# Playing Beatie Bow > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Playing_Beatie_Bow > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Playing_Beatie_Bow.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playing_Beatie_Bow > Source revision: 1334052410 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Novel by Ruth Park This article is about the novel by [Ruth Park](/source/Ruth_Park). For the film, see [Playing Beatie Bow (film)](/source/Playing_Beatie_Bow_(film)). Playing Beatie Bow First edition Author Ruth Park Language English Genre Children's novel Publisher Thomas Nelson Publication date 31 January 1980 Publication place Australia Media type Print Pages 196 ***Playing Beatie Bow*** is a popular Australian children's novel, written by [Ruth Park](/source/Ruth_Park) and first published on 31 January 1980.[1] It features a [time slip](/source/Time_slip) in [Sydney, Australia](/source/Sydney%2C_Australia). ## Plot summary Lynette Kirk has been a happy child, cheery about her parents and life, until the day her father leaves her and her mother Kathy for another woman. Lynette wants to distance herself from the life they have shared with her father and changes her name to Abigail. Abigail goes down to the park with her young next-door neighbours, Natalie and Vincent. She finds the children there playing a game called "Beatie Bow". After becoming very interested in a "Little Furry Girl" (named so because of her short shaved hair) who stands there watching them play, Abigail decides to follow her. When Abigail's mother admits that she has been seeing her father again and would like them all to move to [Norway](/source/Norway), where he works as an architect, Abigail is furious and goes for a walk to cool off, again encountering the mysterious girl. She follows her back into the 1800s and is tripped up by Beatie's father, Samuel, resulting in injuries. Further into the novel the character Granny (Alice Tallisker) tells Abigail that she is "the stranger" and has "the gift". "The gift" comes from a crocheted detail on her dress. The book later suggests that Granny will complete the crochet. Abigail falls in love with Judah (the little girl's eldest brother), who is betrothed to Dovey, and realises first-hand what it is like to love somebody but not be able to have them. This helps Abigail to realise that she should not be selfish towards her parents and let them have a second chance at life and marriage. Abigail finally manages to return to her own time and discovers that her neighbours, Natalie and Vincent, are descendants of the Bow family. She also finds that Beatie will grow up to be a lady and well educated, and Judah will die at sea after marrying Dovey. After Abigail returns from Norway with her parents she meets Natalie and Vincent's uncle, Robert, who strongly resembles Judah. The two fall in love and Abigail tells him the story of Beatie Bow. ## Reviews According to a review by a scholar of today, *Playing Beatie Bow* falls somewhere between a children's book and young-adult fiction.[2] ## Main characters - Abigail Kirk, formerly Lynette Kirk **In the present** - Katherine "Kathy" Kirk - Weyland Kirk - Natalie Crown - Robert Judah Bow **In 1873** - Beatrice May "Beatie" Bow ("The little furry girl") - Alice Tallisker (Granny Tallisker) - Samuel Bow - Judah Bow - Dorcas "Dovey" Tallisker - Gilbert Samuel "Gibbie" Bow ## Locations Westward view along Argyle Street from Harrington Street towards Cambridge Street and the Cut, around 1900. - The Bows' confectionery shop is located on the corner of Argyle Street and Cambridge Street, immediately to the east of the [Argyle Cut](/source/Argyle_Cut), see [maps at Wikimedia geohack](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Bows%27%20Confectionery%20Shop¶ms=33.85901_S_151.20730_E_dim:100). - The fictional high-rise tower "Mitchell", where the Kirks and the Crowns live, is located on George Street to the south of "The Suez Canal" (approximate location on [map](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=The%20%22Mitchell%22¶ms=33.86004_S_151.20863_E_dim:100)). In real life the only high-rise building in the Rocks is the [Sirius building](/source/Sirius_building), located much further north. This was used for the film. - The Suez Canal, where Abigail was abducted, is located in between the Mitchell tower and the Cut ([map](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=The%20%22Suez%20Canal%22¶ms=33.85954_S_151.20808_E_dim:100)). The name "Suez Canal" is said to have emerged as a pun on both "sewers", as the lane was one of the most disreputable places in the Rocks,[3][4] and the [Suez Canal](/source/Suez_Canal) in Egypt. ## Adaptations In 1986, the book was turned into a feature film also called *[Playing Beatie Bow](/source/Playing_Beatie_Bow_(film))*. Made by the [South Australian Film Corporation](/source/South_Australian_Film_Corporation), it starred [Imogen Annesley](/source/Imogen_Annesley) as Abigail, [Peter Phelps](/source/Peter_Phelps) as Judah Bow and [Mouche Phillips](/source/Mouche_Phillips) as the title character Beatie Bow. On 22 February — 1 May 2021, the [Sydney Theatre Company](/source/Sydney_Theatre_Company) performed a play based on the book, written by the leading Australian playwright [Kate Mulvany](/source/Kate_Mulvany) and artistic director [Kip Williams](/source/Kip_Williams), the duo responsible for the multi-award-winning 2018 stage adaptation of Park's book *[The Harp in the South](/source/The_Harp_in_the_South).*[5] It was sold out.[6] ## Awards - Won – [CBCA](/source/Children's_Book_Council_of_Australia) [Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers](/source/Children's_Book_of_the_Year_Award%3A_Older_Readers) (1981)[7] - Won – Parents' Choice Award for Literature, awarded by the Parents' Choice Foundation (1982) - Won – [Boston Globe-Horn Book Award](/source/Boston_Globe-Horn_Book_Award)[8] (1982) - Honour Diploma – [International Board on Books for Young People](/source/International_Board_on_Books_for_Young_People) (Australia) (1982) - Runner-up – [Guardian Fiction Prize](/source/Guardian_First_Book_Award) (UK) (1982) - Won – [Canberra's Own Outstanding List: Fiction for Older Readers Award](/source/COOL_Award#Fiction_for_Older_Readers_Award) (1994) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** [*Playing Beatie Bow* at Google Books](https://books.google.com/books/about/Playing_Beatie_Bow.html?id=VKlnGgAACAAJ) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Playing Beatie Bow"](http://readingaustralia.com.au/essays/playing-beatie-bow/). Reading Australia. Retrieved 5 November 2015. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Telling The Rocks Stories - Historical Interpretation in The Rocks."](http://thedirton.therocks.com/2010/03/telling-rocks-stories-historical.html) 22 March 2010. In: Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, *The Dirt on the Rocks,* Government Blog. Retrieved 19 December 2020. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Laneways of The Rocks."](https://www.visitsydneyaustralia.com.au/rocks-lanes.html) Without date. In: *Pocket Oz Travel & Information Guide to Sydney.* Retrieved 19 December 2020.] 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Playing Beatie Bow"](https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2021/playing-beatie-bow). *Sydney Theatre Company*. Retrieved 2021-01-12. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** [Sydney Theatre Company site.](https://www.sydneytheatre.com.au/whats-on/productions/2021/playing-beatie-bow) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["1980s award winners"](https://web.archive.org/web/20080503090301/http://cbca.org.au/8089.htm). Children's Book Council of Australia. Archived from [the original](http://cbca.org.au/8089.htm) on 3 May 2008. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-globe_8-0)** ["Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards, Winners and Honor Books 1967 to present"](https://www.hbook.com/?detailStory=past-boston-globe-horn-book-award-winners). The Horn Book Inc. Retrieved 2021-01-08. ## External links - [Article recalling a school trip to Argyle Street area where the book is set](http://www.smh.com.au/comment/beatie-bows-rocks-may-soon-be-nothing-more-than-a-memory-20140322-359yg.html) v t e Children's Book of the Year Award for Older Readers 1946–1949 The Story of Karrawingi the Emu by Leslie Rees (1946) Shackleton's Argonauts: A Saga of the Antarctic Icepacks by Frank Hurley (1948) 1950–1959 Whalers of the Midnight Sun by Alan Villiers (1950) Verity of Sydney Town by Ruth C. Williams (1951) The Australia Book by Eve Pownall (1952) Aircraft of Today and Tomorrow by James H. Martin & W. D. Martin (1953) Good Luck to the Rider by Joan Phipson (1953) Australian Legendary Tales by K. Langloh Parker (1954) The First Walkabout by Norman B. Tindale and Harold Arthur Lindsay (1955) The Crooked Snake by Patricia Wrightson (1956) The Boomerang Book of Legendary Tales edited by Enid Moodie Heddle (1957) Tiger in the Bush by Nan Chauncy (1958) Devil's Hill by Nan Chauncy (1959) Sea Menace by John Gunn (1959) 1960–1969 All the Proud Tribesmen by Kylie Tennant (1960) Tangara by Nan Chauncy (1961) The Racketty Street Gang by L. H. Evers (1962) Rafferty Rides a Winner by Joan Woodberry (1962) The Family Conspiracy by Joan Phipson (1963) The Green Laurel by Eleanor Spence (1964) Pastures of the Blue Crane by H. F. Brinsmead (1965) Ash Road by Ivan Southall (1966) The Min-Min by Mavis Thorpe Clark (1967) To the Wild Sky by Ivan Southall (1968) When Jays Fly to Barbmo by Margaret Balderson (1969) 1970–1979 Uhu by Annette Macarthur-Onslow (1970) Bread and Honey by Ivan Southall (1971) Longtime Passing by H. F. Brinsmead (1972) Family at the Lookout by Noreen Shelley (1973) The Nargun and the Stars by Patricia Wrightson (1974) Fly West by Ivan Southall (1976) The October Child by Eleanor Spence (1977) The Ice Is Coming by Patricia Wrightson (1978) The Plum-Rain Scroll by Ruth Manley (1979) 1980–1989 Displaced Person by Lee Harding (1980) Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park (1981) The Valley Between by Colin Thiele (1982) Master of the Grove by Victor Kelleher (1983) A Little Fear by Patricia Wrightson (1984) The True Story of Lilli Stubeck by James Aldridge (1985) The Green Wind by Thurley Fowler (1986) All We Know by Simon French (1987) So Much to Tell You by John Marsden (1988) Beyond the Labyrinth by Gillian Rubinstein (1989) 1990–1999 Came Back to Show You I Could Fly by Robin Klein (1990) Strange Objects by Gary Crew (1991) The House Guest by Eleanor Nilsson (1992) Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta (1993) The Gathering by Isobelle Carmody (1994) Angel's Gate by Gary Crew (1995) Foxspell by Gillian Rubinstein (1995) Pagan's Vows by Catherine Jinks (1996) A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove by James Moloney (1997) Eye to Eye by Catherine Jinks (1998) Deadly, Unna? by Phillip Gwynne (1999) 2000–2009 48 Shades of Brown by Nick Earls (2000) Wolf on the Fold by Judith Clarke (2001) Forest by Sonya Hartnett (2002) The Messenger by Markus Zusak (2003) Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta (2004) The Running Man by Michael Gerard Bauer (2005) The Story of Tom Brennan by J. C. Burke (2006) Red Spikes by Margo Lanagan (2007) The Ghost's Child by Sonya Hartnett (2008) Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan (2009) 2010–2019 Jarvis 24 by David Metzenthen (2010) The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett (2011) The Dead I Know by Scot Gardner (2012) Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan (2013) Wildlife by Fiona Wood (2014) The Protected by Claire Zorn (2015) Cloudwish by Fiona Wood (2016) One Would Think The Deep by Claire Zorn (2017) Take Three Girls by Cath Crowley, Fiona Wood and Simmone Howell (2018) Between Us by Clare Atkins (2019) 2020–present This is How We Change the Ending by Vikki Wakefield (2020) The End of the World Is Bigger than Love by Davina Bell (2021) Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim (2022) Neverlanders by Tom Taylor (2023) Grace Notes by Karen Comer (2024) I'm Not Really Here by Gary Lonesborough (2025) Picture Book (1955–present) Early Childhood (2001–present) Younger Readers (1982–present) Eve Pownall Award for Information Books (1988–present) v t e Canberra's Own Outstanding List: Fiction for Older Readers Award 1991-1999 People Might Hear You by Robin Klein (1991) Came Back to Show You I Could Fly by Robin Klein (1992) Del-Del by Victor Kelleher (1993) Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park (1994) Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden (1995) So Much to Tell You by John Marsden (1995) Paw Thing by Paul Jennings (1996) Paw Thing by Paul Jennings (1997) The Dead of the Night by John Marsden (1998) The Third Day, The Frost by John Marsden (1999) 2000-2009 The Night is for Hunting by John Marsden (2000) Just Disgusting! by Andy Griffiths (2003) Zombie Bums from Uranus by Andy Griffiths (2004) The Bad Book by Andy Griffiths (2005) Bumageddon: The Final Pongflict by Andy Griffiths (2006) Zombie Bums from Uranus by Andy Griffiths (2007) Spookiest Stories by Paul Jennings (2008) Give Peas a Chance by Morris Gleitzman (2009) 2010-present The Battle of Rondo by Emily Rodda (2010) Ranger's Apprentice by John Flanagan (2011) Picture Book Award (1993-present) Fiction for Younger Readers Award (1991-present) v t e Works by Ruth Park Novels The Harp in the South (1948) Poor Man's Orange (1949) The Witch's Thorn (1951) The Muddle-Headed Wombat series (1962-82) Swords and Crowns and Rings (1977) Playing Beatie Bow (1980) Radio The Bagman Stories (1943-48) I'll Meet You in Botany Bay (1945) Early in the Morning (1946) Far from the Land (1947) Stumpy (1947) The Harp in the South (1951) Gulliver's Cousin (1954) One Man's Kingdom (1957) A Little South of Heaven (1959) TV A Little South of Heaven (1961) No Decision (1962) The Harp in the South (1964) The Harp in the South (1986) Poor Man's Orange (1987) Film Playing Beatie Bow (1986) Theatre The Harp in the South (1949) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Playing Beatie Bow](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playing_Beatie_Bow) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Playing_Beatie_Bow?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.