"Henry Lawson is usually depicted as a bushwhacking swagman, but Australia's most famous writer spent most of his life in the big city. His Mother Louisa Lawson is almost unknown, but largely because of this complex woman, women worldwide have the vote. Wilson's novel explores the world in which they lived - a world of radicalism, poverty, love affairs, madness, drunkenness, sedition, terrorism, passionate hopes, and friendships with some of Australia's most remarkable people." - back cover