Ma, I'm Gettin Meself a New Mammy Book

Aged thirteen Martha is rescued by the courts from the clutches of her evil stepfather Jackser and her feckless mother Sally. After numerous arrests for shoplifting a judge rules that she is to be sent to a convent school with the instruction that she is to get an education. Her initial relief at escaping the abuse and neglect she suffered at home is however short-lived as she soon realises that there are many forms of cruelty in this life. As she says 'You can have a full belly but your heart can be very empty.' Ostracised by the other children for being a 'street kid' and put to back-breaking work by the nuns she leads a lonely existence her only joy coming from the books she devours and her mischievous sense of humour. Desperate for love and a little place where she feels she belongs despite all that she has suffered Martha retains her compassion for others and still continues to hope for a brighter future when she will be free to make her own way in life.