Breadfruit by Celestine Vaite

Materena lives with her long-term partner, Pito and their three kids in Tahiti, working as a professional cleaner and finding ways to honour their families and make their lives better. One drunken night, Pito proposes and Materena, unsure if the proposal will be remembered or honoured, begins to plan their wedding. But she keeps it quiet, afraid of looking the fool.

This is such a lovely book. Materena is wonderful – she cares so much for those around her and is deeply selfless, putting others’ needs before her own again and again. I’ve not been to Tahiti, and I’m sure as a tourist, I would see a very different side to that depicted here. But it is nice to escape into this world for a while.