Written by Anne Biggs, the book is a fictional re-telling of the author’s own birth and adoption story.
CLOVIS, CALIF., February 19, 2016—HBE Publishing is proud to announce the release of “The Swan Garden” written by Anne Biggs. The book was published under the company’s imprint publisher, Paradigm Hall Press, and explores the terrible conditions of unwed pregnant women in Ireland during the 1950s and 60s.
“The Swan Garden” tells the story of a young woman who survives a brutal rape and gives birth in a mother baby home in Ireland, after which she endures horrific abuse in a Magdalene Laundry. While she does eventually escape, she never forgets the baby that was taken from her and gradually learns the truths that were kept from her all those years ago.
The book is based on the author’s own birth story. Anne Biggs was born in a mother baby home in the Midlands of Ireland and spent five years in a Dublin orphanage before an American couple from California adopted her. Biggs spent 23 years searching for her birth mother and eventually met her in 2008. Unfortunately, the shame and trauma Biggs’s birth mother experienced prevented the two from forming any sort of relationship.
Today, Biggs lives in California and is an English teacher at the secondary level. She wrote “The Swan Garden” to honor her birth mother and the life she may have lived in both the mother baby homes and the Magdalene Laundries.
“We are pleased to bring Anne’s story to the bookshelves,” said Daniel Dunklee, managing editor of HBE Publishing. “‘The Swan Garden’ is a must-read for anyone who has an interest in mid-twentieth century Irish history or adoption.”
Those interested in purchasing a copy of “The Swan Garden” can do so at A Book Barn in Clovis, Calif., or by visiting Amazon’s bookstore.