Who were the female convicts? What kinds of lives did they lead in a new
society half a world away from home?
Kay Daniels' classic book 'Convict Women' was first published in 1998, and
has now been reprinted. This title looks beyond the conventional images to draw
a new and often surprising picture of convict women's experiences in a strange
and harsh country. Beginning with the story of Maria Lord - convict, pioneer
family woman, successful entrepreneur and abandoned wife - the book looks at the
central themes of convict woman's history in Australia, ranging from the female
factories and orphan school to sexuality and freedom.
Neither damned whores nor passive victims, these women and the choices they
made shaped the world in which they lived. 'Convict Women' tells us much about
the richness and complexity of life in a newly formed community.
Contents:
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Maria Lord
2. Writing About Convict Women
3. Transportation and its Management
4. Assignment
5. The Female Factories: The Failure of Reform
6. Rough Culture and Rebellion
7. Sexuality
8. Prostitution
9. Freedom
10. Heritage
Endnotes
Index
Reviews:
'Kay Daniels entrances us with a highly original picture of the lives of convict
women. From the first page to the last we are drawn into a world very different
from our own, yet also strangely recognisable and uncomfortable pertinent - Ann
Curthoys, Manning Clark Professor of History, ANU
Knowledge 
