On Make-up and Makeover

by Paula Boock

64 pages, Paperback

Published March 20, 2003

About the author

Paula Boock began writing when she was seven. 'There was this story of four brothers who were surprisingly like my four brothers... I illustrated the book as well — the characters looked sort of like the Beatles.'

'I've always been affected by books. As the youngest in a large, boisterous family, I developed early the ability to work — write even — amidst a racket. The library — school and public — was where I found most of my books. I went through all the crazes: Secret Seven, Famous Five, horsey books, detective novels, sci-fi... you name it.'

Paula began by writing plays and short stories, but it wasn't until she began working in publishing that she thought of writing a young adult novel. Her first novel, Out Walked Mel, won the AIM Best First Book Award and was a finalist for the Esther Glen Medal, a library award she won two years later for her novel Sasscat to Win. She was the 1994 Writer in Residence at the Dunedin College of Education where she wrote her third book, Home Run, a finalist in the 1996 AIM Senior Fiction Award, and began Dare Truth or Promise. This last novel sold worldwide, won the 1998 NZ Post Children's Book of the Year award, and was shortlisted for a Lambda Award in the United States.

Paula's recent work includes an adult novel, scriptwriting 'The Strip' and more young adult fiction titles. She enjoys the film and television genre, but finds that teenage characters 'still tend to sneak into my work and take over.' Paula lives and works in Wellington, New Zealand.

Reviews

[Sinta · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brilliant deconstruction of all things cosmetic with apt historical examples. A short guide to make-up, hair, tattoos, piercings, with witty interjections about what it's like to grow up in Catholic New Zealand as a lesbian, and the social constraints that go along with that.