That Bligh Girl
Sue Williams
Reviewed by Helen
This is such a great story, filled with history, it is so well written, Sue Williams has done a lot of research for this one, I loved Elizabeth and Elizabeth and was excited to read this one and was not disappointed, I knew bits and pieces of history about William Bligh but nothing about his daughter, Mary and I am glad I got to read about her.
Mary Putland reluctantly agrees to travel to Sydney with her father as his consort when he takes over the job of Governor of Sydney, they set sail on The Lady Sinclair as part of a flotilla of ships, sadly her husband John is one of the other ships and she suffers a horrendous six months on the ship, her father in not liked at all on the trip over and there are many problems with him and his temper.
Their arrival in Sydney is not welcomed by all of the people, Bligh has been sent to fix the problems with the soldiers and sort John Macarthur out, it is not long before Mary is causing talk about her fashions and her attitude she seems to be a very spoilt young woman but she stands firm with her father knowing he is not always right.
When the rebellion starts and three hundred soldiers are storming the gates of Government House Mary stands her ground to try and stop them from entering and no amount of bullying by anyone will stop her doing what she can to protect her father.
This is such a fabulous story taking us on a journey with Mary, and her maid Meg as we see Mary go through many hardships in her life, it shows the courage and strength that she has to live in a new town and fight for her rights and those around her, I am so glad I picked this book up and learnt about Mary. I do highly recommend this one especially if you love some early Australian history.
Mary Putland reluctantly agrees to travel to Sydney with her father as his consort when he takes over the job of Governor of Sydney, they set sail on The Lady Sinclair as part of a flotilla of ships, sadly her husband John is one of the other ships and she suffers a horrendous six months on the ship, her father in not liked at all on the trip over and there are many problems with him and his temper.
Their arrival in Sydney is not welcomed by all of the people, Bligh has been sent to fix the problems with the soldiers and sort John Macarthur out, it is not long before Mary is causing talk about her fashions and her attitude she seems to be a very spoilt young woman but she stands firm with her father knowing he is not always right.
When the rebellion starts and three hundred soldiers are storming the gates of Government House Mary stands her ground to try and stop them from entering and no amount of bullying by anyone will stop her doing what she can to protect her father.
This is such a fabulous story taking us on a journey with Mary, and her maid Meg as we see Mary go through many hardships in her life, it shows the courage and strength that she has to live in a new town and fight for her rights and those around her, I am so glad I picked this book up and learnt about Mary. I do highly recommend this one especially if you love some early Australian history.
5 stars
May 2, 2023 by Allen & Unwin
