Frangipani

by Celestine Vaite

Overview

In Tahiti, it's a well-known fact that women are wisest, mothers know best, and Materena Mahi knows best of all — or so everyone except for her own daughter thinks. Soon enough, mother and daughter are engaged in a tug-of-war that tests the bonds of their love.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316114660
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	02/07/2006
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Célestine Vaite grew up in a big extended family in Faa-a-Tahiti, where storytelling was a part of her every day life. Her first two novels about the Mahi and Tehana families, Breadfruit and Frangipani, have been published in the UK, the US, Canada, Italy, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, Brazil, France, Germany and French Polynesia. She now lives on the south coast of New South Wales with her family.

Editorial Reviews

A warm and lyrical look at the fabric of family life in Tahiti. Tahiti's languorous inhabitants always seem to end up on Materena Mahi's doorstep-and she just can't keep herself from meddling in their lives. In Materena's world, there is always time to comfort and commiserate. The most common woe? Adult children drifting in and out of their mothers' lives like the tide. This debut novel follows Materena as she raises her three children and endures a tumultuous relationship with her husband. She has lofty aspirations for each of her offspring and fusses over them endlessly. Her children receive Materena's infamous lists for living, including rules for keeping secrets, tenets of giving birth and mandates for visiting foreign countries. As her nest empties, Materena is left to contemplate her future. For decades, she's literally swept aside her needs working hard as the island's most reliable house cleaner. On her 40th birthday, Materena summons the courage to change. Tossing aside her broom, she launches a career as the Oprah of Tahiti, dispensing homespun advice over the radio. Vaite has crafted an unforgettable heroine: Materena is passionate, clever and never without words of wisdom or a bit of folklore to share with a troubled soul. By the end, the reader is left wanting more, more, more. The good news: There are two more installments to come. Vaite uses words to paint a vivid Tahitian landscape worthy of a Gauguin painting and delivers a memorable story about big dreams on a small island.

Kirkus Reviews