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Work InformationPounamu Pounamu by Witi Ihimaera (1972)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. An evocative collection of short stories revolving around Māori traditions and values in a modern setting, told from various points of view in a small town. The pride and underlying love in community is at constant - and perhaps a losing - struggle with the slow disconnect of the young people to their culture as Pākehā influences overwhelm their lives. It presents the reality and evolution of indigenous cultures in today's world with matter-of-fact clarity, not pessimistically nor optimistically. Another great addition to Māori literature. ( ) First published in 1972, Pounamu Pounamu was the first work of fiction published by a Maori writer. Most of the collection of short stories are based on the East Coast - the author grew up in a village called Waituhi, near Gisborne and has fictionally reimagined the village of his upbringing. The stories describe a traditional way of life that is increasingly coming under pressure as many Maori move away to the cities in search of a new life. no reviews | add a review
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Pounamu Pounamu is classic Ihimaera and also classic New Zealand literature. First published in 1972, it was his first book, which as he says in his new introduction 'fulfilled a childhood vow- to write about Maori using his own self and home place'. The vivid stories in this collection not only explore but also celebrate what it is to be a New Zealander, and they do so from a lively Maori perspective. The seeds of Ihimaera's later works were first sown in this ground-breaking collection- The Whale Rider in his story 'The Whale'; The Rope of Man in 'Tangi'; and the character of Simeon from Bulibasha, King of the Gypsies in 'One Summer Morning'. The book also covers the themes of aroha (love), whanaungatanga (kinship) and manaakitanga (supporting each other), which are so integral to Ihimaera's work. No library descriptions found. |
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