When Ruby Tui couldn’t find a book about Kiwi female athletes at her local bookshop she overcame a hesitation to publish her autobiography. ‘I'll never forget that moment in the shop. I was like “I’ve got to do a book so when a young girl, a young Ruby, comes in [to a bookstore], she sees her face straight away”…’ Straight Up was an instant bestseller. Tui was already a household name, known for her rugby successes, including Olympic medal wins, her sports commentary and her straight talking. But this raw account of her troubled childhood and her determination not to be limited by it – released a few months before the Black Ferns won the 2021 Rugby World Cup – sealed her place in the nation’s heart.
Gather up the rangatahi in your life, and come spend an hour in the company of one of our finest athletes, as she shares her story with Madeleine Chapman.
