In 1882, human remains were discovered at the Sinkings, a lonely campsite near Albany, Western Australia. The surgeon conducting the autopsy claimed they were those of a woman. Why, then, was the victim later identified as Little Jock, a former convict? And why was the murder so brutal, so gruesome? More than a hundred years later, Willa Samson embarks on a long and lonely search to find out. The Sinkings is a story within a story, the tragic historical account of Little Jock's life embedded within a contemporary narrative of a mother's guilt and grief. Beautifully crafted, the novel deals with the dilemma confronting parents of an intersexed child and the issue of gender. While The Sinkings is a work of fiction, the discovery of Little Jock's remains and the controversy surrounding their identification are actual events.
Paperback, 375 pages
Published September 1st 2008 by University of Western Australia Press (first published August 2008)
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