Publisher: 2nd September 2020 by HarperCollins Australia
Pages: 380 pages
How I Read It: ARC book
Genre: women’s fiction, historical fiction, WWII
My Rating: 5 cups
Synopsis:
When war imprisons them, only kindness will free them…
China, 1941. Elspeth Kent has fled an unhappy life in England for a teaching post at a missionary school in northern China. But when Japan declares war on the Allies and occupies the school, security and home comforts are replaced by privation, uncertainty and fear.
For ten-year-old Nancy Plummer and her school friends, now separated from their parents indefinitely, Miss Kent’s new Girl Guide patrol provides a precious reminder of home in a land where they are now the enemy.
Elspeth and her fellow teachers, and Nancy and her friends, need courage, friendship and fortitude as they pray for liberation. But worse is to come. Removed from the school, they face even greater uncertainty and danger at a Japanese internment camp, where cruelty and punishment reign.
Inspired by true events, this is an unforgettable read about a remarkable community faced with unimaginable hardship, and the life-changing bonds formed in a distant corner of a terrible war.
My Thoughts
‘You see, our war wasn’t one of battles and bombs. Ours was a war of everyday struggles; of hope versus despair, of courage against fear, strength over frailty.’
Every now and again a special book comes along that truly moves you and lingers long after the last page is turned. The Bird in the Bamboo Cage is one such book. Hazel has created a tale that transports her readers to living the life of those in the Chefoo Missionary School for foreigners on China’s eastern coast in Shandong during WW2.
This is an amazing read as it will open your eyes to an aspect of WW2 not often portrayed in literature. As the teachers and students get caught up in the fallout from the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour, so will you. Hazel explains both the fact and fiction of her story - as some parts are real and some are imagined in her ‘Author’s Note’. It was the inspired by a similar real life experience that, once having come across these voices from the past, they cried out to Hazel to be told. Intertwine the inclusion of Brownies/Girl Guides (something of which I was both a member of and memories came flooding back) and it combines beautifully for a rich and emotional reading experience.
‘I held my breath. What was I thinking, coming out here, putting myself, and others, in danger? This wasn’t a game, or a spy novel. It was real life, and we were only school teachers who didn’t know the first thing about war.’
The story is told through the alternating voices of Elspeth the teacher and Nancy the student. This way you see these life changing events from both an adult and child perspective - very clever. There is also a range of other critical characters that will engage you as the Japanese military control firstly their school and then send them to an internment camp. These brave adults and children literally leap off the page making the story unforgettable in both the hardships and courage that are displayed on a regular basis. It is clear the detailed research Hazel has undertaken that brings both realism and authenticity to this tale.
‘As I closed the door and walked to my bedroom, it dawned on me that perhaps this was why I’d come to China; why life had led me here, at this time of war and great uncertainty. I was here to step into the shoes of all the absent parents. I was here to watch over these temporary orphans of war. I was here to become the mother I always hoped I’d be.’
When detention/internment camps are written about, it ordinarily would involve sending English children to the countryside or the Jewish ghettos in Europe. To have this fresh focus of Westerners in China, under Japanese rule, is really so very unique. The children of either diplomats or missionaries bring a whole other perspective with separation issues to name but one. Therefore it is the multiple aspects of setting, story, characterisation and plot that bring heartbreak and loss, lives permanently and forever changed due to the occupation and experiences they endured.
I admit it, towards the end there was a definite tear in my eye. I encourage you to read this compelling tale that regales the incredible experiences - both frightening and momentous - that will remain in your mind for some time.
"‘They’ll never forget, Minnie, whether they write it down or not. War and internment are part of their lives now; part of their story, part of who they are.’ I put my pencil down and closed the exercise book. ‘I actually think life is meant to have its share of difficulty and struggle. That’s when we find out who we really are, what we’re really made of, not when everything’s going along all jolly and straightforward and terribly nice. We come alive in the dramatic bits, don’t we; in the moments that make us gasp and cry.’
This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.
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