Orphans of the Queen opens as a group of English orphans board ship for Australia. Hilly Lyon and her little brother Egg have been promised that ‘there’ll be nice uncles and aunties to look after you in Australia.’ They leap at the opportunity to have a real family. Unfortunately, arrival in Australia dashes all their hopes. Hilly is sent to the Greenwood Catholic orphanage in Adelaide, while Egg is placed on a Christian Brothers ‘farm school’ in Western Australia. Hilly decides that ‘it’s the Queen’s job to help her subjects’ and writes a letter outlining her unhappy situation to the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II. Ultimately, Hilly is a survivor and her story does end on a positive note. The characters, setting and period are very well drawn and Hilly develops real courage and resourcefulness. Overall, though, Hilly’s story is overwhelmed by the relentless cruelty Starke relates, particularly the sadistic treatment by the nuns. Starke makes the point that the story is ‘based on real experiences’ and ‘nothing is exaggerated’, but it was harrowing reading.

Recommended for teenagers 13-15.Elizabeth Riley is a bookseller at Melbourne children’s book specialist The Little Bookroom

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2008, Thorpe-Bowker

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