Nine Days

Nine Days is the third novel by Australian author Toni Jordan. While her previous novels fell into the genre of romance, with this third novel, Jordan has diverged into the realm of historical fiction. Set in Melbourne’s Richmond neighborhood, the novel is divided into nine chapters, each told from the perspective of a different member of the Westaway family. Jordan was originally inspired to write the story after using the photograph that appears on the book’s cover as a prompt.

The first chapter of the novel, “Kip,” introduces the reader to all the members of the Westaway family. It is 1939, and Kip is fifteen years old. He lives with his mother, his brother, Francis, and his older sister, Connie. He works as a stable boy for his neighbors, the Hustings, taking care of their horse, Charlie. There is obvious class tension between the Westaways and the Hustings, made worse by the impending Second World War.

The second chapter, “Stanzi,” jumps ahead to the year 2001. Stanzi is a counselor who is, herself, deeply unhappy. On the outside, she would appear to be a resounding success, but secretly, she struggles with feelings of dissatisfaction with her work and a constant battle with her weight. After she feels compelled to follow a troublesome client to her home, Stanzi has a breakthrough, realizing that she can no longer do this job. At the end of the chapter, it is revealed that Stanzi is Kip’s daughter.



Chapter 3, “Jack,” is set in 1940, and focuses on the Hustings’ son, Jack. He has been away for eighteen months and has just returned to Melbourne, though he yearns for country life and feels stifled being back in the city. He also feels social pressure to serve in the military. It becomes clear that Jack is enamored of Connie, but the rivalries between their families make it complicated for him to act on his feelings.

Set in 1990, the fourth chapter is told from the perspective of Charlotte. In her mid-twenties, she is Stanzi’s sister. Charlotte looks up to her sister in spite of Stanzi’s own self-criticism. The chapter deals with Charlotte’s dilemma surrounding the termination of an unintended pregnancy, as well as sentiments about class, as Charlotte’s boyfriend, Craig, is clearly from a comfortable family, although he claims not to care about money.

The story then jumps back in time again, to just before the Second World War. Frank and Kip have just lost their father in a sudden and tragic accident and are still trying to come to terms with his death. The family struggles to make ends meet without its patriarch, and Frank is coerced into joining a group of boys who rob the elderly. He participates in a robbery that goes wrong, and after, he vows to commit himself fully to his studies and make his mother proud.



Annabel re-enters the story after originally being introduced as a happy-go-lucky girl and Kip’s potential love interest. At this point, the author delves deeper into Annabel’s character, revealing that she is the sole caretaker of her alcoholic father. She is forced to run the household by herself, attempting to ration the food so that they don’t run out. Annabel has never married as she spends all of her time caring for her father. Francis proclaims his love for Annabel and tells her that he was planning to ask her father for her hand in marriage.

The story jumps back in time once more, and this time it is told from the perspective of Jean Westaway, or Ma. It is revealed that Jack Husting has been killed in North Africa, devastating Connie who is pregnant with his child. Her mother advises her against having the baby, stating that she will be ostracized as an unwed mother. Ignoring Connie’s wishes, she makes arrangements for her to get an abortion.

The final chapter of the book is told from the point of view of Connie and Jack. It is August of 1940, and Connie reminisces about the only night she and Jack ever spent together, before he went off to war. Although premarital sex was frowned upon at the time, Connie decides to take matters into her own hands, resenting how she has lived her entire life under someone else’s rule. She and Jack have sex, after which she feels totally empowered and free for perhaps the first time in her life.



Jack and Connie make plans to see each other in a few months when he returns from his service. The photo on the cover of the book that inspired the story is taken by Kit at the train station where Connie is lifted onto the platform so that she may say goodbye to Jack, giving him one last kiss.