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Long Bay
In 1909 Rebecca Sinclair was sent to Long Bay Women's Reformatory after she was convicted of manslaughter. A mother-of-three had died at her house after a botched abortion. Rebecca was sentenced to three years hard labour, but less than six months into her prison term she gave birth to a child, a girl, who she kept with her in prison.
"LONG BAY is that rare thing: a historical novel untainted by sentimentality, with a story not only fascinating in the context of its time, but made relevant to the modern world." - Hannah Kent, author of BURIAL RITES
"Rebecca Sinclair is a character who will live on in my memory long after turning the final page on her story - which seems only just, as Limprecht has rescued an otherwise forgotten woman from archival obscurity. LONG BAY wears its history lightly but packs an emotional wallop, straight to the guts of our humanity. Deftly researched, deeply satisfying." - Clare Wright, author of THE FORGOTTEN REBELS OF EUREKA
"LONG BAY is that rare thing: a historical novel untainted by sentimentality, with a story not only fascinating in the context of its time, but made relevant to the modern world." - Hannah Kent, author of BURIAL RITES
"Rebecca Sinclair is a character who will live on in my memory long after turning the final page on her story - which seems only just, as Limprecht has rescued an otherwise forgotten woman from archival obscurity. LONG BAY wears its history lightly but packs an emotional wallop, straight to the guts of our humanity. Deftly researched, deeply satisfying." - Clare Wright, author of THE FORGOTTEN REBELS OF EUREKA
313 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
January 1, 2016
Where do I start with this book?
I stumbled across this book when a friend told me about the book giveaways on Goodreads - I had no idea such a thing existed.
So, I clicked on the link the friend sent and played around. Turns out most of the titles were not for me (or my postal region), but the title and description of Long Bay caught my eye. So, I entered and waited... and didn't win.
Not long after, I saw in the Gleebooks catalogue the author was going to be speaking at Gleebooks. So, I decided to buy the book, read it before the evening, and drag a couple of others along and make an evening of it. I also had this mad idea that I could take my two children to the event and they would behave - note to reader: small children and author events do not mix.
So, I read the book with my heart in my mouth. All the locations mentioned are familiar to me (I once worked down the road from the prison, the hospital that delivers the first of Rebecca Sinclair's daughters was the TAFE I passed each day when I was a student, etc.). The prose was sparingly light and my eye/attention raced along the page so I nearly finished the book in one sitting. But, I think what moved me the most was the 19th century womens' history.
Recently while listening to a Guardian Books podcast about books that speak to each other I was nodding away. This is something that I constantly find. A common thread (usually slender), between the book that I've just finished and the one I've just started reading. In the case of Long Bay I had been reading The invisible history of the human race by Christine Kenneally. There is a section about records mouldering away in basements and filing spaces, fragile and inaccessible. Records of people whose biographical details may not appear anywhere else. Typical, everyday people who simply lived their lives and were not considered remarkable. With the passing of time these stories will be lost to us if the records are not preserved, etc. And, are often not publicly or easily accessible (hidden by red tape or paywalls).
Another section of the book is about genealogy. Who looks, why and what do they think/do with the material they find?
Both of these threads deeply moved me when reading this book. A story of a woman who was nearly forgotten until the author stumbled across mentions of her in a local goal's correspondence. Her photograph there on the front cover... I wanted to know more.
Eleanor Limprecht tells this story as fiction, allowing her to piece together the details of this real woman's life.
Reading it, there were one or two moments where I was moved to wonder, but in hindsight, when trying to stick to 'true facts', real life can at times be stranger then fiction. Ashley Hay in her review in The Australian referred to this as "The messy and twisting reality of this narrative makes Rebecca utterly memorable, yet there are some moments that would probably ring more true ...". Worded far better then I ever could. Which also reminds me Ashley Hay is an author I really should read.
If my interaction with this story had ended there, I would have happily given this book 3-4 stars, said that it was a moving story, and probably happily popped the book into the charity box and remembered little. So, you can imagine how surprised and amazed I was when we all rolled up for the author talk at Gleebooks and it was revealed that the descendants of the protagonist were there that evening and how the story continued.
Sometimes I wonder about characters from books I have read. What did they do after the book finished? How would they have reacted when...? Because, often it feels like characters do live and live on affecting the flow of history and space around them. So, it didn't seem unusual at all to hear of Rebecca Sinclair's later life and descendants.
And it felt like the book and author were everywhere after that. Great reviews in newspapers, social media, appearing on ABC radio and even making an appearance at my local library.
I dragged another friend along and insisted she read the book for the local library event, and was amazed at how adaptable author, Eleanor Limprecht was. This time she spoke more about accessing and using the local history materials and artifacts. I was fascinated all over again. The double speak used in the personal columns in the newspapers, the health of women and their babies at the time. The limited life choices available to Edwardian women in Sydney.
The front cover of the book has a quote from Hannah Kent (author of Burial rites), which is an interesting comparison. I have this book on my ipad - unfinished. Burial rites is an historical story told as fiction that I struggled with because of the emotional weight of the story (I wish I could think of a better description), and IMHO oppressiveness of the story. Long Bay does not come with the same hanky-wringing pathos. Rebecca Sinclair is a young woman who is what she is. No tears, no tugging at heart strings. I really admired Eleanor Limprecht's ability to recreate this hardworking and quietly proud woman on the page.
Thank you Eleanor Limprecht for sharing this story with the world. Your ability to recreate 19th century Sydney and tell the story of a working class woman accessible and understandable to modern readers was a joy to read and discover.
I stumbled across this book when a friend told me about the book giveaways on Goodreads - I had no idea such a thing existed.
So, I clicked on the link the friend sent and played around. Turns out most of the titles were not for me (or my postal region), but the title and description of Long Bay caught my eye. So, I entered and waited... and didn't win.
Not long after, I saw in the Gleebooks catalogue the author was going to be speaking at Gleebooks. So, I decided to buy the book, read it before the evening, and drag a couple of others along and make an evening of it. I also had this mad idea that I could take my two children to the event and they would behave - note to reader: small children and author events do not mix.
So, I read the book with my heart in my mouth. All the locations mentioned are familiar to me (I once worked down the road from the prison, the hospital that delivers the first of Rebecca Sinclair's daughters was the TAFE I passed each day when I was a student, etc.). The prose was sparingly light and my eye/attention raced along the page so I nearly finished the book in one sitting. But, I think what moved me the most was the 19th century womens' history.
Recently while listening to a Guardian Books podcast about books that speak to each other I was nodding away. This is something that I constantly find. A common thread (usually slender), between the book that I've just finished and the one I've just started reading. In the case of Long Bay I had been reading The invisible history of the human race by Christine Kenneally. There is a section about records mouldering away in basements and filing spaces, fragile and inaccessible. Records of people whose biographical details may not appear anywhere else. Typical, everyday people who simply lived their lives and were not considered remarkable. With the passing of time these stories will be lost to us if the records are not preserved, etc. And, are often not publicly or easily accessible (hidden by red tape or paywalls).
Another section of the book is about genealogy. Who looks, why and what do they think/do with the material they find?
Both of these threads deeply moved me when reading this book. A story of a woman who was nearly forgotten until the author stumbled across mentions of her in a local goal's correspondence. Her photograph there on the front cover... I wanted to know more.
Eleanor Limprecht tells this story as fiction, allowing her to piece together the details of this real woman's life.
Reading it, there were one or two moments where I was moved to wonder, but in hindsight, when trying to stick to 'true facts', real life can at times be stranger then fiction. Ashley Hay in her review in The Australian referred to this as "The messy and twisting reality of this narrative makes Rebecca utterly memorable, yet there are some moments that would probably ring more true ...". Worded far better then I ever could. Which also reminds me Ashley Hay is an author I really should read.
If my interaction with this story had ended there, I would have happily given this book 3-4 stars, said that it was a moving story, and probably happily popped the book into the charity box and remembered little. So, you can imagine how surprised and amazed I was when we all rolled up for the author talk at Gleebooks and it was revealed that the descendants of the protagonist were there that evening and how the story continued.
Sometimes I wonder about characters from books I have read. What did they do after the book finished? How would they have reacted when...? Because, often it feels like characters do live and live on affecting the flow of history and space around them. So, it didn't seem unusual at all to hear of Rebecca Sinclair's later life and descendants.
And it felt like the book and author were everywhere after that. Great reviews in newspapers, social media, appearing on ABC radio and even making an appearance at my local library.
I dragged another friend along and insisted she read the book for the local library event, and was amazed at how adaptable author, Eleanor Limprecht was. This time she spoke more about accessing and using the local history materials and artifacts. I was fascinated all over again. The double speak used in the personal columns in the newspapers, the health of women and their babies at the time. The limited life choices available to Edwardian women in Sydney.
The front cover of the book has a quote from Hannah Kent (author of Burial rites), which is an interesting comparison. I have this book on my ipad - unfinished. Burial rites is an historical story told as fiction that I struggled with because of the emotional weight of the story (I wish I could think of a better description), and IMHO oppressiveness of the story. Long Bay does not come with the same hanky-wringing pathos. Rebecca Sinclair is a young woman who is what she is. No tears, no tugging at heart strings. I really admired Eleanor Limprecht's ability to recreate this hardworking and quietly proud woman on the page.
Thank you Eleanor Limprecht for sharing this story with the world. Your ability to recreate 19th century Sydney and tell the story of a working class woman accessible and understandable to modern readers was a joy to read and discover.
August 17, 2015
Drawing on official documents and extensive general research into the period, author Eleanor Limprecht blends fact and imagination to create a convincing narrative that tells the story of a woman forgotten by history in her novel, 'Long Bay'.
Born in Paddington, New South Wales in 1885, Rebecca Sinclair was the fourth of six children, raised by her mother who was widowed when Rebecca was two. She married at nineteen, birthed a daughter, and four years later, alongside her husband, was convicted of manslaughter for the death of a mother of three who died after an abortion procedure performed by Rebecca went wrong. Rebecca was sentenced to three years hard labour in Long Bay and while imprisoned, Rebecca birthed her second daughter.
Limprecht builds on these known details of Rebecca's life with her imagination, informed by research, creating a story that depicts a childhood of poverty, a marriage marred by bigamy and violence and the events that led up to the tragic event that resulted in her being jailed. Long Bay illustrates an era where women had limited control over their lives and often struggled under the weight of deprivation and hardship.
There is no doubt that Rebecca's story is fascinating and I was intrigued by the details of her life, but the writing is often quite dry and unsentimental, lacking the emotion that could have breathed more vitality into the narrative. Yet the story is rich in period detail, evoking the city landscape and era well.
A thoughtful and readable novel, I did enjoy Long Bay. I feel it is a story that will interest readers of both historical fiction and non fiction, especially those curious about women's lives and issues at the turn of the century.
January 28, 2016
‘Her first memories are fragments, scraps of fabric pieced together to make a whole.’
This novel starts with a letter from the Prison Comptroller to the Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney. This letter, the inspiration for Ms Limprecht’s novel, advises the Hospital of the arrangements to be made for the admission of Rebecca Sinclair for the birth of her child. After the letter, in a prologue Rebecca’s admission to the hospital is described, and then her labour begins.
‘Tell him we have the upper hand and we could let the whole world know.’
With Chapter One, the novel returns to Rebecca’s childhood and the novel progresses chronologically. At this stage, I am hooked. Who is Rebecca Sinclair? Why is she in prison? And the baby? Slowly, the story unfolds. Rebecca lives with her widowed mother and sisters and they take in piece work in order to exist. Rebecca works hard, and then harder as her sisters leave home and her mother’s failing eyesight renders her incapable of finer needlework. Then, one day, she meets Donald Sinclair. Donald is the only son of Nurse Sinclair, an abortionist with a thriving trade in inner Sydney in the early twentieth century. Rebecca falls for Donald, but slowly becomes aware that he is not to be trusted. Donald likes money, but only the spending rather than the earning of it.
‘In this reflection she sees nothing of the girl with the blue silk, nothing of the young woman who read books and dreamt of finer things.’
Rebecca works with Donald’s mother for a while, but then Rebecca and Donald set up on their own. A woman dies, and Rebecca and Donald are charged with manslaughter. Rebecca’s story ends with her release from gaol.
Some novelizations of true stories do not work, sometimes the facts constrain the story. That wasn’t the case for me in this novel. I thought that Ms Limprecht imagined Rebecca’s life and challenges well. From the hardship faced by her mother, widowed with six children, to the role played by those willing to undertake abortions and the risks faced by those who underwent them, the story rang true for me. Perhaps Rebecca should have made different choices, certainly she seemed naïve and gullible at times. But what other options did she have? Leaving Donald had its own challenges.
‘The body, as we age, is like a map, she thinks – a map to read with my hands.’
I enjoyed this novel: it challenged me and made me think about some of the challenges of life for the poor, specifically for poor women, early last century.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
This novel starts with a letter from the Prison Comptroller to the Royal Hospital for Women in Sydney. This letter, the inspiration for Ms Limprecht’s novel, advises the Hospital of the arrangements to be made for the admission of Rebecca Sinclair for the birth of her child. After the letter, in a prologue Rebecca’s admission to the hospital is described, and then her labour begins.
‘Tell him we have the upper hand and we could let the whole world know.’
With Chapter One, the novel returns to Rebecca’s childhood and the novel progresses chronologically. At this stage, I am hooked. Who is Rebecca Sinclair? Why is she in prison? And the baby? Slowly, the story unfolds. Rebecca lives with her widowed mother and sisters and they take in piece work in order to exist. Rebecca works hard, and then harder as her sisters leave home and her mother’s failing eyesight renders her incapable of finer needlework. Then, one day, she meets Donald Sinclair. Donald is the only son of Nurse Sinclair, an abortionist with a thriving trade in inner Sydney in the early twentieth century. Rebecca falls for Donald, but slowly becomes aware that he is not to be trusted. Donald likes money, but only the spending rather than the earning of it.
‘In this reflection she sees nothing of the girl with the blue silk, nothing of the young woman who read books and dreamt of finer things.’
Rebecca works with Donald’s mother for a while, but then Rebecca and Donald set up on their own. A woman dies, and Rebecca and Donald are charged with manslaughter. Rebecca’s story ends with her release from gaol.
Some novelizations of true stories do not work, sometimes the facts constrain the story. That wasn’t the case for me in this novel. I thought that Ms Limprecht imagined Rebecca’s life and challenges well. From the hardship faced by her mother, widowed with six children, to the role played by those willing to undertake abortions and the risks faced by those who underwent them, the story rang true for me. Perhaps Rebecca should have made different choices, certainly she seemed naïve and gullible at times. But what other options did she have? Leaving Donald had its own challenges.
‘The body, as we age, is like a map, she thinks – a map to read with my hands.’
I enjoyed this novel: it challenged me and made me think about some of the challenges of life for the poor, specifically for poor women, early last century.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
November 14, 2015
I will miss Rebecca now that I have turned the last page. What a satisfying read! I loved it.
Thank you my dear friend,also called Rebecca, for lending me this book and introducing me to Eleanor Limprecht. I am off to find her previous book and cannot wait for more from this marvellous Aussie author.
Thank you my dear friend,also called Rebecca, for lending me this book and introducing me to Eleanor Limprecht. I am off to find her previous book and cannot wait for more from this marvellous Aussie author.
August 15, 2015
The problem with Hannah Kent’s debut, Burial Rites, is that it set the bar for historical fiction very high. Really, so high you can barely imagine. Look up into the sky, as far as your eye goes, and then look a little a further – Burial Rites is somewhere a bit further than that again.
And so I sat down with Eleanor Limprecht’s Long Bay, a fictionalised account of the life of Rebecca Sinclair, a woman who was sent to Long Bay Women’s Reformatory in 1909 after she was convicted of manslaughter for a botched abortion. Rebecca was sentenced to three years hard labour, but less than six months into her prison term she gave birth to a child, who she kept with her in prison.
I chose Long Bay for a few reasons – the Hannah Kent testimonial on the cover, an interest in women’s history and as a companion read to Kate Manning’s My Notorious Life. But it failed to capture me. I didn’t become adsorbed in the time, or the place (Sydney at the turn of the twentieth century). I didn’t feel as if I was seeing life through Rebecca’s eyes – I didn’t feel her hunger, her despair, her lust. I’m quite sure Rebecca has/had an interesting story but how different was it from many others? I don’t know, because Limprecht didn’t take me as far as I was anticipating.
I feel like I haven’t said anything to sell Long Bay… My husband noted that I didn’t put it down for two days. True, I tore through the book, keen to see how Rebecca’s story unfolded (even though you know the ending from the outset). It’s easy reading and for those keen on Australian history, is interesting. And I’m sure I will think of Rebecca Sinclair from time to time, if only because of the story behind the book (which you can read here: http://www.eleanorlimprecht.com/the-s... )
3/5 Satisfactory.
And so I sat down with Eleanor Limprecht’s Long Bay, a fictionalised account of the life of Rebecca Sinclair, a woman who was sent to Long Bay Women’s Reformatory in 1909 after she was convicted of manslaughter for a botched abortion. Rebecca was sentenced to three years hard labour, but less than six months into her prison term she gave birth to a child, who she kept with her in prison.
I chose Long Bay for a few reasons – the Hannah Kent testimonial on the cover, an interest in women’s history and as a companion read to Kate Manning’s My Notorious Life. But it failed to capture me. I didn’t become adsorbed in the time, or the place (Sydney at the turn of the twentieth century). I didn’t feel as if I was seeing life through Rebecca’s eyes – I didn’t feel her hunger, her despair, her lust. I’m quite sure Rebecca has/had an interesting story but how different was it from many others? I don’t know, because Limprecht didn’t take me as far as I was anticipating.
I feel like I haven’t said anything to sell Long Bay… My husband noted that I didn’t put it down for two days. True, I tore through the book, keen to see how Rebecca’s story unfolded (even though you know the ending from the outset). It’s easy reading and for those keen on Australian history, is interesting. And I’m sure I will think of Rebecca Sinclair from time to time, if only because of the story behind the book (which you can read here: http://www.eleanorlimprecht.com/the-s... )
3/5 Satisfactory.
May 4, 2016
A fascinating book, but one that didn't quite work as a novel for me. Something about it felt very much like the thinly fictionalised historical story that it is - it was caught halfway between being a novel and being straight-up history, and it wound up falling a bit short on both sides. It's a heart-breaking and brilliantly researched story, and is probably worth your time just from that perspective, but I never found myself getting properly caught up in the characters in the way that I wanted to.
March 14, 2016
Fascinating insight into turn of the century Sydney, through the life of a real woman jailed for an abortion that resulted in the death of the patient. A little earnest in parts but a great read nonetheless. For my full review, see http://whisperinggums.com/2015/12/27/...
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June 25, 2016Women had a terrible time of it back then. Reading this straight after Lucy Treloar's 'Salt Creek' I was almost overwhelmed by the awful lack of freedom, the utter reliance on men to support you, to do right by you. And the infrequency with which they did. This is not a cheering book, but its grittiness and hope, and its insight into life in early Sydney, are fascinating.
December 16, 2018
I just could not put this book down and it is to the author's skill that I kept thinking about Rebecca Sinclair in the days I was reading this fine historical novel. There are so many times when she is standing on a precipice and I found myself talking to her begging her to choose another way. For example when Don tries to explain away why a clergyman is not present and that the certificate he produces means that they are legally married, I was thinking “ you poor trusting little girl”
My own grandmother was also left a widow with young children to support in the early 1900's so I found it incredibly poignant to realize just how desperate life was living on the lowly amounts gained from sewing. So sad to also learn how children as young as four were taught to sew. Rebecca basically had no childhood.
The historical details are so painstakingly described especially the coded messages in the newspapers alerting despairing pregnant women on how to find someone to help them end their pregnancies. I do hope that her dressmaking foreman, Chris Willis, did love and care for her and her two daughters. A thoroughly remarkable novel.
My own grandmother was also left a widow with young children to support in the early 1900's so I found it incredibly poignant to realize just how desperate life was living on the lowly amounts gained from sewing. So sad to also learn how children as young as four were taught to sew. Rebecca basically had no childhood.
The historical details are so painstakingly described especially the coded messages in the newspapers alerting despairing pregnant women on how to find someone to help them end their pregnancies. I do hope that her dressmaking foreman, Chris Willis, did love and care for her and her two daughters. A thoroughly remarkable novel.
March 7, 2017
A well written account of a history of a poor woman who had a grim life at the turn of the 20th century. The overwhelming grinding poverty of her up bringing and young adult life caused me to despair for women of that era in circumstances similar to hers. What would we have done if placed in her shoes?
January 5, 2017
Fascinating and beautifully written account based on a true story ... Limprecht brings to life the tough streets of working-class Sydney in the early 1900s, and exposes the terrible choices (or lack of choices) so many women faced ... it's an authentic story that's clearly based on meticulous research. At times I grew frustrated by Rebecca (the likeable but deeply flawed protagonist), her loyalty to the wastrel Don and her tolerance of his malicious mother - but the book has a raw honesty that stayed with me long after I'd turned the last page. Highly recommended.
March 25, 2017
A botched abortion landed Rebecca Sinclair in the women's prison at Long Bay. But what lead Rebecca there? In Long Bay, author Eleanor Limprecht recreates Rebecca's life and trials, depicting her journey to prison and her journey out.
Long Bay was a bit of a middling read for me. It was neither wholly bad – though there were some flaws – nor a breathtakingly excellent read.
Limprecht's writing is strong and lyrical, to the point where I often didn't mind that a lot of the novel is expositional, scenes made up of description and summary as opposed to scenes with dialogue and action. The novel flowed well, one page often leading into the next.
I also found the issues and themes highlighted by this novel to be worthy of attention and enjoyed how Limprecht handled them.
On the downside, a lot of the novel is, as I've said, exposition, and while it wasn't necessarily a dull read because of it, there were times when it did show stress. Writers are often told to "show, not tell" and I feel as though Long Bay suffers from this. Limprecht has Rebecca going through an arc to become more reckless, but rather than giving the narrative the space to show this vast shift in her personality, we get a line that reads (more or less), "she decides to be reckless" and then bam, she's reckless. It feels utterly alien to her character and there's no real development to make that shift feel natural.
Furthermore, Long Bay felt a bit emotionless. I did feel frustrated with the men in this story, but I rarely felt invested in Rebecca's story. I rarely felt her emotions. At times, it meant that the character of Rebecca felt weak and easily swayed.
I didn't dislike Long Bay, but I don't find a lot that I explicitly like about it either.
Long Bay was a bit of a middling read for me. It was neither wholly bad – though there were some flaws – nor a breathtakingly excellent read.
Limprecht's writing is strong and lyrical, to the point where I often didn't mind that a lot of the novel is expositional, scenes made up of description and summary as opposed to scenes with dialogue and action. The novel flowed well, one page often leading into the next.
I also found the issues and themes highlighted by this novel to be worthy of attention and enjoyed how Limprecht handled them.
On the downside, a lot of the novel is, as I've said, exposition, and while it wasn't necessarily a dull read because of it, there were times when it did show stress. Writers are often told to "show, not tell" and I feel as though Long Bay suffers from this. Limprecht has Rebecca going through an arc to become more reckless, but rather than giving the narrative the space to show this vast shift in her personality, we get a line that reads (more or less), "she decides to be reckless" and then bam, she's reckless. It feels utterly alien to her character and there's no real development to make that shift feel natural.
Furthermore, Long Bay felt a bit emotionless. I did feel frustrated with the men in this story, but I rarely felt invested in Rebecca's story. I rarely felt her emotions. At times, it meant that the character of Rebecca felt weak and easily swayed.
I didn't dislike Long Bay, but I don't find a lot that I explicitly like about it either.
May 11, 2018
Rebecca Sinclair, as you can tell from the title and front cover, ended up an inmate of the Long Bay Women’s prison. She had a hard childhood and adolescence, working as an outworker seamstress alongside her mother in the inner suburbs of Sydney in the 1880s. Largely to escape this straitened life, she married Don, who is largely under the control of his mother, and is a liar and wastrel. In Limprecht’s telling, it is largely because of Don’s influence that Rebecca ended up in jail. I’ll leave her to explain how and why....
Limprecht has pulled off the feat of combining research into a real character with a fictionalized narrative that is true to the evidence.... Her depiction of Rebecca Sinclair is fleshed-out and human, and if at times the research bones become apparent, Limprecht’s character is convincing enough to stay in your mind after you’ve finished the book.
For my full review see
https://residentjudge.wordpress.com/2...
Limprecht has pulled off the feat of combining research into a real character with a fictionalized narrative that is true to the evidence.... Her depiction of Rebecca Sinclair is fleshed-out and human, and if at times the research bones become apparent, Limprecht’s character is convincing enough to stay in your mind after you’ve finished the book.
For my full review see
https://residentjudge.wordpress.com/2...
September 5, 2019
This book gives a fascinating insight into the life of Rebecca Sinclair, a young woman sentenced to three years' hard labour for manslaughter in the early part of the 20th century after she involuntarily caused the death of a woman during an illegal abortion in Sydney.
The writing is clear and concise in its descriptions of the poverty experienced by Rebecca and her siblings as their mother works long hours as a seamstress to try and make ends meet, training her daughters to help her from a very early age. We see their individual attempts to climb out of poverty, with more or less success.
Rebecca's naivety leads her into a disastrous relationship that will ultimately cause her downfall. Yet the end of the book points to a brighter future, withtwo children she adores and a man who recognises her true qualities.
A book that I would thoroughly recommend.
The writing is clear and concise in its descriptions of the poverty experienced by Rebecca and her siblings as their mother works long hours as a seamstress to try and make ends meet, training her daughters to help her from a very early age. We see their individual attempts to climb out of poverty, with more or less success.
Rebecca's naivety leads her into a disastrous relationship that will ultimately cause her downfall. Yet the end of the book points to a brighter future, withtwo children she adores and a man who recognises her true qualities.
A book that I would thoroughly recommend.
February 25, 2021
Based on the life and times of Rebecca Sinclair, this tale is gripping from the very first page.
One of several sisters she worked to help her mother provide for the rest of the family. The one boy of the family was not inclined to help, intent instead of living a life of pleasure despite limited means. Rebecca's sad drift into a false and bigamous marriage to the son of a well-known abortionist was the beginning of a sad decline for her. Time in gaol strengthened her resolve to lead a better life for the sake of her daughters.
Photos from Long Bay Gaol show Rebecca as a sad-faced young woman whose eyes have witnessed much of life's trials.
The book also gives an insight into the times - the factory workers, the prostitutes, the men without work but who were often drinkers and gamblers. Sydney just after the turn of the 20th century.
Rebecca's descendants are living today.
One of several sisters she worked to help her mother provide for the rest of the family. The one boy of the family was not inclined to help, intent instead of living a life of pleasure despite limited means. Rebecca's sad drift into a false and bigamous marriage to the son of a well-known abortionist was the beginning of a sad decline for her. Time in gaol strengthened her resolve to lead a better life for the sake of her daughters.
Photos from Long Bay Gaol show Rebecca as a sad-faced young woman whose eyes have witnessed much of life's trials.
The book also gives an insight into the times - the factory workers, the prostitutes, the men without work but who were often drinkers and gamblers. Sydney just after the turn of the 20th century.
Rebecca's descendants are living today.
May 14, 2017
A brilliant read. Eleanor does an amazing job at telling Rebecca Sinclair's story and highlighting the importance and tragedy of establishments where illegal abortions were performed. This book is raw, insightful, distressing and successfully shares the stark reality of what life was like for many women in this era. Although I would have loved for the author to have revisited Ruby and her situation in more detail, I found this book hard to put down.
May 17, 2017
A well researched fictionalised story based on a real persons life. The title indicates the main character Rebecca Sinclair goes to gaol but why becomes the source of suspense in the story. The descriptions and action has a specifically turn of 20th century Sydney flavour and would not be believable if set in a somewhere other than Australia. I enjoyed this read although it ended has a romance ending - the story had made the ending possible.
August 24, 2017
This is a wonderful story about Rebecca McDowell who lived in Sydney around 1909. Although classed as historical fiction, it does use elements of the real person gleaned from letters and other documents telling the story of a women caught up in circumstances, choosing the wrong fellow and trying to do the best she can in her life and moving forward. I really got a feel for life in Sydney at that time, and learned how easy it was for people to end up on the wrong side of the law.
September 30, 2019
A very intriguing book on life in Sydney during the early 1900's and a n insight to the penal system at the time. The story line and characters were well investigated and it made it very difficult to put the book down. It was very interesting to note t hat it was taken from a real life event. Well done Eleanor Limprecht.
July 14, 2017
I have wanted to read this since hearing the author being interviewed on ABC Radio's Conversations program. In think she did a wonderful job in fictionalising this story from official records and research about the era. It was a compelling read.
May 30, 2017
Beautifully written engaging story. Well researched historical account of life and times
July 6, 2019
Excellent read. The authors best by far
December 15, 2019
I stumbled upon this book and LOVED it.... didn’t put it down.. I would recommend it to those who enjoy reading about the lives of women in Australia in the earlier years.
February 8, 2023
Good story about what it was like to be a woman in early 1900s Sydney. Interesting to see the city from this perspective.
December 21, 2016
For most Australians the name of Long Bay is familiar only from news reports about hardened criminals. Its proper name is The Long Bay Correctional Complex, a.k.a.Her Majesty’s Australian Prison Long Bay and I was surprised to learn that it houses minimum security inmates, male and female, as well as the notorious maximum security prison. You can see from the photo how forbidding it looked in the 1900s, round about the time that Rebecca Sinclair started her three years Hard Labour, convicted of manslaughter for having performed an abortion on a woman who subsequently died. It is her story that is fictionalised in Eleanor Limprecht’s compelling novel…
The novel is bookended by Rebecca’s time in prison but it is the backstory that I couldn’t put down. Rich in period details but narrated in the present tense to create a sense of immediacy, the book brings Rebecca to life as we learn the extraordinary events which led to her imprisonment.
She was born into poverty in pre Federation Sydney, where her father had died when she was small. Her mother Lizzie is too proud to accept charity and has supported her six children with fine needlework, but they are often still hungry. One by one they all leave school as soon as they can, the girls helping with the sewing and minding Ruby who at fifteen still has the mind of a child, and Louis losing a succession of jobs for reasons as colourful as his clothes. Helen dies of a cough that will not shift.
For women, there were few options to escape this drudgery...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2016/07/16/l...
The novel is bookended by Rebecca’s time in prison but it is the backstory that I couldn’t put down. Rich in period details but narrated in the present tense to create a sense of immediacy, the book brings Rebecca to life as we learn the extraordinary events which led to her imprisonment.
She was born into poverty in pre Federation Sydney, where her father had died when she was small. Her mother Lizzie is too proud to accept charity and has supported her six children with fine needlework, but they are often still hungry. One by one they all leave school as soon as they can, the girls helping with the sewing and minding Ruby who at fifteen still has the mind of a child, and Louis losing a succession of jobs for reasons as colourful as his clothes. Helen dies of a cough that will not shift.
For women, there were few options to escape this drudgery...
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2016/07/16/l...
February 12, 2016
I took a while to warm to this tale, but even then I never felt completely immersed in it. There was some novelty in reading about familiar places but there wasn't half the wonderment I felt with Eugenia, another Australian historic crime although probably less fictionaliased. Perhaps I was partially frustrated that there was no talk of Long Bay for quite some time - I really was expecting more of an insight into life in prison.
December 13, 2015
Step back into a world of the early 1900s Sydney and of women managing against the odds. I appreciated the research, honesty and connectedness to the present day although the story did seem to be more academic in its style that historical fiction. Still a good read and a piece of female history brought into the light.
June 2, 2016
What a wonderful way to bring a figure from the past to life. Rebecca Sinclair's story is one that will stay with me for life.
The book itself is filled with vivid descriptions and scenarios that transport you back to the early 20th century. Even more amazing is the setting, in Sydney's city and Eastern Suburbs, which were a far cry back then to what they are now.
Well worth the read.
The book itself is filled with vivid descriptions and scenarios that transport you back to the early 20th century. Even more amazing is the setting, in Sydney's city and Eastern Suburbs, which were a far cry back then to what they are now.
Well worth the read.
September 21, 2015
Brilliant book that really gives a great insight into the hardships women experienced early this century.
Read
April 29, 20223.5 stars
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