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Books for Tamariki & Rangatahi
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Fiction

Bird Child and Other Stories

nā Patricia Grace

Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Āti Awa
Written in English
Published by: Penguin
A powerful new collection from one of Aotearoa’s most esteemed fiction writers. Mythology and contemporary Māori life are woven together seamlessly in this spectacular collection by Aotearoa’s foremost short story writer. The titular story, ‘Bird Child’, plunges you deep into Te Kore, an ancient time before time. In another, the formidable goddess Mahuika, Keeper of Fire, becomes a doting mother and friend. Later, Grace’s own childhood vividly shapes the world of the young character Mereana; and a widower’s hilariously human struggle to parent his seven daughters is told with trademark wit and crackling dialogue.

Checkerboard Hill

nā Jade Kake

Ngāpuhi; Ngāti Hau me Te Parawhau, Te Whakatōhea, Te Arawa
Written in English
Published by: Huia Publishers

Checkerboard HilI is a story of belonging, dislocation, misunderstandings, identity and fractured relationships. When a family member dies in Australia, Ria flies from New Zealand and returns to the family and home in Australia she suddenly left decades before as a teenager. The novel confronts the complexities of families, secrets and trauma and the way these play out across generations. It also explores the ways in which Māori cultural traditions and tikanga are transmuted and transformed across the Tasman, across time and space.

Greta & Valdin

nā Rebecca K Reilly

Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Rehua, Ngātiwai ki Aotea
Written in English
Published by: Simon & Schuster, Penguin UK

An irresistible, “generous, [and] tender” (The New York Times) international bestseller that follows a brother and sister as they navigate queerness, multiracial identity, and family drama, all while flailing their way to love—for fans of Schitt’s Creek and Sally Rooney’s Normal People.

I, Said The Lark

nā Kay McKenzie Cooke

Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe
Written in English
Published by: Kindle Direct Publishing
Locals from the Murihiku town of Craggan Dhu find themselves not only faced with Covid, but also with the shock of mysterious poison pen letters. When Kon Maizer and Averil Broughton both uncover information pertaining to a cold case, it doubles the number of mysteries. After Harris Goodall finally confesses to his takata whenua wife Ariki the mystifying presence of a ghost, their subsequent combined effort solves the problem. Eventually, through the actions of a lively cast of past and present characters, all of this small town’s mysteries, romantic relationships and dramas; including who’s behind the malicious letters; are resolved.

Nine Girls

nā Stacy Gregg

Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Pukeko, Ngāti Maru
Written in English
Published by: Penguin

Nine Girls is a page-turning adventure from Stacy Gregg, one of Aotearoa’s most internationally successful and locally awarded writers.

An epic story woven with suspense by Pony Club Secrets and The Princess and the Foal author Stacy Gregg.

A story about growing up in a time of social unrest in early 1980s New Zealand, Nine Girls is a page-turning adventure woven with suspense from the author of Pony Club Secrets and The Princess and the Foal.

Pounamu Pounamu

nā Witi Ihimaera

Te Whānau-a-Kai, Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, Rongowhakaata, Ngāti Porou, Tūhoe
Available in te reo Māori
Published by: Penguin/Kotahi Rau Pukapuka

Witi Ihimaera’s first published book — Pounamu Pounamu — translated into te reo Māori. Published in collaboration with Kotahi Rau Pukapuka.

E rima tekau tau ki muri, ka puta mai a ‘Pounamu Pounamu’ hei kai mā te ao pānui reo Pākehā. Ko te whakataunga a ngā mana mātauranga o Aotearoa o taua wā, he pukapuka tēnei mā ngā tamariki i ngā kura o te motu whānui.

Kua huri te ao, kua hipa te wā, ko tēnei a ‘Pounamu Pounamu’ e horahia nei hei hākari mā te kaipānui reo Māori, ko ia rā pea te mokopuna a te kaipānui reo Pākehā o mua.

Return to Blood

nā Michael Te Arawa Bennett

Te Arawa, Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue
Written in English
Published by: Simon & Schuster
‘Return To Blood’ is a crime thriller, the second book in the series based around Hana Westerman, a brilliant Māori cop. The first book, Better The Blood, has been described as the first Māori detective book written by a Māori author. It was a bestseller, published in Aotearoa, USA, UK, and with nine translations. Better The Blood was a finalist for numerous international awards including Best Novel at The Ockhams (NZ) and The Barrys (USA), and winning Best First Novel at the Ngaio Marsh Awards.

The Bone Tree

nā Airana Ngarewa

Ngāti Ruanui, Ngā Rauru, Ngāruahine
Written in english
Published by: Moa Press
Kauri and Black’s mum has been gone six months now. Their dad is barely holding on and the threat of child services taking Black looms large. Kauri won’t let that happen, and so he embarks on a journey into their family’s past. The only way to break the cycle of violence is to understand where it all began. But when an accident brings child services to their door, the race is on for Kauri to save his brother. And he will learn that no matter how brave he is or how strong he is, he cannot do it alone.

The Space Between

nā Lauren Keenan

Te Āti Awa ki Taranaki
Written in English
Published by: Penguin
This gripping historical debut by Lauren Keenan is a story of the transformative power of hope, the unbreakable bonds of whenua and family, and the discovery of love in the least likely of places. As English settlers wage war upon local iwi in colonial Taranaki, two women confront their pasts to survive the present.