The night was ''out of the world spectacular'' was how Harriet Rowland blogged about the launch party for The Book of Hat.
Rowland's attendance had been in doubt because of her health. The 20-year-old was adamant: There was no way I was missing my own book launch.
Days later, she went into hospice care for the last time. Diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, osteosarcoma, just before her 18th birthday, the Wellington teen made every day count, as The Book of Hat demonstrates.
Comprising selections from her blog, it is a moving, gritty and sometimes funny account of living with cancer.
Seesawing between anger, hope and eventual acceptance, The Book of Hat is an upbeat tribute to a wonderful young woman. Highly recommended. Ages 14+.
- Gillian Vine is a Dunedin journalist
