Arotake — Hiwa: Contemporary Māori Short Stories

Nā Mikaia Leach i arotake

Ko ngā pukapuka katoa ka hokona mā tēnei hononga ka āwhina i a mātou ki te arotake i ētahi atu pukapuka nō Aotearoa - ngā mihi ki a koe mōu i tautoko i ngā pukapuka me ngā kaituhi o Aotearoa. 

An English language translation is included below this review.**Ka hua mai te kōrero paki, i te wheako pono!**

Ko te reo pōhiri a Hohepa ki te kaipānui ki a “…nekeneke mai, nukunuku mai ki tēnei huihuinga kaituhi Māori, ki tēnei pukenga whakaaro tuatini”.

Whakapiri mai, tauti mai ki te whare kōrero o Hiwa! Ko ngā kōrero o roto i te pukapuka nei nō uki, ā, nō moroki noa nei. He paki te katoa o ngā paenga kōrero, engari mārakerake ana te kite i takea mai ngā pakipoto i te wheako pono. 

E rua tekau mā whitu ngā kohinga kōrero poto o roto mai i a Hiwa. He kaupapa takitahi kei ia tuhinga poto, nā kona he takimano ngā ariā o te pukapuka nei. Ahakoa ngā tini kaupapa o ngā paenga kōrero me ngā wheako rerekē a tēna kaituhi ko te whakapapa Māori me te whakaaro Māori e paihere nei i a rātou katoa. He pukenga rau, he whakaaro nui o roto, he auaha te kawe, ā, he ngāwari hoki te whai i te ia o ngā kōrero ahakoa te taumata o te reo Ingarihi me te reo Māori. Ko tā Hiwa he pōhiri i te kaipānui ki te ao o ngā kaituhi (Māori) tautōhito, tautata hoki. 

Pārekareka ana ngā paki poto e aro pū ana ki te aroha, e whakatairanga ana i te hari, e whakanui ana i te tangata ngākaunui koina te rautaki whakaratarata mai i te kaipānui.  Engari me pono te kōrero ko ngā paenga kōrero i āta wetewete i ngā whakaaro tuatini o te pōkē, o te hinapōuri, o te kaikiri, o te tūkino tangata ngā pakiwaitara i whakaihiihi i te auhi, i whakaohooho i taku wairua. Nā whai anō, e kōmingo ana te ngākau, me he manawawera. 

Ka pānui ake i te tuhinga poto a Shelley Burne-Field “The Bargain and the Pūtōrino”, ka tau a ngākau i taku pānui i ngā kōrero tuku iho a te Kuia ki tana mokopuna. Ka mihi rā ki a Burne-Field mō te whakamahinga i te ‘nuka reo’ ki te tuitui i ngā whakaaro tuatini o te ao wairua, o te ao kikokiko me te whakawhirinaki o te ira tangata ki ngā atua Māori. Ahakoa ngā utu nui a te Kuia rā ki a Tangaroa ko tana aroha mutunga kore ki tana whānau me tana mokopuna te take i ora ai ia. Ko ta te pūtorino he whakatūpato i te kaipānui, he utu nui ta ia whakatau ahakoa hē mai, tika mai. 

Nā wai, nā wai ka huri te whārangi ki ngā kōrero a J Wiremu Kane e ruku hohonu ana ki ngā wheako kaikiri o te rata Māori. Ka whakamahuki a Kane i ngā kūraruraru o Wiri me ngā wero a te tāne Māori. I te mutunga iho ka noho a waipiro, a tarukino hei hoa haere mōna. 

Ka wherawherahia mai ngā whārangi ki te tuhinga poto a Rawinia Parata “Pai”, ka hura a Parata i ngā wheako o te māmā Māori (Bree) me ngā uauatanga o roto i te pūnaha hauora o Aotearoa. Ahakoa ngā whakautu a Bree ki te tauwhiro o te hohipera, kua whakatau kētia ehara ia i te tangata manaaki anō nei ko ia te take e māuiui ana a Pai. 

Ko aua whakaaro horapa o te māmā Māori me te takuta Māori i takea mai i te wheako pono. Ka tū ngā pihi i taku panui atu i aua pakipoto i te mea e mōhio ana ahau koia te mōkinokino o te Māori ahakoa tākuta mai, tūroro mai. 

Ka wherawhera ngā whārangi o Hiwa ki ngā tiriti o Itāria. Nau mai whakatau mai rā ki te tuhinga poto o Patricia Grace e kīia ana ko “The Kiss”. He tohunga whakairo i te kupu a Grace, he mātanga ki te whakawhitiwhiti whakaaro ahakoa te kaupapa, ahakoa te horopaki, ahakoa te whenua. Ko ngā kōrerorero whakatoi a ngā whanaunga pēnei i te “whadda y mean, ancient? Like Nanny Boo’s mattress you mean, or what?” ngā kōrero whakakata mai i a au puta noa i te pakipoto nei. I ratarata ahau ki te tuhinga poto nei, engari i rongo hoki i te mokemoke ki aku whanaunga o te kāenga. 

Ka huri ngā whārangi ki te mākete o Berlin, nāu mai ki te ao tuhituhi a Papa Witi Ihimaera. E mōhiotia nei e te ao i ana pukenga tuhituhi engari kei taumata kē ia mō te whakahōu i ana tuhituhinga ki te ao o naianei. I a au e pānui ana i ngā kōrero o “Der Traum” ka tino kite i ana pukenga tuhituhi. He ringarehe a Ihimaera ki te waihanga kōrero, ki te whakatakoto i te kupu me te tuitui i ngā tikanga Māori ki ana tuhinga. Me mihi ka tika ki ēnei tuahangata. Nā tēnei tokorua i para i te huarahi mā ngā kaituhi Māori. I whakaatu atu te tokorua nei he mana nui tō te pakiwaitara Māori, me tā rāua whakapono nui mai ka whai wāhi atu te aronga Māori ki te rāngai tuhituhi.

Ka wherawhera aku matimati i ngā whārangi o te pakipoto a Ngawiki-Aroha Rewita “Tiriti Mōiriiri”. Rere ana te whakamiharo o tēnei pakipoto reo Māori. Ka whakapuaki a Rewita i ngā taumahatanga ka pāngia ki a ngāi irawhiti i ngā tiriti o Tāmaki Makaurau. He taumaha ngā kōrero o roto i te tuhinga poto e whāki nei i ngā tūkinotanga ka pā ki a ‘Shay’. He ngutu atamai, he kōrero whakawehi, he kōrero whēuriuri kei te tuhinga poto nei. Koinei tētahi tauira kounga ake nei o ngā tuhinga poto kua tuhia ki te reo Māori. Ko ta Rewita he taunaki i ngā kīwaha, i te whakaaro Māori me te whakataurite i ngā tūkinotanga kia tino mārama te kaipānui ki ngā wheako e ngaukino nei i a Shay rāua ko Ayms. Ka pānui au i te whārangi whakamutunga me ngā kōrero nei “Te rongotanga atu a Ayms i ngā tarawau…..Ka noho noa, ka whakaaro noa ki tōna tita…” ka ngau nei te aroha, ka rongo hoki au i te mamae me taku whakapae he kounga rawa te tuhinga poto nei i te mea i takea mai i te pono.

Ahakoa kāore i whai wāhi atu ngā tuhinga poto katoa ki tēnei arotakenga ko tāku he akiaki i ngā kaipānui horapa i te motu ki te pānui i te pukapuka a Hiwa. Ka whakatairanga te pukapuka nei i ngā pakipoto a te Kaituhi Māori. Ko te nuinga o ngā paenga kōrero kua tuhia ki te reo Ingarihi, engari he Māori te whakatakoto i ngā whakaaro. E kore ngā mihi e ngū ki te tokoiti i tuhi, i tā hoki i ngā kōrero i te reo Māori. Nā koutou te reo Māori i whakarangatira. Tēnā koutou te para i te ara mā ngā kaituhi reo Māori o anamata kia eke panuku, eke Tangaroa. Ko te manako nui ki a Hiwa i te Rangi - a tōnā wā ka tāia he pukapuka pēnei e kī katoa ana i ngā paenga kōrero reo Māori anake. 

Nā Mikaia Leach i arotake

This review was written in te reo Māori, below is an English language translation.

The best stories always stem from truth

Hohepa rightly welcomes the reader to Hiwa with the words “…nekeneke mai, nukunuku mai ki tēnei huihuinga kaituhi Māori, ki tēnei pukenga whakaaro tuatini” (Come hither and witness this gathering of Māori writers, and their great pools of knowledge).

Come, gather into the house of Hiwa! The stories in this book are from both the past and the present. All are fiction but it is clear that they are grounded in life experience.

Hiwa consists of 27 short stories. Each is distinct with its own focus, and so while it is hard to pinpoint one overarching theme, and a range of ideas are provided by each and every author, it is the writers’ Māori genealogy and their uniquely Māori perspectives that weave this collection together. These are creative and thoughtful stories that are accessible, no matter the reader’s level of English or Māori. Hiwa beckons the reader to the world of both known and new Māori writers.

Included are some beautiful love stories that capture joy and acknowledge the good in humanity, something that will pull many readers in. But the stories I found most compelling were those that explored the darker topics of depression, racism and abuse — these were the stories that moved me and resonated with me. I found them rousing and given the storytelling and subject matter, it’s no wonder. 

Reading Shelley Burne-Field’s short story “The Bargain and the Pūtōrino”, I felt calmed by the tale told by a Kuia to her mokopuna. I liked the way that Burne-Field weaved the spirit world with the physical realm and described the dependency of man on the gods.

A story by J Wiremu Kane deep dives into the racism felt by a Māori doctor. Kane describes Wiri’s struggles and gives particular focus to the challenges Māori men face. In the end, alcohol and drugs become the character’s companions. 

Rawinia Parata’s contribution, “Pai”, reveals the experiences of a Māori mother (Bree) navigating the inequities of New Zealand’s health system. Although Bree complies with the hospital’s social worker, she has already been deemed an unfit caregiver and the hospital draws the conclusion that she is the reason Pai is ailing.

These portrayals of a Māori mother and Māori doctor stem from life and experience. I became enraged reading them because they reflect the grim reality for Māori doctors and Māori patients alike.

In Patricia Grace’s “The Kiss” Hiwa’s pages take the reader to the streets of Italy. Grace is an expert storyteller, a brilliant weaver of words and ideas on an array of subjects. Dialogue like:

“whadda y mean, ancient? Like Nanny Boo’s mattress you mean, or what?”

weaved throughout the story made me laugh out loud. I enjoyed this story but it did make me miss my cousins at home. 

The collection also transports the reader to Berlin in Witi Ihimaera’s story. Ihimaera is a literary great and his skill when it comes to contemporisation is unmatched. In “Der Traum” this expertise is clear. He is a master storyteller, able to weave words with Māori custom and protocol. Writers like Grace and Ihimaera have paved the way and must be acknowledged for shining a light on the importance of Māori storytelling, and ensuring a place for Māori in the literary world.

I was shocked and moved by Ngawiki-Aroha Rewita’s story “Tiriti Mōiriiri”. Rewita explores the struggles of trans people on the streets of Auckland. The trajectory of the main character, Shay, is tough to read. Sharp wit sits alongside some horrifying and dark themes. Written in te reo Māori this is one of the most shining examples of writing in Māori in the collection. The darker parts are essential to understanding Shay and Ayms’ plight. When I read the following passage,

“Te rongotanga atu a Ayms i ngā tarawau…..Ka noho noa, ka whakaaro noa ki tōna tita…”

I was heartbroken and felt the pain and couldn’t help but think that what made this story so brilliant was it’s candour, its truth.  

While I haven’t mentioned every story from the book in this review, I hope I have been able to encourage readers across the nation to read Hiwa. It showcases Māori short story writers and while most contributions have been written in English, the essence is Māori. I want to celebrate in particular the writers who produced their work in Māori. You have honoured the language. Thank you for paving a pathway for Māori language writers for the future. My wish to Hiwa-i-te-rangi is that one day this book will be printed solely in te reo Māori. 

Reviewed by Mikaia Leach