Witi IhimaeraReviews

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.

Maori chief Koro Apirana is an old man who feels his health and strength fading. He is desperate to have an heir of his own blood to pass on the things the next leader must know. But when his grandson produces the first child of the next generation, it is a disappointing girl. Koro vows to have nothing to do with her and to look outside his immediate family for the next heir.

The girl, Kahu, makes her great grandfather the center of her life and loves him like no other. She also has inherited some of the mystical Maori powers – apparently she can speak to the whales, echoing the Maori legend of Paikea who led his people to New Zealand on the back of a whale.

The story is told by Rawiri, Kahu’s uncle who is finding his own balance between the Maori traditions and the modern world. At one point he goes to work in Papua New Guinea, where, he finds that although the plantation owner’s son is his best friend, other dark-skinned people in the country are treated poorly.

The third set of characters are a pod of whales – we are inside the pod and hear their thoughts as they travel from the Antarctic northward to the fateful island of New Zealand.

This is much more than a children’s story, although it is often depicted as such. It’s a beautiful combination of the exquisitely sad and the beautiful with a strong element of humor thrown in (Go Nanny Flowers!) , which as the author says in an interview, is like “putting an arrow in the bum”(shooting someone with an arrow in the ass) to keep it from being too overwhelming to read.

5 stars with a few tears at the end.

Differs from the movie enough to keep you guessing, while still being just as charming.

I have the same review for nearly every anthology: I loved some pieces and struggled with others. That's the joy in showcasing different voices and perspectives. I rate this so highly because I found each voice interesting, and because we as readers need it to exist. Pacific cultures are so often missing from conversations and awareness here, and without being at all an expert I find myself called on to provide basic knowledge. I'm happy to have more literature to recommend and another way to learn while I'm so far away.

Absolutely gorgeous illustrations! Lovely story about found family and having the courage to step up and be a leader.

Superb narrator! Highly recommended.

I found The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera an emotionally touching and inspired read. The book delves into the myth of how the Maori ancestors came to New Zealand, as well as other aspects of the Maori culture and mythology. Setting his story in modern times, he also wrote this book to appeal to his daughters who had complained that so many stories featured boys as the heroes.

As narrated by her uncle, we learn of Kahu, the first grandchild of her generation. She is cherished by everyone in the extended family except her grandfather, whom she greatly loves but who has no time for females. But after a traumatic episode of whales beaching themselves and dying, Kahu demonstrates that she has the gift to communicate with the giant creatures and she helps to restore one ancient giant to the ocean by using the revered tradition of riding the whale out to sea. As Kahu demonstrates her empowerment and overcomes the subtle resentment that her grandfather had directed at her, I was brought to tears.

Written in a poetic style and highlighted with Maori words (for which there is a glossary at the end of the book), I found The Whale Rider to be both a soothing and powerful read. Although marketed as a YA read, I think this book might appeal more to adults than to children. The Whale Rider is a magical book that I highly recommend.

White Lies
by Witi Ihimaera, Dana Rotberg
This was a fictional emotional book dealing with racism and socially status set in the past. A young girl is scarred but alive after her whole Maori family is slaughtered by white men. She grows up as a healer but white laws only allow her to do so much.
She is approached by a Maori servant woman for her Mistress in secret. It is imperative the Mistress gets an abortion before the husband returns from his travels. The servant fears the husband's rage. The Medicine woman first refuses then agrees.
What secrets are revealed along the next few days is shocking! Not what I expected at all. The ending was unexpected for sure!
I think I need to go back to my science fiction and fantasy books. These emotional novels are making me a cry baby!

(8.5) This is a memoir by one of my favourite writers. Witi ihimaera introduces the reader to not only his immediate family, but his extended family and all his ancestors. For to be Maori, 'is to walk backwards into the future.' Witi traces his ancestory back to the arrival of the earliest Maori waka on to New Zealand's shores. This complex history does not make for easy reading and at points i was tempted to give up but persevere I did and I was rewarded. Witi's deep affection for his family and wider community is evident in his depiction of his early years growing up in a Mormon rural family in the mid twentieth century New Zealand. Interwoven through out his story are many Maori myths.

5***** and a ❤

In the poignant author’s note at the beginning of this edition, the author writes about his inspiration for telling this story. While he was working in New York City, he witnessed an extraordinary event – a whale swam up the Hudson. Coincidentally, at the same time, his young daughter, following a day at the movies, asked “Daddy, why are the boys always heroes while the girls yell out, ‘Save me, save me, I’m so helpless?” And so inspired by these two events, Ihimaera turned his attention to the Maori folklore of his homeland, New Zealand and penned this book.

What a wonderful story. Magical, mystical, and yet completely relatable. Eight-year-old Kahu wants nothing so much as to please her Grandfather and be loved by him. But he dismisses her as a “useless girl.” Still, her grandmother, father and uncle champion her cause, as she comes of age and proves that she has what it takes to become chief and lead her people.

The novel is full of Maori legend and language, but a glossary at the back helps. As with many stories based on legend and folklore, I am reminded of the many summer nights spent sitting in the dark on the porch at my grandmother’s house, listening to my grandparents, aunts and uncles tell stories that enthralled, scared, educated, and inspired us.

I would love to read more by this author.

Such a beautiful, challenging book. Witi Ihimaera weaves a lush story, combining land and sea, past and present. The tragic scenes were incredibly heartbreaking--between Kahu's one-sided relationship with Koro and when the whales beach themselves, I about started crying at my work desk. And the triumphs were equally brilliant--as fluid and swift as the feeling evoked as the whales sliced through the sea.

I would like to wonder out loud though as to the general designation of this book as children's literature. In the primary library in which I work, we shelve it as "J"...generally, chapter books for grade school and middle school readers. Ihimaera uses a reasonable amount of very erudite language that I imagine would be challenging even for some adult readers, and he addresses some rather adult issues of race and poaching through the novel's narrator, Kahu's Uncle Rawiri. I'm thinking specifically of two scenes: 1) The hit-and-run that occurs in Papua New Guinea when Rawiri's white friend, Jeff, hits and kills a native (and friend) on the side of the road with his family's car, and the family urges him to drive on because "It's only a native," and the tribe might seek retribution; and 2) The horrific and immensely sad scene when a herd of 200 whales beach themselves and poachers come to dismember the bodies before they've actually died.

I wonder sometimes what differentiates a children's book from an adult book. Just because Kahu is an 8-year-old doesn't mean necessarily that it should be a book for 8-year-olds (I wouldn't suggest a child read Bastard out of Carolina just because it has a young protagonist). I think this book has definite crossover appeal along the lines of To Kill a Mockingbird, and after viewing the movie after reading this book, I can see how they toned down a lot of the various conflict in the book to make it more kid-friendly. But that's the movie, which is great in its own right, and this is the book. Other libraries consider it a Young Adult book, but in a general sense of its audience, would a teen want to read a book in which its main character only reaches the age of 8? I haven't done any research yet into this question, but I wonder if Ihimaera intended for The Whale Rider to be a children's book or if this was the publisher's marketing idea? Hmmm...just some questions.

Despite all this(!), I really did truly enjoy the book, especially for its insight on Maori culture, the ecological concerns of a world very different from mine, and the bravery and persistence of Kahu. I would absolutely recommend it, focusing on more mature readers.

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Yay! The BBC World Book Club interviewed Witi Ihimaera and used one of my questions! Ihimaera provides a moving and eye-opening commentary about the book--you should check it out.

https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3626838.html

It’s an anthology of both newly commissioned work and pieces published in the last forty years or so, addressing the core strands of Māori mythology. I confess I felt somewhat thrown in at the deep end; it was only as I reached the end of the book that I found quite a large and useful chink of explanatory matter that would have helped my appreciation of the stories. For once I would advise readers to start at the back.

At the same time, I’m very appreciative of this sort of effort. I’ve read an awful lot of adaptations of Celtic Myth, and the Matter of Britain has not exactly been neglected by recent writers either; the Matter of Aotearoa is important too. And even without the background knowledge of What It’s All About, these are generally good stories by names which are new to me - the only author I’d previously head of is Keri Hulme. I guess the ones that grabbed me most where those with links to cultural setups I already knew about - eg “Māui Goes to Hollywood” by David Geary, which mixes Māui the trickster with 20th-century mythical figures like Elvis and Marilyn Monroe, or “Moving Mountains” by Clayton Te Kohe, which looks at shared history, culture and creativity through a music fan’s love for a long-since dissipated band. But they are all stimulating and I think I would like a paper copy of the book, to be able to riffle between stories and explanation more readily.

This is a collection of recent fantastic fiction by Māori writers, based on Māori creation myths and legends. There's a wide variety, here, some retelling Māori creation myths, some telling the tales of Māori legendary heroes, both in something like their original context, and some in more modern settings. Still others are the Māori gods and mythological figures interacting with humans in very contemporary settings.

Most of these stories worked very well for me, despite my having little to no prior exposure to Māori mythology and culture. Yes, the mythological personalities and their stories don't have the recognizable familiarity for me that Greek or Celtic or Norse mythological figures and tales do, but that's part of the fun, meeting new stories and personalities, and figuring out what it means or represents.

Other stories, though...

One is a story of a person playing a--computer game? augmented reality game? But he's an unpleasant person, the narrative voice of the game is unpleasant, and nearly everyone he encounters in the course of the game is unpleasant. I'm not into gaming, but other gaming-based stories have nevertheless given me a reason to care what happens to the characters. This one, I finished merely to be sure it wasn't the unfamiliar cultural aspects that were putting me off. It wasn't; these characters were just unpleasant and I didn't care what happened to them.

The last--might have worked a lot better for if I actually had the assumed cultural background in Māori myth and legend. It was presented in an intentionally distancing, academic style, commentary on the story rather than telling the story. It didn't work for me, but I think this was a case of "wrong reader," rather than a failing of the story or the writing. I kept thinking, I bet this is really interesting if you already know the story and can therefore appreciate the commentary...

Overall, though, this is an excellent and enjoyable introductory collection. Recommended.

I received this book as a thank you for having volunteered on CoNZealand, the 2020 World Science Fiction Convention, and am reviewing it voluntarily.

The thorny issue of dealing with the contested past is very much with us at the moment, and colonised peoples all over the world are delving into their stories of the past with fresh perspectives. Most of what I’ve read has been from Australia’s Indigenous authors, but I’ve also read stories from countries in Africa and the Americas, and from Ireland and the Indian subcontinent.
Over all, honest storytelling about the past seems like a good thing to me — it tells a different truth to the truth that is in the history books and the documented record, enabling us to re-evaluate what we think we know. But along with truth which may lead to restitution and justice and healing, storytelling can also pass on resentment and anger and a desire for vengeance, from generation to generation. It can pass on negative stereotypes about the actors of the past, in unexpected ways. Honest storytelling is not always an unmitigated good. Sometimes, IMO, it is better to let the past rest.
Witi Ihimaera’s award-winning novel The Matriarch is an odyssey into New Zealand colonial history and its brutal wars, and it’s written in a way that was innovative for its time, blending fiction with Maori myths and with documented history. Contrary to my expectations, I did not enjoy reading it. Not because it’s confronting to read about unpalatable truths in any country’s history, but because I disagree profoundly with the way the author justifies violence.

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2020/07/11/the-matriarch-the-mahana-family-1-by-witi-ih...

Koro Apirana is disappointed to learn that his first great-grandchild is a girl, Kahu. But Kahu grows into a young child determined to get her great-grandfather to love her.

I read this book to fulfill one of Book Riot's "Read Harder" challenges for 2019; it was listed on their website as an example for a specific category. I thought it sounded interesting and was even more pleased to learn it's considered a children's book, since that could be helpful for my job (recommending books to kids is a big part of being a children's librarian!). In the introduction to the book, the author explains how he wrote this book in part for his young daughters who were sick of seeing only boys as the heroes in narratives. So this all seemed promising.

Unfortunately, it was pretty disappointing. Ihimaera's way of writing a strong female character fell precisely into the same trap that so many men fall into -- basically making the girl into a boy. Literally, there is a story given of the ancestor who prayed to the gods to become a man in order to overcome a perilous situation. This is referenced numerous times, including at this book's climax when Kahu's great-grandmother declares "If you think you need the help, well, I shall change myself into a man." Kahu herself is named after a male ancestor and is constantly trying to sneak herself into male-centric activities (e.g., listening outside the door of classes designed only for the men in the tribe). Further, the whole story isn't even told from Kahu's perspective; instead it's mainly told from the first-person point of view by her uncle Rawiri, a grown man.

Which brings me to my second point -- this doesn't really seem to be a children's book. Even though Kahu is the book's nominal hero, she isn't the narrator and we spend a lot of time with Rawiri when he isn't even around Kahu. This includes an interlude in which he travels first to Australia and then to Papua New Guinea, where he witnesses the casual murder of a "native." Other scenarios are also disturbing (including the gory cutting up of whales), and some of the language is suggestive and not exactly appropriate for young children. For instance, note this passage towards the end of the book: "The old mother whale began in a three-tone sequence drenched with love. 'My dear lord,' she continued, adding a string of harmonics. 'My man,' she breathed with slyness, threading her words with sensuous major arpeggios, 'the rider you carry isn't Paikea.' The other female whales edged away carefully, but they secretly admired the courage of the old mother whale in questioning the identity of the whale rider. ... The old mother whale cast her eyes downward, hoping that the bull whale would take this as a sign of feminine submission, but she knew, in fact, what she was up to. 'No, no, my lord,' she belled sweetly. The other female whales gasped at the old mother whale's stubbornness. The warrior whales waited for the word from their leader to teach her a lesson." And, yes, even the whales are in a strict patriarchy (with some rather disturbing implications)! The prose can in fact be quite beautiful at times, but the language seems to be above the vocabulary knowledge held by your average 8-year-old (the age of Kahu at the end of the book).

The story itself is layered with mythology, which could be interesting. However, it was so apparent from beginning to end what all would happen that it held no compelling reason to keep reading. I found myself putting it down a lot after only a few pages; even though it's a short book, it took me a while to finish it as a result.½

The Uncle’s Story (2000) is a mid-career novel from Witi Ihimaera, New Zealand’s best-known Māori author because of the popularity of The Whale Rider (1987) which was made into a film. (See my review of the novella). He has sixteen novels to his credit, including Bulibasha (1994) which I reviewed as well. As the NZ Book Council’s website explains, although his intentions have changed over time, he is an author who writes about ‘the emotional landscape of the Māori people’, and their political and social reality.
The Uncle’s Story confronts the awkward truth of Māori hostility to same-sex relationships. Ihimaera came out explicitly in 1996 with Nights in the Gardens of Spain, which (I gather from Goodreads reviews) is set in New Zealand and is a raunchy novel about reconciling sexuality with family. The Uncle’s Story traces the same issues, but it explores the story of Sam Mahana, whose existence has been excised from the family because he came out as gay. Decades later his nephew Michael finds out about Sam when he too refuses to conceal his sexual identity and comes out to his family — and is also exiled from his community because of it.
Obviously things have changed in New Zealand because they legislated for same-sex marriage in 2013, well before Australia did. But this novel tells a story of the not-so-recent past, when Sam was tied to a fence and flogged by his own father, and was refused burial in the marae. (One thing readers need to note is that Ihimaera makes no concessions with Māori terminology or language. Either you read it with Google Translate at hand* or you just press on without knowing what is meant in some parts.) The marae is a the communal meeting place used for sacred and social purposes in Māori communities (and elsewhere throughout Polynesia). Entry is by invitation, and there are traditional rituals to usher visitors and family members into it. Sam’s father Arapeta is the hyper-masculine patriarch, his word on all matters is law, and he enforces it with brutal violence. When he says that there are no gay Māoris, no one dares argue until his grandson Michael forces the family to confront the issue.

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2019/07/13/the-uncles-story-by-witi-ihimaera/

This will easily make its way onto my favorites of the year list. Witi Ihimaera tells his whakapapa (genealogy), the story of his growing up years, and maybe a little of New Zealand whakapapa too. He illustrates how our history remains part of us, even when we don't realize it, and how knowing our history helps us know ourselves.

Life is not about waiting for someone to come and rescue you, but about finding instead the courage to strike out for that distant shore, wherever it is.

This story takes place in New Zealand and describes Maori culture. It is about an 8-year-old girl named Kahu who descends from a long line of chiefs that go all the way back to the first chief Paikea. The legend is that Paikea led their people from a distant island to New Zealand on the back of a whale. Kahu's great-grandfather believes that only males can take the position of chief, so he doesn't accept Kahu. She has to prove that she can be the next leader. The story is narrated by Kahu's uncle Rawiri. It also weaves together the ancient legend of Paikea and the perspective of the whales who migrate along the coast and protect Kahu.

Witi Ihimaera has crafted a compelling story about an historic battle and it’s place within the 19th Century New Zealand Wars. Produced with English on one side and Hēmi Kelly’s Māori translation in parallel on the left, this fictionalised account of ‘Rewi's Last Stand’ herald's a new age in New Zealand literature. 16-year-old Moetu is charged with keeping the children and nursing mothers safe during the three day Battle of Ōrākau in 1864. The 300 men, women and children were trapped in the pa without food and water and soon also ran out of ammunition, facing off against a foe six times their number with peach stones and wood for their guns. When Captain Gilbert Mair called for surrender, they replied, “E hoa, ka whawhai tonu matou, ake, ake, ake!” (Friend, I shall fight against you for ever, for ever!). Blending fact and fiction, and moving from the present day into the past, Moetu leads the escaping children through the swamps and bush, the imperial soldiers searching high and low for them. Eventually he manages to return each child safely to their whanau.

Very excited to have my own copy of this truly bilingual book signed by both author and translator and very appropriate that it was released in time for New Zealand’s very first Te Rā Maumahara, New Zealand Wars commemoration on 28th October 2017.½

An utterly wonderful book! It was a window into the Maori culture and their unique relationship with the ocean and the life within the ocean.

This summer I had the fortune to take a ferry from Bella Coola to Port Hardy and saw humpback whales along the way. They are so awesome. It is hard for me to believe that people can hunt and kill these magnificent creatures. I was reminded of Farley Mowat's book "A Whale for the Killing" which details the awful treatment a whale stranded in Newfoundland received. I really hope we have progressed from these horrendous acts but according to this article in Wikipedia whaling is still pursued in many countries, including Canada.½

I remember the sense of excitement when we went to see The Whale Rider at the movies in 2002. The only other New Zealand film I’d seen was The Piano (1993), which was a great film but not, apart from the scenery, distinctively New Zealand in character because the characters were 19th century pioneers from Britain. The Whale Rider was my first introduction to Māori mythology and customs.

And now, over a decade later, I’ve finally read the book. A novella of 148 pages, The Whale Rider is Witi Ihimaera’s fourth work of fiction, and probably the best known. Like his other books it explores Māori culture in contemporary New Zealand, in this case, the crisis that occurs when the first-born to whom traditions are entrusted turns out to be a girl. However there are significant differences between the book and film, not just in the naming of characters but also in the plot. (Kahu is called Pai in the film). Re-reading the summary at Wikipedia I can see that dramatic tension has been escalated by characterising the girl as more confrontational than she is in the book.

The narration is mostly by Kahu’s older cousin Rawiri, from the generation that sees the wider world beckoning. As a teenager he observes his grandfather Koro’s rejection of Kahu because of her gender, and he admires his feisty grandmother Nanny Flowers who stands up to him. But as a young man he takes off to the bright lights of Sydney and then to labouring work in Papua New Guinea, returning home seven years later only when it is made clear that his mate’s mother doesn’t find him acceptable because of his colour. Rawiri is like a bridge between the generations, recognising that the world is different and some ways in the coastal village of Whangara must change but he is also keen to learn about his traditions and he’s a willing protector of customs. He’s a ‘manly’ man, physically strong and powerful on his motorbike, but even when a teenager he is not afraid to show that he has a tender side and nurtures his much younger cousin. He isn’t torn between his two warring grandparents: he loves and respects them both.

To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2017/07/03/the-whale-rider-by-witi-ihimaera/

The Whale Rider has been marketed as a children's or young-adult book, and you can see why someone might think that at a cursory glance. There are sentient animals! The main character is a young girl! It has positive messages about environmentalism and gender equality! But there is a lot of depth here, and some very adult issues being grappled with (not to mention quite a bit of bloody death--both animal and human--that I think makes it pretty inappropriate for anyone under a mature 10).
The question of how to embrace tradition--how to preserve one's national and tribal identity--while moving forward with the changing world is at the heart of this story, and one that I think many indigenous peoples face in the modern world. How much do you integrate? How can you take advantage of the benefits of modernity without losing what makes you unique, and without adopting the negative aspects of a colonizing culture?

This review is an excerpt from a longer review which can be found on my blog, Around the World in 2000 Books.

From The Book:
Eight-year-old Kahu, a member of the Maori tribe of Whangara, New Zealand, fights to prove her love, her leadership, and her destiny. Her people claim descent from Kahutia Te Rangi, the legendary "whale rider." In every generation since Kahutia, a male heir has inherited the title of chief. But now there is no male heir, and the aging chief is desperate to find a successor. Kahu is his only great-grandchild--and Maori tradition has no use for a girl. But when hundreds of whales beach themselves and threaten the future of the Maori tribe, it is Kahu who saves the tribe when she reveals that she has the whale rider's ancient gift of communicating with whales.

My Views:
I was an okay book but not something that I would have read if it hadn't met the criteria for a challenge.

(5/10) "Man might carve his mark on the earth but unless he's vigilant, Nature will take it all back"

A slightly surreal story about a young Maori girl, some whales and the battle between the modern and ancient traditions of her culture all in just over 150 pages. I feel like I should have enjoyed this more than I did, it was written well and there were quite a few quotes I picked out as I read that I thought were beautiful, it just didn't grab me.

I'll start with the positive, I really enjoyed reading about the culture and mythology in this book, I know nothing about Maori culture so that was nice. That being said I think the inclusion of so much of the language might by why I struggled a bit, my European brain couldn't wrap itself around the pronunciation and I did spend a lot of time rereading sections with no idea if I was correct or murdering the language horribly. In the end I just skipped those parts.

I liked the narrator Rawiri, he was a nice bridge between the elders and Kahu herself, always understanding of both sides. I did find it a bit strange that a significant section was given over to his travels abroad, it felt a bit like that should have been in a separate book and could have been cut without affecting the story at all.

Overall I think that this is perhaps too short a story for me to grasp the context properly and this did affect my enjoyment. It wouldn't put me off reading more by Witi Ihimaera but I won't be rushing back.½

The Whale Rider is a dream-tale set in modern New Zealand among a tribe that traces their lineage back to the legendary Whale Rider -- the original human to settle New Zealand. The aging chief has no male heir and refuses to see the spiritual aptitude of his granddaughter. In alternate chapters, the original, ancient whale is lonely and forgotten and brings his tribe back to where he last saw the Whale Rider to beach himself. Fabulous melding of Maori legend and modern storytelling.