Author(s): Fleur Beale

9-10 Year Old

A Young Adult historical romance novel set in both New Zealand and England during the 19th century. The main character is Hannah, a strong Elizabeth Bennett-like personality, who lives in Taranaki with her father, twin brother, Maori step-mother and step-brother during the time of the land wars. Hannah and her twin, Jamie, travel to England, for a number of reasons - one of which is to find the family of their dead mother. There they encounter the culture shock of upper-class English county behaviour. In Hannah's search for her own identity and for the truth about the mother she has never known,she needs all her stubborn independence to survive. There are many fascinating aspects to the book: the Pakeha/Maori racial clash of the time; a young teenager's growing knowledge of the world around her - romance, marriage, work, the purpose of life, racism, death; the striking differences between the freedom of New Zealand and the constraints of England. A Respectable Girl is rich, full of detail, suspenseful, strong on character, has an excellent sense of place and it retains its secret until the final pages. First published 2006.