Captain Starlight's Apprentice

by Kathryn Heyman

The story of two women living very different, heroic lives in two very different Australias.Jess,�circus-raised, is a stunt-rider who can outride any man.�In the early days of film she finds her calling, playing wild outlaw women who answer to no one.� However, when her Chinese circus-owner husband is killed she is left pregnant and vulernable and, after suffering the cruellest betrayal of all, she finds herself closer to the outlaw's life than she had ever imagined.Rose goes to Australia from England in the 1950s, in search of a new life.� But neither the new country nor motherhood is what she had expected and, very quickly, she finds herself estranged from those she loves, incarcerated and terrified.� Yet Rose is strong, and she will manage not only to save herself, but also to shed new light on Jess's story in a moving and deeply satisfying way.With these wonderfully heroic protagonists, making a world for themselves despite the toughness of their environment and the cruellest twists of fate, Kathryn Heyman, author of the acclaimed THE ACCOMPLICE,�has created a beautifully-written and unusual novel of extraordinary lives.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2006

About the author

Kathryn Heyman is the author of six novels including the forthcoming Storm and Grace (Allen and Unwin, Feb 2017), described by British writer Jill Dawson as "Dark, sexy, haunting...timely and important.." Her earlier works are The Breaking ( Orion, London, 1997), Keep Your Hands on the Wheel (Orion, 1999), The Accomplice (Hodder, London, 2003), Captain Starlight's Apprentice (Hodder, 2006) and Floodline (Allen and Unwin, 2013). She is also a playwright for theatre and radio and director of the Australian Writers Mentoring Program. Her short stories have appeared in a number of collections and also on radio. Heyman's writing has been compared with that of Joseph Conrad, Angela Carter, Peter Carey and Kate Grenville.

Kathryn's first novel, The Breaking was shortlisted for the Stakis Award for the Scottish Writer of the Year and longlisted for the Orange Prize. Other awards include an Arts Council of England Writers Award, the Wingate and the Southern Arts Awards, and nominations for the Edinburgh Fringe Critics’ Awards, the Kibble Prize, and the West Australian Premier’s Book Awards.

Kathryn Heyman’s several plays for BBC radio include Far Country and Moonlite’s Boy , inspired by the life of bushranger Captain Moonlite. Two of her novels have been adapted for BBC radio: Keep Your Hands on the Wheel as a play and ,Captain Starlight’s Apprentice as a five part dramatic serial.

Reviews

[Angela Long (Carter) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspired by her mother’s post-natal depression, Kathryn Heyman gently crafts a beautifully woven story of two women separated by four decades and very different lives. Jess, wild country girl sold off by her father as a circus stunt rider, ‘part woman, part horse’ and Rose the English immigrant and new mother struggling to make a home in a harsh post-war Australia.

Rose is estranged to the heat of the Australian summer and the immigrant tin camps. ‘It was an alien language, this new country, though the words were the same.’ Her new baby Sammy and the realities of their existence as ‘ten pound poms’ overwhelms Rose, and in the grip of post-natal depression she gets through her day on a mixture of painkilling ‘Bex’ powders and prescribed pills. As she slips into the grasp of her demons she is taken to the St John of Cross Rest Home for Women and subjected to a series of electric shocks to ‘help bring her back’. During these treatments, Rose dreams Jess into life.

The raw beauty of Jess’s tale, her resilience and strength of character, is slowly unravelled through a series of dreams, dreams that often feel like memories trapped inside Rose. As Jess’ voice rises from the grave it is her story that lights up the pages, not only for the reader but also for Rose. Slowly a complex tale of displacement and healing rises as their stories intersect, each searching for survival and love.

Bringing two very different stories together is an act worthy in itself of a three-ring-circus, but under Heyman’s skilful hands it is successfully accomplished. The two twine together as each life becomes more relevant to the other.
As Jess loses her fight she inspires Rose to win hers; Rose finds healing and Jess finds peace; each becomes the saviour of the other.

Peppered with a strong Australian vernacular and poetic descriptions, Captain Starlight’s Apprentice paints a rich portrait of Australia in the early part of the last century. Touching on women’s rights, motherhood, multiculturalism and racism, there are slight moments that feel contrived but these are done with artistic elegance and are forgiven in the larger scheme of the novel.

[Rue Baldry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a combination of two very interesting stories, which turn out to be cleverly woven together. I don't want to spoil anything.

It opens with a woman in a '50s mental hospital getting electric shock treatment which is a powerful opening. Her story, and the story of Jess at the beginning of the twentieth century, are both fascinating and full of details. Both stories take place in Australia and the landscape and history is well worked in.

I recommend this.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant! Set in 1940's Australia, has great cliche-defying and plausible characters.

Reminded me of Sarah Hall's 'Electric Michelangelo'.

[Velvetink · Rating 5 out of 5]

1 of 20 books for $10.

[scarlettraces · Rating 4 out of 5]

(4.5)