About the Author Kristina Olsson is the author of the novels In One Skin and The China Garden, as well as the biography Kilroy Was Here. She has worked as a creative writing and journalism teacher, and as an advisor to the Australian government. Her journalism and non-fiction have been published in The Australian, The Courier-Mail, The Sydney Sunday Telegraph and Griffith Review. She has worked extensively as a teacher of creative writing and journalism at tertiary level and in the community, and as an advisor to government. Read more
L**T
A book to touch your heart
This book made me weep. It woke me up at three in the morning so I could read to the end, and it made me sob out loud - I had to do the morning walk in dark glasses. It is the true story of the author's beautiful young mother, a handsome, violent husband, and a boy taken from her arms, and the way this experience ripples and echoes through the lives of her subsequent family, and is passed on into the next generation. I know this place, the houses, the cafe where they meet, the lives and the people and the small society, and of course this helps to make the book feel real and personal. But make no mistake: it is the writing - powerful, simple, immediate, unadorned and full of truth - that grabs the heart out of your chest, and draws you beyond knowing, into feeling this experience. Thank you, Kristina Olsson. I understand my own family, and all families better for reading your book.
K**K
Heart wrenching true story. Enjoyable to read of the human ability to survive despite all the hardship.
This was a tough read, as a mother, I found myself close to tears on many occasion. Being a true story made it more gut wrenching. I did enjoy it, though, as it's good to read about strength & resilience.
J**N
This was a very well written and heart-rending story. ...
This was a very well written and heart-rending story. The events were described realistically which made the story so compelling. Hard to believe that such a thing could happen in our lifetimes.
N**N
... book deserves 5 stars but it is so desperately sad that I'm not comfortable saying that I love it
This book deserves 5 stars but it is so desperately sad that I'm not comfortable saying that I love it. It is a very sobering book that makes you want to hold on to your children and never let them go!!
J**S
Boy, lost
Sad but beautiful story, very well written . I am amazed at his life story and how he survived all the things that were dealt to him.
K**L
Five Stars
I found this book very moving and probably representative of many families of that generation.
A**N
10 out of 10
An incredible and uplifting story, so well written and easy to read. I cried at the injustice, but understood how our culture acted in those years. Thank goodness we now understand how wrong those practices were.
A**T
Presentation of characters.
A well executed presentation of characters reflecting the ripples in the pond of life and how directions and choices we make create repercussions.
Trustpilot
2 days ago
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