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The White Girl

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The White Girl

By: Tony Birch
Narrated by: Shareena Clanton
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About this listen

A searing new novel from leading Indigenous storyteller Tony Birch that explores the lengths we will go to in order to save the people we love.

Odette Brown has lived her whole life on the fringes of a small country town. After her daughter disappeared and left her with her granddaughter Sissy to raise on her own, Odette has managed to stay under the radar of the welfare authorities who are removing fair-skinned Aboriginal children from their families.

When a new policeman arrives in town, determined to enforce the law, Odette must risk everything to save Sissy and protect everything she loves.

In The White Girl, Miles Franklin short-listed author Tony Birch shines a spotlight on the 1960s and the devastating government policy of taking Indigenous children from their families.

©2019 Tony Birch (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt Inspiring Tear-jerking Thought-Provoking
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Essential reading for anyone who wants to make a beginning on understanding about just some of what First Nations People have been through since colonisation. A tale of love, kinship, resilience and solidarity.

Essential Reading

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Easy to listen to story about a time that was more prevalent in our history than we cared to admit. It has such strong endearing characters. Enjoyed every minute of it

Great insight into indigenous history in Aus

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The story is so deep and moving, and the talented narration helps all the images come alive in your head.

Insightful and moving

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Great read. well performed. Evokes a time long ago. Have we come far enough?

Brilliant, evocative, thought-provoking

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Courageous story tells it how it was for the indigenous people of Australia. Such an important part of history, while the past can't be changed, the stories can be told.

Very Insightful Read

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I loved this book and now my family is reading it. It took me on a journey of emotions with such strong and determined characters. Beautifully narrated. I cried, both for the aboriginal people and in shame for the way they were treated.

Insightful and captivating

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A really great insight to something I knew very little about. Written and spoken in a way I didn't want to stop listening.

loved this book

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I really enjoyed the story, the depth of feeling and the reality of the situation Odette and Sissy are in. not impressed with the narration but the story overcame my dislike of the narration

Amazing and thought provoking

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Love it great story. history in the making of white Australia. So glad l was not brought up in that era, not a time to be proud of a lot to answer for.

Great read of history in Australia shame on us.

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Thank you Shareena Clanton for bringing this story to life. You have Tony Birch’s important storytelling both energy and gravitas. I enjoyed all the characters’ different tones and inflections. The pain and devastation is widespread but so is the love, loyalty, fierceness and compassion. We (non—Indigenous folks) must do more to bring about systemic change. Thank you for this work.

Very moving story

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.