Tiare - Clestine Hitiura Vaite

In the Tahitian town of Faa'a the daily routine is relaxed and pleasantly predictable. But there's one thing you cannot escape and that's the watchful eye of the family. News travels fast on the 'coconut radio' and before you know it every cousin, in-law and neighbour who's been into the local store or bakery that day knows your business.

And Materena Mahi, champion professional listener, has a problem that everyone's talking about: her husband, Pito, is a big zro. He has never impressed the family, and now the children are grown-up and she has her own successful radio show, even Materena is beginning to wonder why she still puts up with him.

But big changes are on the horizon for the Mahi household. When baby Tiare is literally abandoned on the doorstep of her bewildered grandparents, Materena has some very new ideas about who's going to be left holding the baby...

Clestine Hitiura Vaite was born in Tahiti. The daughter of a Tahitian mother and a French father who went back to his country after military service, she grew up in her big extended family in Faa'a-Tahiti, where storytelling was part of the every day life and women overcame obstacles with gusto and humour. Clestine now lives with her family on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia.