History from a Woman's Perspective- A Book Blog

The Infinite Air Author: Fiona Kidman Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Aardvark Bureau Release Date: March 6, 2016 Pages: 352 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: A superbly written novel offering an intriguing interpretation of one of the world's greatest aviators, the glamorous and mysterious Jean Batten. Jean Batten became an international icon in the 1930s. A brave, beautiful woman, she made a number of heroic solo flights across the world. The newspapers couldn't get enough of her; and yet she suddenly slipped out of view, disappearing to the Caribbean with her mother and dying in obscurity in Majorca, buried in a pauper's grave. Fiona Kidman's enthralling novel delves into the life of this enigmatic woman, exploring mysteries and crafting a fascinating exploration of early flying, of mothers and daughters, and of fame and secrecy.      My Review: Jean Batten is one of the world’s greatest aviators. She is the first...

The Settling Earth Author: Rebecca Burns and Shelly Davies Genre: Historical fiction, Short Stories Publisher: Odyssey Books Release Date: 2014 Pages: 128 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: Marriage transplants Sarah thousands of miles from home; a failed love affair forces Phoebe to make drastic choices in a new environment; a sudden, shocking discovery brings Mrs Ellis to reconsider her life as an emigrant-The Settling Earth is a collection of ten, interlinked stories, focusing on the British settler experience in colonial New Zealand, and the settlers' attempts to make sense of life in a strange new land. Sacrifices, conflict, a growing love for the landscape, a recognition of the succour offered by New Zealand to Maori and settler communities-these are themes explored in the book. The final story in the collection, written by Shelly Davies of the Ngātiwai tribe, adds a Maori perspective to the experience of British settlement in their...