The gripping sequel to the award-winning and bestselling YA novels I am not Esther and I am Rebecca.
In this breathtaking follow-up to I am not Esther and I am Rebecca, Fleur Beale revisits the Pilgrim family and its closed religious community, The Children of the Faith.
Four years have passed since Rebecca ran away. The community simmers with tension and rumours of an approaching split, and life has become terrifying for Rebecca’s remaining siblings as Elder Stephen seizes any chance to take revenge on them. Twelve-year-old Magdalene lives in fear that her strong-willed little sister, Zillah, will be his next target.
The girls have run out of people who can protect them. To Zillah their path is clear but Magdalene is torn. How can she cause more hurt and shame for her parents? But, equally, how can she face a life with no freedom to be herself?
And another question scares her most of all. Without the elders’ suffocating rules that tell her how to live, who would Magdalene be?
Awards
Awarded a Storylines Notable Young Adult Fiction Award 2016
Finalist YA Fiction and Children’s Choice, New Zealand Book Awards for Children & Young Adults 2016
Behind The Book…
A boy my husband taught wanted to be a doctor, but the religion his family belonged to believed education was evil as it exposed the mind to worldly influences that would lead you to hell. The boy managed to complete four years at high school but his father refused to let him do a final year. The boy argued with his father about it ending with the father throwing his son from the house and telling him he was now dead to his family. He went to his mate whose family gave him a home. He did become a doctor.
That story stayed in my head for about fifteen years. When I decided the time had come to use what had happened to him as the idea for a story I contacted him to ask permission and he was fine with it. But I didn’t want to write his story and instead I wrote about a 14 year old girl called Kirby who is sent to live with strictly religious relatives.
It took me six weeks of the summer holidays to work out why Kirby’s loving mother would make her live with the religious relatives she’d never told Kirby about. I had no intention of writing a sequel. Another fifteen or so years went by and I didn’t know what to write. I often find it difficult to get the initial idea that will kick off a story so I was a bit grumpy.
In the end, my commissioning editor at Random House said, ‘Well, what are you interested in?’ I said, ‘I’ve always wondered what happened to Rachel and Rebecca.’ They are the twins in the family Kirby is sent to live with. That’s how I came to write I am Rebecca. Then I wanted to find out what happened to Magdalene and the only way to do that was to write Being Magdalene.
- Fleur Beale
Reviews For Being Magdalene
...I think it's the best young adult novel I've ever read.
- John Macintyre, Nine To Noon
Superbly written by Fleur Beale who keeps the tension on for the whole novel. Watching a family disintegrate is disturbing but the ending will bring tears to your eyes . . . You will not forget this novel in a hurry.
- Bob Bocherty, Bob’s Books Blog
The remarkable success of I Am Not Esther and its sequels lies in Beale's insightful ability to see shades between black and white, convincing us, for example, of Rebecca's twin's decision to stay inside the faith as much as her own to leave. While exposing the hypocrisy of those Elders claiming divine guidance, Beale allows other church adults to show compassion, wisdom and discernment in a fine balance.
- Ann Packer, NZ Listener
This compelling young adult novel is the sequel to New Zealand’s award winning author Fleur Beale’s I Am Not Esther and I Am Rebecca. The series is about life inside a religious cult. I’ve read all three books and they are all excellent...although they are aimed at young adults they have a far wider audience.
- Linda Hall, Hawke’s Bay Weekend
Five out of five stars...Being Magdalene is my favourite book in the series; the ending seemed to tie things off so perfectly. By the end of the book I found myself attached to so many of the characters that I was worried that they might not get the resolution they deserved. I recommend that you get yourself a copy; it's thrilling, intriguing, and not a read to miss out on.
- Tiernery Reardon, TearAway Magazine
Beale is a seasoned hand at creating a believably heart-wrenching atmosphere around Magdalene, relieved by moments of simple, quiet joy. We feel Magdalene's dilemma, which is not about faith but about how to be the sister Zillah needs her to be without destroying her already fragile family.
- Tatjana Schaefer, NZ Books
This awe-inspiring novel keeps you reading till the very last word, your anticipation is at its peak as you finish the final sentence. This story leaves you questioning the many different scenarios even after the last words have been read. . . . Being Magdalene definitely delivered the complex ending this series deserved and brought tears, happiness, fear and a lot of overwhelming thoughts. I highly recommend Being Magdalene for people of various ages and I can guarantee you will not forget this story in a hurry.
- Emma Myles (Age 10), HookedOnBooks.org.nz