REVIEWS/PRAISE EXCERPT MATHINNA: LEARN MORE BEHIND THE BOOK VIDEOS For Book Clubs
A powerful, emotionally resonant novel that captures the hardship, oppression, opportunity and hope of four women’s lives—three English convicts and an orphaned Aboriginal girl—in nineteenth-century Australia.
Christina Baker Kline has established herself as a novelist who plumbs noteworthy but little-known facets of the past, and The Exiles marks her third foray into the genre. While Orphan Train and A Piece of the World were grounded in American history, The Exiles makes a bold geographic and cultural leap, and confirms Christina’s place among the finest talents writing today.
While most English convicts transported to Australia were men, 25,000 were women. Christina explores the development of Australia from a fresh perspective, telling the story of this fascinating, blood-soaked land and its legacy with the grace, beauty, empathy, and insight—and the rich, full-bodied characters—that are the hallmarks of her work.
“Master storyteller Christina Baker Kline is at her best in this epic tale of Australia’s complex history—a vivid and rewarding feat of both empathy and imagination. I loved this book.” — Paula McLain, New York Times Bestselling author of The Paris Wife
The story
Seduced by her employer’s son, Evangeline, a naïve young governess in early nineteenth-century London, is discharged when her pregnancy is discovered and sent to the notorious Newgate Prison. After months in the fetid, overcrowded jail, she learns she is sentenced to “the land beyond the seas,” Van Diemen’s Land, a penal colony established by Great Britain. Though uncertain of what awaits, Evangeline knows one thing: the child she carries will be born on the months-long voyage to this distant land.
During the journey on a repurposed slave ship, the Medea, Evangeline strikes up a friendship with Hazel, a girl little older than her former pupils who was sentenced to seven years transport for stealing a silver spoon. Canny where Evangeline is guileless, Hazel — a skilled midwife and herbalist – is soon offering home remedies to both prisoners and sailors in return for a variety of favors.
Though Australia has been home to Aboriginal people for more than 50,000 years, the British government in the 1840s considers its fledgling colony uninhabited and unsettled, and views the natives as an unpleasant nuisance. By the time the Medea arrives, many of them have been forcibly relocated, their land seized by white colonists. One of these relocated people is Mathinna, the orphaned daughter of the Chief of the Lowreenne tribe, who has been adopted by the new governor of Van Diemen’s Land.
In this gorgeous novel, Christina Baker Kline brilliantly recreates the beginnings of a new society in a beautiful and challenging land, telling the story of Australia from a fresh perspective, through the experiences of Evangeline, Hazel, and Mathinna. While life in Australia is punishing and often brutally unfair, it is also, for some, an opportunity: for redemption, for a new way of life, for unimagined freedom. Told in exquisite detail and incisive prose, The Exiles is a story of grace born from hardship, the unbreakable bonds of female friendships, and the unfettering of legacy.
News
Inter-Allied Union Prize of the Cercle Interallie (Paris) Winner
Instant New York Times Bestseller
Publishers Weekly Bestseller
USA Today Bestseller
Indie Next Bestseller
“The 2023 Interallied Union Prize reveals its two winners,” Livreshebdo, 4/23
Best 100 Novels of 2020, Kirkus, 11/20
“Our 51 Favorite Books of 2020,” Washington Independent Review of Books, 11/20
“2020 Great Group Reads Selection,” Women’s National Book Association, 10/20
“Fall’s Best New Historical Fiction Books, According to the Women who Wrote Them,” Parade, 9/20
“Fall Books: 12 Great Reads,” Newsday, 9/20
September 2020 “20 Great Reads” List (#4), Indie Next
“The Best Books of 2020,” Real Simple, 8/20
“Ten Most Anticipated Books for August,” HuffPost.com
“Bruna Papandrea to Develop Christina Baker Kline’s THE EXILES as TV Series (Exclusive),” Variety, 7/20
Female-Driven Production Company Options THE EXILES, Women and Hollywood, 7/20
“Books We’re Excited to Read This Fall,” New York Magazine (Vulture), 8/20
“Novels Everyone Will be Buzzing About This Fall (online); “Best Books of Fall 2020” (print),” New York Post, 8/20
“The Orphan Train Author Returns with a Moving Story Set in Australia (excerpt),” AARP.org, 9/20
“Earphones Award Winner for Outstanding Narration” by Caroline Lee, Audiofile Magazine, 8/20
“Bestseller/Bookseller Favorite,” Barnes & Noble, 8/20
“Christina Baker Kline on the responsibilities of writing historical fiction (Chicago Review of Books),” LitHub
“Make room in your TBR pile for these 20 books,” LitHub, 8/20
“BookMarks” RAVE, LitHub, 8/20
“Christina Baker Kline recalls her deep dive into Australian history while writing THE EXILES,” Poets & Writers, 8/20
“32 New Historical Fiction Novels Readers are Loving,” Goodreads, 8/20
“Six Great Books Hitting Shelves this Week,” Goodreads, 8/20
Satellite Sisters Best Beach Bag Books 2021, Satellite Sisters, 6/21
“Bets On” Selection for 2020, Book Reporter
LibraryReads selection, LibraryLoveFest.com, 8/20
“What to Read Next: Most Anticipated New Releases,” HastyBookList.com, 7/20
“Can’t Wait to Read Wednesday,” ForeverLostinLiterature.com, 7/20
September Book Club Pick, “Wine&Words,” BookClubGirl.com
“Must-Read Literary Fiction August 2020,” NewInBooks.com
“Book of the Month,” The Bookworm of Edwards (Vail, CO), 10/20
Interviews with CBK for THE EXILES
“Christina Baker Kline: On Bringing History to Life,” Writer’s Digest
“Tell It Slant:” An interview with Jennifer Solheim, Fiction Writers Review
“Christina Baker Kline celebrates ‘Exiles’ paperback with all-star author event,” The Boston Globe
“On the Power and Purpose of Historical Fiction,” Literary Hub
“Different worlds: Christina Baker Kline spotlights a 19th-century injustice,” Costco Connection
“When Truth is Stranger than Fiction,” Montclair Magazine
“STRONG WOMEN … difficult lives,” Charlotte Florida Weekly
“Sunday Brunch: 2 Buzzy Authors Answer Frolic’s 5 Questions,” Frolic Media
“Q&A with Christina Baker Kline,” Deborah Kalb Books
“Interview with Christina Baker Kline about research, writing craft, and THE EXILES,”It’s Just Historical Podcast
“What’s in a Page?” Q&A with Christina Baker Kline, Entertainment Weekly
“A Different Settler Story in The Exiles:” An interview with Greer Macallister, Chicago Review of Books
“Bestselling Author of The Exiles,”KATU ABC 2
Olivia’s Book Club: Christina Baker Kline, ‘The Exiles,’ Olivia’s Book Club Podcast
“‘Orphan Train’ author Christina Baker Kline talks book party with Kristin Hannah and Elin Hilderbrand,” The Orange County Register
“Zoom book tours and author collaborations: How Montclair NJ native landed on bestseller lists,”Northjersey.com
“Exclusive: Christina Baker Kline discusses her latest book The Exiles, ‘I’m interested in the power of women,’” Monsters & Critics
“Christina Baker Kline,”Write The Book: Conversations on Craft Podcast
“Christina Baker Kline Interview,” Author Stories Podcast
“Satellite Sisters Best Beach Bag Books 2021 Special feat. Christina Baker Kline, author of The Exiles and The Orphan Train,”Satellite Sisters Podcast
Spotlight on Christina Baker Kline (Q&A), Pages of the Past: Celebrating Historical Fiction
“Talking with Christina Baker Kline + a dive into the week’s new releases,” Biblio Happy Hour Podcast
“Christina Baker Kline, THE EXILES,” Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books Podcast
“Making History with Christina Baker Kline,” Book Dreams Podcast
“Christina Baker Kline, Author of The Exiles,” A Bookish Home Podcast
“Christina Baker Kline Interview,” Reading and Writing Podcast
Bookreporter Talks To Christina Baker Kline, The Book Report Network Podcast (video)
Best Seller Part Two, Lifeslices podcast
“It’s Pub Day!!” with Christina Baker Kline, Who the Hell Are We? Podcast
“The Exiles” with Christina Baker Kline, The Avid Reader Show Podcast
“Christina Baker Kline & The Exiles” Complicated Conversations Series, Pop Fiction Women Podcast
Q & A with Christina’s Editor, Katherine Nintzel, HarperCollins Publishers
“Instant NYT Bestselling Author Christina Baker Kline Talks About her Ravishing New Historical Fiction, The “Exiles, Women Convicts, Mothers, Writing, Trees & Asks Me a Question, Too,” LeslieLindsay.com
“Wake Up and Write vol.1: Christina Baker Kline Shares Her Writing Advice,” Moms Don’t Have Time to Write
Reviews of The Exiles
“Monumental. This episode in history gets a top-notch treatment by Kline, one of our foremost historical novelists. This fascinating 19th-century take on Orange Is the New Black is subtle, intelligent, and thrillingly melodramatic.” — Kirkus (starred), 8/19/20
“A tour de force of original thought, imagination and promise … Kline takes full advantage of fiction — its freedom to create compelling characters who fully illuminate monumental events to make history accessible and forever etched in our minds.” — Houston Chronicle, 8/3/2020
“Although men are credited for “discovering” and “taming” Australia, they play a very small role in this 19th-century-set novel from Kline (A Piece of the World), which tells of the women’s stories—not only that of the convicts, but also those who came freely, and, most important, those who were there first—the Aboriginal people. Both uplifting and heartbreaking, this beautifully written novel doesn’t flinch from the ugliness of the penal system but celebrates the courage and resilience of both the first peoples and the settlers who came after, voluntarily or not, to create a new home for themselves and their children.” — Library Journal (starred), 7/17/2020
“In the gripping latest from Kline (Orphan Train), three women try to carve out lives in mid-19th-century colonial Australia…. The women, all brought to their new lives against their wills, become a lens through which to see the development of colonial Australia. Filled with surprising twists, empathetic prose, and revealing historical details, Kline’s resonant, powerful story will please any historical fiction fan.” — Publishers Weekly, 7/1/2020
“As in Orphan Train, Kline deftly balances tragedy and pathos, making happy endings hard-earned and satisfying … Book groups will find much to discuss, such as the uses of education, both formal and informal, in this moving work.” — Booklist, 6/30/2020
