Juno and Hannah
1920, deep in the New Zealand bush, a settlement of Christian fundamentalists live a life of austerity and isolation. It is a place where there is little space for compassion, particularly for the women who can never rid themselves of Eve’s original sin. The elders rule over the women, children and young men, meting out punishments for transgressions as ordinary as self-reflection.
Sisters Juno and Hannah have grown up in the community, but when a stranger washes up on the river bank and Hannah goes to his aid, she finds herself accused of necromancy. The girls flee but are quickly forced to accept help. Hannah, unsure who is friend or foe, finds herself dependent upon and attracted to the man into whose lips she breathed life.
Juno and Hannah is a remarkable novella. The vivid New Zealand landscape reflects the journey of the sisters with its bounty of beauty and resources but also with its scars, wrought during the early days of colonisation.
2013 | ISBN 9781742198750 | Paperback | 200 x 130 mm | 160 pp
Reviews
This true slice of Kiwi gothic will get inside your head and stay with you long after the last page has been read. Cleverly combining aspects of Maori spirituality with tales of early settlers woven through with the horrifying aspects of the early eugenics movement, Juno & Hannah reminds us once again why Beryl Fletcher was the recipient of the Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Book back in 1992. Short at just 170 pages, a wee gem to add to your book shelf or to gift to the book lover in your life.
—Sarah McMullan, The Booksellers New Zealand blog
High gothic bush yarn, Juno and Hannah has all the ingredients of love, quest, humour and endurance played out against a background of rural 1920's life, eugenics and cult religion. Simply told, fast paced, Beryl Fletcher's new novella abounds with vivid evocations of the natural world and some unforgettable female characters.
—Stephanie Johnson author of 'The Open World' and 'The Writing Class'
Juno and Hannah is at once a page turning read, full of twists and surprises, and at the same time a painful account of women's journey through the hinterland of history. Beryl Fletcher has painted a stunningly accurate picture of wild territory, pain, separation, revival and regeneration in spite of dreadful odds. I am haunted by the courage of these women in the face of adversity, and the knowledge that their circumstances remain universal.
—Fiona Kidman, author of 'Where the Left Hand Rests' and 'Beside the Dark Pool'
Hannah’s love for her sister, Juno’s deep vulnerability, and the need to go forward without understanding one’s circumstances touch us all...I strongly recommend Juno and Hannah to readers who like their fiction to be mysterious and emotional and to those willing to face the problems of the vulnerable in our midst.
—Me, you, and books
The river is a handy motif. The story too flows and meanders like a running river, snaking in on itself before straightening, only to begin to curl again. The pace has the effect of smoothing the narrative out, keeping it consistent as mysteries rise or as they are resolved. It works to ensure that what is a complex story never loses focus... Fletcher is a brave writer.
—Tristan Foster, Verity La
While it’s short on length, it’s not short on thought-provoking ability; Juno & Hannah is a powerful story about two courageous, but vulnerable, young women who are, in a sense, the face of many women of their time... Juno & Hannah is one I’d recommend for those who like a dash of literary gothic.
—Monique Mulligan, Write Note Reviews
Set in post-WW1, it certainly has more than a flavour of Kiwi gothic to it...Fletcher is always a fantastic writer and I did enjoy Juno & Hannah...The story moves along at a fast pace and as quickly as we are dropped into this story, we are dropped out. Perhaps that’s another tick in the novella column.
—Ngaire Atmore, BookieMonster
The social setting is the 1920s. The social mores of the time are another wild card that drives some of the twists in the plot, and these are woven into the story almost seamlessly.
—The Australian Writer
The ending brings no clear answers here – the past remains firmly locked away. But nonetheless Juno and Hannah is a page-turner, the kind of book that stays with you as you go about your day-to-day business.
—Lauren Cook, Welloflostplots
This is not a story that neatly ties up all the loose ends into one happy little bundle and for that I profoundly thank Fletcher. It would have been a disservice to the complexity of the tale to provide a bland and simple ending. As it was, the questions raised by the narrative linger long after the book has been put down.
—Victoria Nugent, Rochford Street Review
There’s something about Fletcher’s direct narrative style evoking an almost other-worldly setting that drew me in. I didn’t want to put it down.
—Sue Terry, Whispering Gums
Juno & Hannah is a beautifully written and moving novella. It serves as a powerful reminder that behaviours and attitudes the majority now find unspeakable were societal norms in alarmingly recent history.
—Joanne P, Booklover Book Reviews