treachery and a silk heist gone horribly wrong results in a death sentence. Only the Antipodean quota saves her from the gallows. The shipboard conditions are fetid and during the voyage, forced marriages to sailors are imposed, but finally they arrive in Sydney.
Birdie is irrepressible, optimistic and a little bit feisty. Her friendships are strong, but so too are her enemies.
I enjoyed The Gallows Bird but would have liked to see this split into two novels. It did feel a bit disjointed and rushed and left me wondering what happened once she reached Australia. It was well researched, and I enjoyed reading about the laundry tips and tricks of that time. The characters and plot were both strong and interesting enough to expand this and provide a rich and satisfying read.
Reviewed by Nicola Skinstad
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ABOUT THE AUTHORBarbara Sumner is an author and filmmaker. Her back catalogue of achievements includes producing three highly acclaimed feature documentaries, a career in journalism, event production, television, bringing up four daughters and being accepted into a Masters program at the tender age of 60.
Barbara lives with her husband Thomas Burstyn in Hawke’s Bay with a curmudgeonly ginger cat. She spends her time reading, writing, walking, and corrupting her grandchildren with wild ideas about life, love, and imagination.
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