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The White Girl
The White Girl | Tony Birch
17 posts | 11 read | 13 to read
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-shortlisted author Tony Birch shines a spotlight on the 1960s and the devastating government policy of taking Indigenous children from their families.
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Hooked_on_books
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

Following Odette and her light-skinned granddaughter Sissy, The White Girl looks at life on a mission in the 1960s where Aboriginal people were treated like enslaved children (more or less). I really enjoyed this and learned a lot about the legal situation in Australia at that time.

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GatheringBooks
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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#WondrousWednesday
📚 Kinokuniya Dubai! Fairly recently, in fact, as they had a clearance sale. 🎉
📚 GatheringBooks of course!
📚 Tagged book for our #DecolonizeBookshelves2022 reading theme.
Thank you for the tag, @TheSpineView

TheSpineView You're welcome 1y
33 likes1 comment
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Lauren.Archer
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

This was a lovely, gentle story that takes on the topic of racism with such care. Birch brought to light a time in history in a country that I had not known about. Odette is like any loving family member and just wanted to do what is best for Sissy, and that was for them to stay together.

55 likes1 stack add
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Jeg
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

Excellent. Truth telling using a story. I cried a couple of times and even now thinking of one situation described brings tears to my eyes.
#joysbooks2021
@MrsMalaprop

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Jeg
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Op shop today. Will go on my TBR shelf. Looking forward to reading them both.

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Victoria_Clyne
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

I'm trying to catch up all the books I've read this year. I read this one quite a while ago but it has stuck with me

Odette' daughter disappeared and has left her daughter, Sissy, for Odette to raise. With a new Policeman in town Odette tries to keep Sissy from being removed from her family. Set in the era of the Stolen Generation this is a beautifully told story a family's struggle against prejudice.

MrsMalaprop Heard him talking about his short stories on Radio National yesterday. I really liked his book (edited) 3y
Victoria_Clyne Thanks for the recommendation @MrsMalaprop I'll add it to my TBR 3y
26 likes2 comments
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Abailliekaras
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Our new episode of Books On The Go is up! 🎧 Annie & I discuss ‘The White Girl‘ by Tony Birch.
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This novel tells the story of Odette and her granddaughter Sissy in an Aboriginal community in 1960s Australia. Shortlisted for the 2020 Miles Franklin Award, we had high hopes for this one. 😬
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What are you reading this week? 📖

Freespirit This is on my reading list! 4y
Abailliekaras @Freespirit look forward to hearing what you think! 4y
36 likes2 comments
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Abailliekaras
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Mehso-so

Odette, an Aboriginal woman, tries to protect her granddaughter from the welfare authorities in 1960s Australia. Sympathetic characters & gives you an insight into life as an Aboriginal family in that time & racist attitudes that persist today. But the writing is a bit pedestrian, with little narrative tension & I felt it was more about the history & the issues than telling a great story. I would have preferred more plot & less explaining.

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MrsMalaprop
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

This was OK. The style is very basic, which might make it more accessible to teenagers and non-readers. The subject matter, Australia‘s shameful policies and treatment of Aboriginal people, is very important and if this book could be taught in schools it might lead to more widespread understanding. For me it lacked nuance and sophistication, but I don‘t think I am the intended audience. ⬇️

MrsMalaprop Books like this one are so important as they contribute to the growing body of work being created by contemporary Aboriginal authors, resulting in the essential rewrite of history that Australia so desperately needs. 4y
Abailliekaras Great review! I felt exactly the same way. It‘s so important but wasn‘t a great novel for me. I like his short stories and agree, it‘s so important to hear as many voices as possible telling Aboriginal stories to build understanding. 4y
37 likes3 comments
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MrsMalaprop
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Making a start on Aboriginal Australian author Tony Birch‘s latest offering. I bumped this one up my #tbr list after it was recently shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award 2020.

To be honest I‘d been put off by others describing it as YA and I‘d heard it covers a lot of Australia‘s true history, much of which I‘m already familiar with. I‘m hoping it might be one I can recommend to my kids and others seeking an entry point read in this space.

Rissreads I'm glad you are reading this. If you love it I will grab myself a copy. 👍 4y
23 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Abailliekaras
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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A stack of fiction by black authors. 📚 The White Girl and Bluebird, Bluebird are on my TBR.

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MariettaSG
The White Girl | Tony Birch
Pickpick

Recommend for year 9, it is very informative on the Australian constitution, the Aboriginal Protection Act, exemptions, the Stolen Generation, travel permits, mission life, plus more. It presents strong resilient Indigenous female and male characters. It also does not encourage an “us and them” mentality but presents all types of characters - Indigenous and non-indigenous in different lights. It is hopeful and looks forward to a better Australia.

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Joanne1
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Pickpick

Loved it! Inspiring, frustrating, at times horrifying and always in awe of the strength of character shown by Odette and Sissy. I am a massive fan of Tony Birch‘s style and this again is one sheds light on the oftentimes forgetter battle of the First Nations people of Australia in the very recent past and the legacy that has continued.

LeeRHarry Stacked! 5y
39 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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Joanne1
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Another great, but confronting, book from Tony Birch. Set in the western district on Victoria (Australia) in the years leading up to full recognition of Indigenous people in the constitution. The book focuses on Odette and her granddaughter Sissy as they struggle to live and stay together while under the protectionist rules of police and government authorities.

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AntoinetteBuchanan
The White Girl | Tony Birch
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Mehso-so

Without taking away from the importance of the theme, the intent and the ignoble history it depicts, this feels more suited toa YA audience 3.5 stars

MrsMalaprop Am in a store deciding whether to buy this! Appreciate your review 😊. I haven‘t read any Tony Birch. Are there any others you‘d recommend? 5y
AntoinetteBuchanan He is a good author but I don‘t really enjoy YA all that much - I don‘t need to have everything explained to me. I enjoyed the short story collection “Common People” as it was a bit more nuanced. I read Ghost River years ago which was good but still a bit YA for my taste. Better than White Girl though. 5y
MrsMalaprop Oh thanks 🙏. I‘m not generally a fan of YA either. Might have to try Common People. 5y
myreadingdays I also enjoyed Common People and was wondering if I should read more of his work. But since you have mentioned YA I think I can let this one go. Thanks for helping me with that decision! 5y
15 likes4 comments