The treatment of Evangeline, Hazel and Mathinna demonstrate that Britain's power in the 19th century was sustained by the colonization and destruction of other peoples and cultures.

Anyone who is not educated in their narrow sense of the word is deemed inferior. The implied importance of education is indicative of the classist and racist beliefs of British imperialist culture. She is intelligent and curious, but considered uncivilized because she is Aboriginal. Mathinna, despite being the daughter of a former chieftain, is seen as a savage by the British settlers.

But once she proves her knowledge and skills as a midwife, she begins to earn respect and trust. Hazel, a thief of no social standing, is seen as a true criminal and is often treated cruelly or abusively by others. Evangeline, despite being a convict and an unwed soon-to-be mother, is educated and formerly of the middle class, so while she is still treated as a prisoner, she is often given special attention and preferential treatment by those in charge.

Kline uses the three points of view to highlight the drastically different treatment of the three women at the hands of the British government. The characters' circumstances naturally lend themselves to this sort of narration while Evangeline and Hazel are together on the convict ship, Mathinna is far away in Australia with her own story to tell. When the narratives do overlap, it's only briefly and not until much later in the book. The narrative is shared between Evangeline, Hazel and Mathinna, with each telling a different part of a larger story in a linear fashion - each character picks up where the last left off. A young Aboriginal girl is placed in the home of a British family where she is meant to become 'civilized.' The Exiles brings these three women together under bleak circumstances, and each must discover what she's willing to do to survive in Christina Baker Kline's novel of adversity and resilience. An Irish thief and herbalist finds her medical skills in high demand on a convict ship bound for Australia. The Exiles is a story of oppression, endurance and hope featuring three women struggling to find the inner strength needed to survive their new lives in 19th-century Australia.Ī young governess finds herself pregnant and in prison for theft and attempted murder.

Fires of Jubilee by Alison Hart