Frangipani: a tropical tree or bush producing showy, fragrant flowers, ranging from yellow to pale pink. Celestine Hitiura Vaite has chosen a perfect title for her novel – the name of a beautiful plant for a beautiful story.
From the first page I found Materena a delightful character. She has such a warm heart, vibrant energy and quirky logic; her thoughts and words are full of humour and wisdom. I admired her for accepting a hardworking life and following Tahitian traditions without complaint. However, she wants her daughter Leilani to have a better life. She chooses the frangipani as Leilani’s birth tree and nurtures both with loving care; water for the frangipani – a set of encyclopaedias and the best school for Leilani.
As Leilani grows up Materena meets her match; the mother-daughter sparring is mostly funny but sometimes upsetting. Leilani has her mother’s strength of character but she is also her own person – sharp, bold and outspoken. At times Materena finds her daughter’s behaviour challenging and hurtful. Yet Leilani clearly adores her mother; no one is allowed to mock her, not even the beloved boyfriend. I was relieved when Leilani eventually decided on a career and made her mother’s dreams come true.
The ending came as a surprise - Materena’s new career! Radio Tefana made me think of the Woman and Home forums. To quote Materena: ‘Every single woman has something to say. A story that will help another woman take a step forward. A story that will warn another woman before she takes a step backwards. A story to reassure all of us that we’re not all alone …’
This book is a gem – thank you for making an excellent choice, Sealover!
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