Fleur Beale

Fleur Beale was born in 1945 in Inglewood, Taranaki. She has two adult daughters. She was a Hamilton high school teacher for many years but now lives in Wellington. Fleur Beale is a novelist, creative writing teacher, and short story writer. She has now had over 30 books published, with some of them also being published in the US and England.

Fleur received the Storylines Gaelyn Gordon Award for Slide the Corner on Margaret Mahy Day in Auckland in March 2007 and told the audience of Storylines members and friends that she was particularly thrilled with her win. Not only was this her first award (although short-listed several times) but of special meaning for Fleur was the role her late husband played in the genesis of this particular book. She and her family were living in Hamilton at the time, and her husband spent several seasons as a rally co-driver. Fleur, who had been writing stories for radio for 10 years already, wanted to venture into a novel for teens, motivated, she said, by the secondary school students she was teaching having so little they were able to read that was of New Zealand. ‘Strange to think of now!’ she remarked.

Her husband’s exciting adventures in rallies provided the spark for the story and having him on hand as a consultant ensured that the technical details and descriptions of rally driving were accurate and convincing enough for her discerning teenage audience.

Selected bibliography:

• Slide the Corner (Ashton Scholastic 1993). 
• Against the Tide (HarperCollins 1993).  
• Driving a Bargain illustrated by Lyn Kriegler (HarperCollins 1994).
• Over the Edge illustrated by Martin Bailey (Ashton Scholastic 1994).  
• Fifteen and Screaming (HarperCollins 1995).  
• Fortune Teller (HarperCollins 1995).  
• Rockman (HarperCollins 1996).  
• I Am Not Esther (Longacre Press 1998).  
• Further Back than Zero (Scholastic 1998).  
• Playing to Win (Scholastic 1999).  
• Lucky for Some (Scholastic 2000).  
• Deadly Prospect (Scholastic 2000).  
• Ambushed illustrated by Martin Bailey (Scholastic 2001).  
• Red Dog in Bandit Country: a True Story (Longacre Press 2003).
• Trucker illustrated by Gus Hunter (HarperCollins 2003).  
• Keep Out illustrated by Marjorie Scott (HarperCollins 2003).  
• A New Song in the Land: the writings of Atapo, Paihia, c1840 [My Story series] (Scholastic 2004) [reprinted as Mission Girl 2010].  
• Walking Lightly illustrated by Michaela Sangl (Mallinson Rendel 2004).  
• Lacey and the Drama Queens (Scholastic 2004).  
• Saving Mr Spender illustrated by Philip Webb (Mallinson Rendel 2006).  
• A Respectable Girl (Random House 2006).  
• The Transformation of Minna Hargreaves (Random House 2007).  
• My Life of Crime (Mallinson Rendel 2007).
• Juno of Taris (Random House 2008).  
• Quin Majik and the Marvellous Machine illustrated by Philip Webb (Mallinson Rendel 2008).
• Quin Majik and the Hairy Roof Rescue illustrated by Philip Webb (Mallinson Rendel 2009).
• End of the Alphabet (Random House 2009).
• Fierce September (Random House 2010).
• Quin Majik and the Tidy Street Catastrophe illustrated by Philip Webb (Penguin 2010).

Awards:

• AIM Children’s Book Awards 1995 Junior Fiction shortlist for Driving a Bargain.
• University of Otago College of Education Children Writer in Residence 1999.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 1999 Young Adult Fiction Honour Award for I Am Not Esther.
• White Ravens list 1999 for I Am Not Esther.
• Storylines Notable Books 2000 Senior Fiction list for Playing to Win.
• Esther Glen Award 2002 shortlist for Ambushed.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2002 Junior Fiction shortlist for Ambushed.
• Storylines Notable Books 2002 Junior Fiction list for Ambushed.
• Storylines Notable Books 2003 Senior Fiction list for Lucky for Some.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2005 Junior Fiction shortlist for A New Song in the Land.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2005 Junior Fiction shortlist  for Walking Lightly.
• Esther Glen Award 2005 shortlist for A New Song in the Land. 
• Storylines Notable Books 2005 Junior Fiction list for A New Song in the Land.
• Storylines Notable Books 2005 Junior Fiction list for Walking Lightly.
• New Zealand Book Council International Writers’ Programme sponsorship 2006.
• Gaelyn Gordon Award for a Much Loved Book 2007 for Slide the Corner.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2007 Young Adult Fiction shortlist for A Respectable Girl.
• Storylines Notable Books 2007 Young Adult Fiction list for A Respectable Girl.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2008 Young Adult Fiction shortlist for The Transformation of Minna Hargreaves.
• Storylines Notable Books 2008 Young Adult Fiction list for The Transformation of Minna Hargreaves.
• Esther Glen Award 2009 for Juno of Taris.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2009 Young Adult Fiction shortlist for Juno of Taris.
• Storylines Notable Books 2009 Young Adult Fiction list for Juno of Taris.
• Gaelyn Gordon Award for a Much Loved Book 2009 for I Am Not Esther.
• Storylines Notable Books 2010 Young Adult Fiction list for End of the Alphabet.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2010 Young Adult Fiction finalist for End of the Alphabet.   
• Storylines Notable Books 2011 Young Adult Fiction list for Fierce September.
• New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards 2011 Young Adult Fiction winner for Fierce September.
• LIANZA Young Adult Medal 2011 for Fierce September.

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