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In keeping with his commitment to revisit his first five pieces of fiction, Witi Ihimaera has reworked the original text of this much-loved classic. The matriarch is a woman of intelligence, wit, beauty and ruthlessness, and has become a mythical figure through her fight to repossess the land and sustain her people against the ravages wrought by the Pakeha. Priestess of the Ringatu faith, she has been virtually a law unto herself. In his search for the truth behind the legends surrounding the matriarch, his grandmother, Tama Mahana delves deeper and deeper into Maori history and lore to understand the mysterious sources of her power and ambition. Witi Ihimaera's prose is at turns lyrical and spare, sensuous and savage. Weaving fact with fiction, this remarkable odyssey into New Zealand history is a novel of stunning imaginative power. Also available as an eBook Winner of the Wattie Book of the Year, 1986 Runner-up for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, 1987 'Witi Ihimaera's uncompromising masterwork . . . A profound and spellbinding character study' - New Zealand Herald
Caught in the middle of the clash between two great Maori clans, Simeon, grandson of Bulibasha and Ramona, struggles with his own feelings and loyalties as the battles rage . . . This award-winning novel is being reissued to tie in with the release of Mahana, the stunning film adaptation of the novel. Also available as an eBook
Michael Mahana's personal disclosure to his parents leads to the uncovering of another family secret – about his uncle, Sam, who had fought in the Vietnam War. Now, armed with his uncle's diary, Michael goes searching for the truth about his uncle, about the secret the Mahana family has kept hidden for over thirty years, and what happened to Sam. Set in the war-torn jungles of Vietnam and in present-day New Zealand and North America, Witi Ihimaera's dramatic novel combines the superb story-telling of Bulibasha, King of the Gypsies with the unflinching realism of Nights in the Gardens of Spain. A powerful love story, it courageously confronts Maori attitudes to sexuality and masculinity and contains some of Ihimaera's most passionate writing to date. Also available as an eBook
A powerful, prize-winning novella from the much-loved author of The Whale Rider, plus a moving screenplay, film stills and commentary on writing and movie making. A medicine woman — a giver of life — is asked to hide a secret that may protect a position in society, but could have fatal consequences. When she is approached by the servant of a wealthy woman, three very different women become players in a head-on clash of beliefs, deception and ultimate salvation. This compelling story tackles moral dilemmas, exploring the nature of identity, societal attitudes to the roles of women and the tension between Western and traditional Maori medicine. This book, though, is also about the richness...
This is the first volume of Witi Ihimaera's enthralling, award-winning memoir, packed with stories from the formative years of this much-loved writer. Witi Ihimaera is a consummate storyteller — one critic calling him one of our ‘finest and most memorable’. Some of his best stories, however, are about his own life. This honest, stirring work tells of the family and community into which Ihimaera was born, of his early life in rural New Zealand, of family secrets, of facing anguish and challenges, and of laughter and love. As Ihimaera recounts the myths that formed his early imagination, he also reveals the experiences from real life that wriggled into his fiction. Alive with an inventive, stimulating narrative and vividly portrayed relatives, this memoir is engrossing, entertaining and moving, but, more than this, it is also a vital record of what it means to grow up Maori. Winner of the Ockham New Zealand Book Award 2016 for the General Non Fiction category.
From master storyteller Witi Ihimaera, a spellbinding and provocative retelling of traditional Maori myths for the twenty-first century. In this milestone volume, Ihimaera traces the history of the Maori people through their creation myths. He follows Tawhaki up the vines into the firmament, Hine-titama down into the land of the dead, Maui to the ends of the earth, and the giants and turehu who sailed across the ocean to our shores . . . From Hawaiki to Aotearoa, the ancient navigators brought their myths, while looking to the stars - bright with gods, ancestors and stories - to guide the way. 'Step through the gateway now to stories that are as relevant today as they ever were.'
In this definitive collection by one of New Zealand's best-loved authors, Witi Ihimaera offers his personal choice of twenty-four stories from throughout his illustrious career. The pieces span more than thirty-five years - since his first collection, Pounamu Pounamu (1972), was published - and showcase the range, originality and humanity of this truly amazing writer. 'Ihimaera is an inspired voice' - David Eggleton, Metro 'One of our most important and influential writers . . . his subject matter, as much as his distinctive lyrical writing style, demand[s] attention.' - Eleanor Black, Weekend Herald
A wonderfully surprising, inventive and deeply moving riff on fact and fiction, history and imagination from one of New Zealand's finest and most memorable storytellers. There has never been a New Zealand novel quite like The Parihaka Woman. Richly imaginative and original, weaving together fact and fiction, it sets the remarkable story of Erenora against the historical background of the turbulent and compelling events that occurred in Parihaka during the 1870s and 1880s. Parihaka is the place Erenora calls home, a peaceful Taranaki settlement overcome by war and land confiscation. As her world is threatened, Erenora must find within herself the strength, courage and ingenuity to protect those whom she loves. And, like a Shakespearean heroine, she must change herself before she can take up her greatest challenge and save her exiled husband, Horitana.
Novel about the extended family life of a Māori community.