Hard to know where to start. I guess at the beginning with little Molly and her Mother in the graveyard of the local cemetery. They love one another deeply, but live in very hard circumstances. I almost put the the book down a few chapters in because the sad life and abuse Molly endured was hard to read. But Molly struggled on after her mother leaves so I read on with the hope that the story would lift. It Did! Trent Dalton is an amazing writer, weaving a story of magic realism for Molly as she courageously sets out on a journey through the Top End, to find Longcoat Bob and have the curse removed from her family, which she believes is the cause of all her troubles. With the help of Greta Maze and a downed Japanese pilot, they navigate the beautiful rugged landscape, stopping to marvel at the wonders around them, but also facing great peril along the way. There is, murder, gold fever, love, abuse, tragedy and beauty in the story. Molly is an amazing, determined character with an indefatigable spirit seeking guidance from the sky gifts she gathers. ( )

I went into this book with minimal knowledge about what I was getting in to. I knew Dalton had got great reviews for previous work, that this was about the bombing of Darwin during WWII, and that was pretty much it. I picked it up in an op-shop, because I needed something to read on a plane, and it looked interesting.

Such a good choice. Despite the fact that there is a laundry list of content warnings (see below) and in the hands of another author this story might have been a psychological thriller, this is a beautifully written story about love and perseverance. There are no 'surprises' of the type I hate in thrillers, and the writing is poetic, veering in to magical realism.

While I'd like to write a nuanced and informative review, I got to the end of the book and went 'wow'. Fabulous characterisation, a careful mix of cultural groups, amazing visceral descriptions of landscape, a plot that meanders coherently and engagingly, beautiful writing. I can see this being a book that gets taught in schools, because there is so much to unpack, so much imagery and interesting parallels.

Content Warnings
* Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, Racism, and War
* Moderate: Physical abuse
* Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia

My notes while writing this read: death of parent, grave robbing, physical and emotional abuse of child, racism, period typical slurs, implications of sexual violence (not clear if rape), alcoholism, drug use, physical violence between adults, mentions of sex work, being on the ground in a bombing raid plus the aftermath (including dismembered bodies), abandonment of a minor, attempted murder, attempted rape, drowning, murder (graphic), eye damage and other dismemberment due to leprosy plus forced institutionalism of lepers, delirium tremens, infected wound (graphic description), mentions of suicide, ( )

This is one beautiful story.
1942. Twelve year old Molly, the gravedigger girl, has just lost everything to the Japanese bombing of Darwin. She is convinced her heart is turning to stone due to a curse put on her family by Longcoat Bob. The deep country sorceror who put a curse on her family after her Grandfather stole gold off his land. She is going bush to find him with Greta Maze & Yukio. A sharp tongued actress & a fallen fighter pilot to find Longcoat Bob to ask him to lift the curse. But as always, it's not the destination that counts, it's the journey.
Trent Dalton's writing is so beautiful & lyrical. I have so many favourite quotes! He describes the bush so gorgeously it's almost like stepping into an Aussie fairytale. This book is so immersive, it's really easy to get lost in the pages for a few hours & the story flows beautifully. I'm definitely checking out more of Trent Dalton's work.

This book goes from the grim reality of young Molly Hook's life to positively macabre graveyard scenes to episodes of enchantment and joy. The descriptions of the Northern Territories of Australia I found fascinating.
The author managed to keep the tension and pace until almost the end. ( )

Grave digger girl who talks to the sky. Drunk father and uncle who steel from the dead. An actress Greta teams up with Molly and a Japanese fighter pilot to find Bob
Who Molly believes put a curse on her family
The destination isn't important its the journey so descriptive of nature the bombing of Darwin, human relationships and life ( )