Being Magdalene by Fleur Beale

Being Magdalene is the third in a series by New Zealand author Fleur Beale.  The first two books are I am not Esther and I am Rebecca.  This book continues on the story of the lives of the Pilgram family in the Children of the Faith in Nelson.

Here is the front cover:

Here is the blurb on the back cover:

This book focuses on the second to youngest daughter in the Pilgrim family, Magdalene.  Now age 12, she is the eldest daughter at home.  The remaining siblings with her are Abraham (aged 18), Luke (aged 15) and Zillah who is seven going on eight.  Their sister Rachel lives nearby with her husband Saul and their three year old daughter Hope and pregnant again, living by The Rule.

Meanwhile, their older siblings and cousin are fearing well in the real world.  Daniel has become a doctor, and unknown to his family still in the Faith, is working at Nelson Hospital.  Miriam has become an artist who is exhibited.  Kirby/Esther and Rebecca are studying at tertiary level.  They have the support of their uncle and aunts, Jim, Nina and Ellen (Kirby's mother).

All is not well in the Pilgrim household.  Their mother, Sister Naomi, has not recovered from the shame of Rebecca running away and she is particularly hard on Magdalene and Zillah, demanding they live by The Rule, preaching scripture at them constantly and always believing the worst of Magdalene.  Abraham and Luke appear to live godly lives, but Abraham has no time for The Rule and Luke does not believe in a destructive God, but rather a kindly God.  Zillah does not believe in The Rule and hates Elder Stephen and longs to go to a real school.  Magdalene concentrates all her energy on ensuring Zillah does not become the target of Elder Stephen's displeasure, to her own detriment.

Elder Stephen has not forgiven the Pilgrim family for Rebecca running away and he and Elder Hosea will take any opportunity to cause the Pilgrims discomfort and punish the children for any perceived break of The Rule.  However, Elder Stephen's actions become even more erratic and when he denies Abraham the right to marry or study, Abraham takes matters into his own hands.  This leads to further actions by Elder Stephen putting Zillah's safety in peril, and Magdalene and Zillah have only one option left open to them.

Again this book would be rich fodder for the secondary English class, bringing up the thorny issues of freedom, religion, cults, wormen's rights, power, etc.   This book was, like several others of Fleur Beale's, nominated for the Children's Book Awards.  It was a powerful book that kept me engaged and is well worthy of awards in my opinion.

I am Rebecca by Fleur Beale

I am Rebecca is the sequel to I am not Esther by New Zealand author Fleur Beale.  A third book in the series, Being Magdalene, is next on my reading list.

Here is the front cover:

Here is the blurb on the back cover:

This book picks up a few months after Esther/Kirby has left the Pilgram family in Wanganui, as the twenty-three families of the Children of the Faith are leaving Wanganui to join other Children of the Faith families in Nelson, where a school is being set up for all the families so the children no longer have to attend state schools and be exposed to the world.

The book is written from the point of view of Rebecca, one of the twins who is thirteen years old.  It follows her through to the year after she turns 16.  Rebecca and Rachel had been left with the words from Esther/Kirby ringing in their ears: use your brain.  As they left Wanganui, their principal's parting words were: use your brain.

As they adjust to life in Nelson, the girls find that they do have to use their brain and balance it out with ensuring they follow The Rule of the Children of the Faith.  Their family is pitied by the other families due to Miriam, Daniel and Esther/Kirby leaving in the manner that they did.  But Rebecca and Rachel soon make new friends.

As their fourteenth birthdays approach, they know they will be betrothed to one of the eligible boys.  One young man, Brother Saul, who is charged with their supervision as they sell organic eggs and chickens from the Faith's organic farm at the Saturday market, is the one Rachel has her eye on.  Rebecca is happy with the choice made for her.... but then it all changes and Rebecca is forced to make a drastic choice for her own happiness and future.  You'll have to read the book to find out more.

Like I am Esther this book would be a valuable resource to use in a secondary class to discuss cults, religions, choice and freedom.  I found this a compelling read and polished it off fairly quickly.  I am now starting to read the last in the trilogy, Being Magdalene.

I am not Esther by Fleur Beale

I am not Esther by Fleur Beale was first published in 1998 and I am only just reading it now, despite purchasing it in early 2017.  The front cover has the line A bestselling New Zealand classic and I would agree and urge you to read it.

Here is the front cover:

Here is the back cover and blurb.

Now I've previously read a number of Fleur Beale's books, but I have a personal attachment.  Mrs Beale was a teacher at my high school when I was a student and she was a wonderful teacher who I have happy memories of, not because she was a teacher of a subject I liked as I never had her as a subject teacher, but because she took the time to talk to students and support them as they were transitioning from leaving school.  Mr Beale would also sometimes travel to school on the bus with us.  This is a link to Fleur Beale's Wikipedia page which has her biography and also contains a list of her books (I love Slide the Corner).

This book would resonate with many New Zealanders with the most famous cult in New Zealand, Gloriavale, receiving a lot of media attention and being the subject of several flattering documentaries over the last decade.

This would be a great book to read with Year 9 and 10s to encourage fabulous discussion for and against the lifestyle and beliefs and actions of the Children of the Faith and apply it to real life situations.

At 207 pages (in my copy anyway) it was a fast read and compelling as Kirby is abandoned by her mother into the care of her Uncle Caleb and his family, people Kirby knew nothing of, before supposedly going off to Africa to volunteer with refugees as a nurse.  Kirby is taken away from all she knows, her name is changed to Esther by her uncle and he refuses to give her access to her and her mother's possessions or let her read letters sent by her mother or give her her mother's address.

Kirby finds herself in a home with no radio, no television, no newspapers, no mirrors and no telephone.  There are six children (Daniel aged 17, the twins Rachel and Rebecca who are intermediate aged, Abraham and Luke who are primary school aged and Magdalene who has just turned five) and her Aunt Naomi is pregnant.  Kirby finds out that there is another sister, Miriam, the same age as her, fourteen, who has recently passed away.

Kirby fights against the situation she finds herself in, struggles to keep her identity as Kirby rather than becoming Esther.  She soon discovers that the situation with Miriam is not what it seems and that Daniel has no desire to stay in the faith.  Kirby finds help once she begins high school but it is with a heavy heart as she struggles with the thought of abandoning Magdalene.

To say anything else would be to give away too much about the story, but I am looking forward now to reading the sequels, I am Rebecca and Being Magdalene, which I purchased at the same time as I am not Esther.

The Last Secret of the Temple by Paul Sussman

There seems to be a formula for books set around the rim of the Mediterrean, because like the novel The Sacred Bones by Michael Byrnes, which I read and reviewed in the summer of 2016, The Last Secret of the Temple by Paul Sussman begins with an ancient sacking of Jeruselem - this time by the Crusaders.


I have not read any books by Paul Sussman previously, but as the line at the top of the front cover says, this novel is an action-packed thriller to keep you turning the pages.  But sadly there will be no new books by Sussman, who was also a journalist and archeologist, as he passed away at the end of May 2012 from a ruptured aneurysm at age 45.  He had published five novels and two non-fiction books.  You can read more about Paul Sussman here.


Here is the front cover and blurb for The Last Secret of the Temple:

This novel revolves around three main characters who are drawn together by the death of a man which at first looks suspicious, but turns out to be a rather unconventional accident.  It does however bring up uncomfortable memories for Inspector Yusaf Khalifa from the Luxor police of a murder supposedly solved years before.  This was the murder of an Israeli woman near an ancient ruin in Luxor.  It soon has Yusaf reaching out to Arieh Ben-Roi, a Jeruselum detective who is drinking himself to ruin due to grief, and this leads Ben-Roi to the Palestinian journalist Layla al-Madani who holds onto the death of her own father as a driving force.


Archeology and ancient relics are themes that run through this book, and like the author, Yusaf has an acheological background.  While this book touches lightly on some ancient Egyptian gods and goddesses, it delves into the sacredness of the mennorah for those of Jewish faith, some ancient Christian beliefs, and the depths the Nazi's went to in order to seize ancient Jewish relics.


As Yusaf investigates, he discovers how much his superiors have covered up for the real killer years before when the Israeli woman was murdered.  It is revealed why Ben-Roi is so broken and layers of Layla are peeled back - but which one is the one who should not be trusted?


Throw in a militant Jewish strong man aiming to evict Palestinians from their homes within Israel and a militant Palestinian randomly targeting Israelis with suicide bombing contrasted against a peace process between the Israeli government and the Palestinian's hosted by the Egyptians under the cover of darkness in an isolated deserted hut in the Sinai, and this book will throw you a fair few curves and have you guessing about whose loyalties lay where.


After reading Sussman's details, I have discovered that two of his other novels also have Yusaf Khalifa as the main character, one before and one after this book.  I may go looking for these books in the library.....

Wildacre by Philippa Gregory

Wildacre was the first book I have read written by Philippa Gregory.  She is a widely aclaimed author of The Other Boleyn Girl (which was made into a movie I quite enjoyed) and other historical fiction based on the kings and queens of England.  You can find out more about Philippa Gregory's books here.  Wideacre is the first of a trilogy... but I won't be reading the sequels or any of Gregory's other books.  This one put me off her books completely.


Here is the cover and the blurb on the back of the book:

The central character is Beatrice Lacey.  She is the second child of what is essentially a loveless marriage  Her elder brother, Harry is sickly and mothered excessively by their mother, while Beatrice is strong and healthy.  Consequently, her father, the Squire, takes her out on the land, teaching her all he knows about farming and the land, growing within her a passion for the land, for Wildacre.


As Beatrice blooms into her early adolesence she begins to understand that she will not inherit Wildacre.  It will instead be entailed on Harry who is away at school.


This realisation ignites something within Beatrice that consequently makes the character not a character I loved or even liked.  The change in Beatrice and the actions she was to undertake and their consequences made her one of the most unlikable central characters to a book I have ever read.


Between the murder, debauchery, incest and deceit that the book descended into, I was left with a dissatisfied feeling reading this book.  I completed it, because I rarely leave a book incomplete, but I have no desire to read the sequels or any other Philipa Gregory book as a result.  It simply is not a book I would recommend.

The Other Woman by Jane Green

The title The Other Woman automatically makes you think there will be an affair involved, and there is.... just not who you expect, and the other woman referred to by the title is not referring to the affair.  It's actually referring to the mother-in-law, Linda.


I have not read anything by Jane Green previously.  However, Jane Green has published at least eighteen novels.  I may be hunting more out after reading this book.  You can read about Jane Green here.


This is the front and back covers and the blurb from inside:

As you read this book you can easily see that many of Linda's behaviours may appear helpful.... from her point of view.... but to Ellie, they are not.  To Ellie they are a threat to her identity as Dan's wife and Tom's mother.  Ellie has tried to be forgiving, has tried to be honest in what she wants, has tried bowing to Linda's whims and wishes... but no matter which tactic Ellie takes, Linda just barrels on through with her agenda.

When Ellie and Dan move to a new home and have their son Tom, Ellie and Dan make a new set of friends who they invite to go on holiday with them when Linda and Michael offer them a holiday home in France for a week while they go sailing with friends.  Things are already tense between Ellie and Linda, but this holiday accellerates the tension, especially when an accident occurs due to Linda's continual meddling, an affair is ignited, a friendship crashes and burns and events lead to Dan and Ellie's marriage reaching breaking point.

The theme of this book is something many young married couples could apply to their own marriages when it comes to mother-in-laws, or even father-in-laws.  Therefore most people reading this book will understand the points of views of Ellie and Dan, and even Linda and Michael.  I enjoyed the book and it kept me reading until I finished it... which took about two days on holiday I think.....



The Pretty Delicious Cafe by Danielle Hawkins

I am a big fan of Kiwi author Danielle Hawkins and I was hanging out for this third helping from her which I picked up from the lovely ladies at Paper Plus in Te Awamutu before Christmas.  They even found me one of the last remaining copies signed by Danielle on the night of the book launch and kindly pointed out her dedication to them too.  They did offer to sign the book as well... but didn't follow through.


The Pretty Delicious Cafe is a well anticipated follow up to Dinner at Rose's and Chocolate Cake for Breakfast (aka: my happy place), by the author/mum/wife/vet/farmer from Otorohanga.  This is a piece about A Day in the Life of Danielle Hawkins by her publisher, Harper-Collins.  Here is the cover, blurb, a brief (signed!) author bio and the dedication to the ladies at Paper Plus and Danielle's "mint" husband:

Again, this book is set in a small rural town, this time on the Northland east coast, with a collection of interesting locals to add colour to the story.  The central character is Lia, who owns a cafe with her best friend Anna, who is also engaged to Lia's twin brother Rob.  Lia and Rob's mum Margaret also lives in town and they have a much older half-brother, Mike, who visits when he can get away their father's farm down past Taumarunui. 


Other supporting characters include Hugh, who has a crush on Margaret, and Monty, the local mechanic who would rather go fishing than fix cars.  Lia also has an ex-boyfriend, Issac, who just doesn't get the message she is no longer interested.


Then one dark night after Lia has been reading a scary book lent to her by Hugh, a stranger knocks on her door asking for help.  Lia is petrified by this and this reveals a link between Lia and Rob that is a reocurring theme throughout the book and a source of tension between Lia and Anna.


Of course, this is a romance, and my first cat I will let out of the bag is that the stranger, Jed, becomes the love interest for Lia.  However, Issac can not let go and continues to beg Lia to get back together.  The second cat I am letting out of the bag is that there is partner violence - and I am only saying this as I know it can be a trigger for some people.


I really enjoyed reading this and I have lent it to a couple of cousins (one of which who has already read the previous two books) who also enjoyed it.  I have enjoyed it so much I have read it at least six times since before Christmas!  So of course, I do recommend this book.






An aside:
If you have read Chocolate Cake for Breakfast, you will be well aware of the 'date' Helen and Mark have with the dead calf in the cow.  I had a cow go down with calving paralysis, and as I watched the vet insert her arm into the cow to check her out, I asked if she had read Chocolate Cake for Breakfast.  My vet had - and Danielle works for the same vet company my family uses!!  Lovely!!