What happens when life in a perfect, protected bubble unravels? The heroine of the first novel in an exciting sci-fi/fantasy series for young adult readers is about to find out.
This exciting, futuristic novel with a strong heroine and a compelling storyline won Fleur Beale the Esther Glen Award 2009 and was shortlisted for the 2009 NZ Post Children's Book Awards. It explores the struggle of Juno, a young teen on the verge of adulthood, who is torn between her need to fit in and belong in her society, and her growing discomfort and questioning of that society's rules.
Your ordinary teen? Not quite! Because Juno lives — in the not-too-distant future — on Taris, a bubble-covered island in the Pacific, to which a select few hundred people were evacuated when Earth's inhabitants took everything just a bit too far and began to self-destruct. On Taris there are many rules governing appearance, behaviour, even procreation … but all are for the good of the community, to ensure the survival of humankind. Or are they?
As Taris' protected environment begins to break down and Juno's questioning nature takes hold, she uncovers some startling inconsistencies in many of the 'factual' histories she has grown up with. She also begins to develop some quite startling, almost supernatural, abilities. As Juno faces increasing danger, she finds allies in the most surprising places.
Juno of Taris examines many themes: peer pressure, environmental breakdown, the fictionalisation of history, societal control and challenging authority. But perhaps most important of all, it is a thoroughly good read from one of New Zealand's very best writers for young adults.
Awards
Winner of the Esther Glen Award 2009 in the 2009 LIANZA Children's Book Awards
Shortlisted for the 2009 NZ Post Children's Book Awards
Behind The Book…
I had no intention of writing sequels to Juno of Taris but there ended up being three books in this series too. The idea for Juno of Taris came from being in New York about a month after September 11. Ground zero was still smoking. People were still leaving flowers at fire stations where crew had died when the twin towers fell. In a way, the city felt to me as if it was in a lockdown situation where it was focussing its energies on trying to recover.
I started to think about what it would be like to be in a place entirely cut off from the outside world, somewhere you couldn’t move away from and where there was no input that could get in from the outside world – no messages, no goods, no news. I finished the book.
What next? And after a bit of nagging from a few people, I rather grudgingly had a go at a sequel, but much to my surprise it was fun to write once I got into it. I finished Fierce September then wanted to find out more about what happened so I wrote a third book: Heart of Danger.
But I discovered there was a bit more to find out so I wrote Nash’s Story. It’s short – more a novella than a novel and it’s only available on the web here.
- Fleur Beale
Reviews for Juno Of Taris
I regard Juno of Taris as the grandmother of modern YA dystopian fantasy. Despite the fact that we have some rip-roaring movies based on contemporary narratives, Juno of Taris remains hard to beat.
- Kids Book Review
Once I got in to Juno Of Taris I couldn't put it down. Fleur Beale’s strength with this series is her characters, the strong bonds between them and also the conflict between them. Fleur really makes you feel for her characters and the strange situation that they are in. After reading the first book, I would have been satisfied to leave the characters as they were, then Fleur wrote two sequels. I really enjoyed following these characters as they settled into their new life, and it was great to find out more about the other characters in the series.
- BestFriendsAreBooks.com
Juno of Taris is a fantastic book that makes you think and shocks you with its content. Fleur creates the amazing world of Taris, a rushed utopia of the desperate 21st century world, through the first half of the book, and then BAM!!!! ... you are plunged into a whirlwind of mind- boggling events that will leave you craving more.
- Saoirse Hill-Shearman (Age 13), Cashmere High School
Fleur wrote this book with impeccable detail yet language which was simple. It was a pleasure to read and all in all a great novel.
- Josh, Tinted Lens
Teachers Notes
Download the PDF with the Teachers Notes for Juno Of Taris here.