Célestine Hitiura Vaite

Read Around The World French Polynesia (Tahiti)

“Girl, waiting for a man is like waiting for a chicken to have teeth.”

Célestine Hitiura Vaite was born and raised in French Polynesia (Tahiti) and now lives in Australia. Breadfruit is her debut novel featuring the lovable Materena Mahi. When her partner Pito mentions marriage during a drunken conversation Materena finds herself mentally buying wedding cakes and planning her big day. She makes her way around Faa’a researching the cost of hiring a wedding car, a DJ and all the wedding accoutrements. Along the way she is stopped by her many cousins and neighbours, who want to avail themselves of Materena’s listening ear, or pass along a tasty tidbit of gossip from the “coconut radio.” Interspersed between the quirky family tales are Tahitian myths and legends and fragments of political history, such as the colonial theft of land and the military presence. Materena has a close relationship with her mother Loana, and the story also drifts to Loana’s life as a single mother abandoned by her French lover, and to Materena’s grandmother and her life on Rangiroa island. An absolutely delightful read with an engaging main character, and vividly descriptive scenes that make you feel as if you just travelled to Tahiti. 5 stars for sure.… (more)

Frangipani is the second book in a series by Célestine Hitiura Vaite, but could easily be read as a stand-alone story or out of sequence. The author was born and grew up in French Polynesia (Tahiti) but now lives in Australia. This book is very much a character-driven story which revolves around the endearing Materena and her daughter Leilani. It begins when Leilani is a baby, goes through the difficult teenage years when the generations come into conflict and traditional cultural values face off against modern sensibilities, and into adulthood. The book also does a wonderful job of creating a sense of place, using Tahitian words and expressions, and customs. It also gently touches on colonialism and the class and wealth disparity between the French and the Tahitians. I loved the gossipy yet supportive interactions between the Tahitian women, sadly most of the men seemed like a waste of space. This was a relaxing feel-good read that I really enjoyed.… (more)

Set in Tahiti, this quasi-autobiographical novel explores a mother-daughter relationship in the context of the Tahitian post-World War II culture. The central character, Materena, is a strong, clever, passionate, and compassionate mother of three, including a daughter named Leilani, and wife of a thoughtless, self-centered man, Pito. She dispenses advice regularly to her large extended family, but her main concerns are always with her daughter Leilani, part of the new breed of women of Tahiti who are modern and turning their backs on the old ways. Ms. Vaite does a good job of bringing to life the Tahitian culture.… (more)

Set in Tahiti, this novel is the story of Materena, a young woman in Tahiti who lives with her somewhat shiftless boyfriend Pito and their children. At the beginning of the book Pito drunkenly proposes to Materena and she dreams about the wedding while wondering if he really meant it. The book is episodic linking together vignettes of everyday life in Tahiti, usually with Materena being visited by family and friends who share their adventures. The novel is mostly light and funny, but there's an undercurrent of the reveal poverty and effects of colonialism (which manifests in the book primarily through the French police officers). It's a delightful and charming book and Vaite does a great job in creating the characters and their dialogue.… (more)