Believe In Me

Reviewed By  Grasshopper2       October 10, 2021

 

Author  Lucy Neave

Distributor:      UQP
ISBN:                 9780702263361
Publisher:         University of Queensland Press (UQP)
Release Date:   September 2021  

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The narrator in Believe in Me is Bethany or Bet. She has had a disruptive and difficult childhood and consequently at age 32 she has a great need to understand her recently deceased mother. If she can do this, then maybe she will understand herself. As she says, “If I can inhabit her consciousness, even a little, it might help me see who I am.” On reflection, this is an enormous task. Without help, most of us would be at a loss to understand the inner lives of our parents.

Bet has help though, in the form of many scrap books that Sarah, her mother, kept all her life. Using these, and her memories, and some conversations Bet begins to clarify the reasons their life was such a struggle.

She begins her mother’s story when Sarah was 18, (this was during the 70s.) She lived in a small town in upstate New York and belonged to a church with a strict moral code. This naïve young woman was chosen to accompany a pastor, who is going to bring Native American people to God. Within three days of her journey Sarah becomes pregnant to the pastor. Thus, Bet’s life begins.

When Sarah’s mother discovered she is pregnant, she is sent to Australia where there are relatives and it is here that Bet is born. The life that Sarah and Bet lead is one steeped in loneliness and poverty. A nurse, Dora, helps them to settle and often cares for Bet when Sarah is away. As the story unravels several issues become clear. The love that Sarah has for Bet is always strong, and the social attitudes of the time have changed.

Believe in Me is a fascinating look at three generations of a family and how we can never truly understand the motivations and inner thoughts of our parents.