BOOKS FROM NEW ZEALANDAue
Description:
WINNER OF THE JANN MEDLICOTT ACORN PRIZE FOR FICTION WINNER OF THE MITOQ BEST FIRST BOOK OF FICTION WINNER OF THE NGAIO MARSH AWARD FOR BEST CRIME NOVEL auē (verb) to cry, howl, groan, wail, bawl. (interjection) expression of astonishment or distress. Taukiri was born into sorrow. Auē can be heard in the sound of the sea he loves and hates, and in the music he draws out of the guitar that was his father’s. It spills out of the gang violence that killed his father and sent his mother into hiding, and the shame he feels about abandoning his eight-year-old brother to a violent home. But Taukiri’s brother, Ārama, is braver than he looks, and he has a friend, and his friend has a dog, and the three of them together might just be strong enough to turn back the tide of sadness. This bestselling multi-award-winning novel is both raw and sublime, introducing a compelling new voice in New Zealand fiction.
Reviews:
(2 months ago) |
22 Jul, 2025
I subcategorize this book under New Zealand/Maori (hence my listing of 2 books for NZ)
I really liked the story, but the disjointed way characters were popping in and out at different points in time got too confusing for me to fully enjoy this book. I kept having to go back to remind myself who was who. By the end I I was still a bit confused as to who was whose parent/child, who was dead, when they died and why there was an obsession with a pearl earring. That being said, it was still a gripping story about the effect of past trauma on current lives and about courage, friendship and family bonds. A moving book that is worth the time it takes to sort through the characters. |