A possible impetus for how she saw her life may unfold is reading about her family, her beloved sisters,especially her parents and their financial upheavals after the drought forced them to sell the family property Stillwater, and their difficult life in Penrith on the outskirts of Sydney. She referred to the people as the fruit that grew there and knew she had to escape that life.

In Kerrie Davies' page turning biography it reveals the variety of experiences that Miles Franklin endured in life undercover in domestic service  in Sydney and Melbourne, for her research for writing other books. It seemed these roles were eye opening for her and likewise for this reader, especially when a gas cooker blew up as she was cooking. It is interspersed with the sanctuary of her friend Rose Scott in Sydney  and her influential connections. After one of these social visits a gossip columnist writes a description of Miles Franklin that is quite shocking.

While this is a biographical account, as the author notes, it is not a cradle to grave biography. It covers the so-called missing years, the decade that made her become a fearless advocate for women. It also covers a considerable background about her relationship with her grandmother who lived near the Snowy Mountains.

Miles Franklin had several would-be suitors, including the "Man From Snowy River" as A.B. (Banjo) Paterson is frequently referred to, as well as Edwin Bridle, who regularly  declared his passion and undying love for her, in letters sent to her in America while he patiently waited for her to return.

But this was a young woman who didn't see her life in the roles of wife and mother like her sister Linda, her own mother and relatives..

She wanted to be independent and make her own way and her own money. Franklin certainly had interesting experiences in America. In San Francisco, where she volunteered to help after the earthquake in California at Loma Linda and when she moved to Chicago. It was her time in Chicago that was remarkable, enduring long harsh winters with black snow (mixed with soot and pollution). Her life here was an interesting mix working in poorly paid jobs, writing for a newspaper in Australia, her manuscripts and socially, especially expanding on her role with women's suffrage with all the recognised key players, getting her into some tricky situations.

Frequent references are made about what was happening  back in Australia, her family and some rather tragic circumstances.

One of the take-aways reading this biography is a greater understanding of Miles Franklin's struggle as a celebrated author of My Brilliant Career, while earning a tiny sum from it, who had written more manuscripts, but struggled to have them published, mostly because related to her roles undercover. It was pleasing reading she had success at last with her English publishers.

There are several photographs of Miles Franklin, family and friends. Austrlaia's most prestigious literary awards are named in her honour.

This is a most enjoyable and informative biography

The Author

Kerrie Davies is the author of A Wife's Heart, that created national discussion about the iconic poet Henry Lawson and his marriage. She has appeared at the Sydney and Brisbane Writers Festivals, and the National Folk festival, Canberra. A former journalist for Vogue and the Sunday Telegraph, Kerrie is Senior Lecturer at the School of the Arts & Media, UNSW Sydney, a 2024 Visiting Fellow at the State Library of New South Wales, and writes for the Conversation.

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