50books_poc | #4: "The Whale Rider" by Witi Ihimaera (Reed, 2002) (Reply)

The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera (Reed, 2002)

I need to have my own copy of this book. And I will possibly buy two copies and donate one to the library where I work, because they need to have a copy too.

This book is brilliant. I haven't seen the movie (although I've been reliably informed that I really must see it), and I have to admit that now I'm not entirely certain how the book would transfer to the screen (although clearly it must have done). The magical-realism elements (I'm not sure what else to call the sections of the book from the whales' point of view) took a while to get into, and yet once I did, were magnificent. The whole book showed up, in a way, the paucity of the way that Australians relate to our indigenous peoples, when this book can be written, become a best seller, and then an international success as a movie, while books of Australian "folklore" are full of stories about bushrangers. (More)