Much like works by Indigenous authors, Māori works are also accompanied by recurring themes of the search for identity, and the impact of Māori and Pākehā culture in a post-Waitangi nation. There is a great presence of storytelling and fantasy in these works sure to engage any young audience.
As these books are not written by Australian authors or have any direct connection to Australia, they will not be indexed on AustLit.
'I'm thirteen and I'm in a cell. A cell. It's got real bars, up there protecting that high window. I can jump up and touch them. I'm in a cell. That door is for real; it's made of solid steel, and it's got a peephole. So they can spy on me. But I ain't gonna bust. I damn well ain't.' Charlie Wilson, the 'state house boy' from Two Lakes, is sent to Riverton Boys' Home as a state ward 'until such time as you are seen fit to return to society'. The door in the cellblock isn't the only thing that Charlie finds is for real. There's also the name 'George' scrawled on the walls, and by it the word 'kehua' or ghost . . .'
Yank is an ordinary enough teenager, except that he lives in a thermal wonderland (frequented by tourists eager to view the geysers and boiling mud) and except for the fact that one of those tourists (an American soldier visiting during the Second World War) was his father. The locals gave the boy the nickname of Yank, a name that makes him different and ensures his mother's husband will never accept him as his own. So who was Yank's real father? Yank has only his dreams to fill the void, until the day a letter arrives . . .
They call me Bugs. As in Bunny. Yeah I know. Meet Bugs: smart, sarcastic, sixteen and stuck in a small town without a driver's license. Bugs has been best mates with Jez forever, they've always been Jez and Bugs, Bugs and Jez. That is until Stone Cold, the new girl, arrives in town. Year 12 was already going to be a challenge without adding spoilt, bitchy Stone Cold to the mix. Why would anyone want to be mates with her? But things are never as they seem on the surface - not the picture perfect postcard views of Taupo, not the drama queen antics of Stone Cold, not the quiet brooding of Jez. Not even Bugs. Now as the future closes in, each will struggle with expectation; either trying to live up to them, or trying to live them down.
Libby has an idyllic life on an apple orchard and is close to her grandfather, a cider maker. When he dies in a freak accident, Libby is devastated. She finds it difficult to talk to her parents about her feelings as her mother seems cold and her father says little. Grieving, angry, and feeling distant from her parents who are struggling with their own relationship, she begins compulsively pulling her hair out. To get away from the unhappiness, Libby unwillingly goes to boarding school. There, she befriends Charlie, and goes to stay with her family, which is warm, friendly and fun. While there, Libby enjoys being part of all the outdoor adventures and gains new perspectives on herself and her parents. This young adult novel is a story of strong friendships and growing understanding that combine to overcome difficulties.
Constant Spry, newly liberated of her waitressing job, is summoned home by her grandmother, the irrepressible Mrs Angela Spry. Accompanied by Nanny Smack, the ghost who crochets tomorrow's sky, Connie journeys south to Goshen - a crossroads caught between the mountain and the sea. And, slowly but surely, she gathers the myriad threads that are the lives and loves of the four murderous and conveniently forgetful Women Spry.
A gripping supernatural mystery and romance set in post-Katrina New Orleans. Rebecca couldn't feel more out of place in New Orleans. She's staying in a creepy house with her aunt, who reads tarot cards. And at the snooty prep school, a pack of filthy-rich girls treat Rebecca like she's invisible. Only gorgeous, unavailable Anton Grey gives Rebecca the time of day, but she wonders if he's got a hidden agenda. Then one night, among the oak trees in Lafayette Cemetery, Rebecca makes a friend. Sweet, mysterious Lisette is eager to show Rebecca the nooks and crannies of New Orleans. There's just one catch. Lisette is a ghost.
A year ago, Rebecca Brown escaped death in a New Orleans cemetery. Now she has returned to this haunting city. She is looking forward to seeing Anton Grey, the boy who may or may not have her heart. But she also meets a ghost: a troubled boy who insists only she can help him. Soon Rebecca finds herself embroiled in another murder mystery from more than a century ago. But as she tries to right wrongs, she finds more questions than answers: Is she putting her friends, and herself, in danger? Can she trust this new ghost? And has she stumbled into something much bigger and more serious than she understands?
Welcome to York, England. Mist lingers in the streets. Narrow buildings cast long shadows. This is the most haunted city in the world. . . . Miranda Tennant arrives in York with a terrible, tragic secret. She is eager to lose herself amid the quaint cobblestones, hoping she won’t run into the countless ghosts who supposedly roam the city. . . . Then she meets Nick, an intense, dark-eyed boy who knows all of York’s hidden places and histories. Miranda wonders if Nick is falling for her, but she is distracted by another boy – one even more handsome and mysterious than Nick. He lives in the house across from Miranda and seems desperate to send her some sort of message. Could this boy be one of York’s haunted souls? Soon, Miranda realizes that something dangerous – and deadly – is being planned. And she may have to face the darkest part of herself in order to unravel the mystery – and find redemption.
Laura Martin is visiting Rome on a class trip, and she's entranced by the majestic Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon . . . Everything in this city seems magical. That is, until the magic seems to turn very dark. Suddenly, statues of Cupid and ancient works of art come to life before her eyes. Earthquakes rumble and a cloud of ash forms in the sky. A dark-eyed boy with wings on his heels appears and gives her a message. Laura soon realizes she is at the center of a brewing battle – a battle between the gods and goddesses, one that will shake modern-day Rome to its core. Only she and her group of friends can truly unravel the mystery behind what is happening. As tensions mount and secret identities are revealed, Laura must rely on her own inner strength to face up to what may be a fight for her life.
This graphic novel is a story of two hostile tribes: one thriving, the other starving and forced to enter into a hard bargain to survive. In the midst of the conflict, two lovers from opposing tribes, Kāhu and Kuratawhiti, plan to bring their warring tribes together through their marriage. But tragedy looms as Kāhu defends his beloved Kuratawhiti against his treasured sister, Mira, who unleashes a lifetime of rage on Kuratawhiti and her people.
This book is available in both English and te reo Māori.
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.
This science fantasy novel in te reo Māori follows four teenagers living on Rēhua, a planet settled after Earth is destroyed by ecological disasters and global war. The four raise hōkio, giant mystical birds, which take them on flights to explore their new world. On one flight, they discover an island with another colony of people, and here, they are given a quest to interpret hieroglyphic messages drawn on cave walls. Deciphering these symbols leads them to appease the feared tipua wheke, a gargantuan octopus, and help the Tūrehu, fair-skinned sea fairies, who have discovered a way to return to Earth.
The first time Leanne looks into Inna Furey's eyes she feels a cold wind blowing on her face. It doesn't take long for Leanne to change her question, 'Who is this new girl?' to another, far more mysterious one: 'What is she?'
This novel for young adults tells the story of Inna Furey, a new pupil at Leanne's school who soon goes missing. Nobody knows what's happened to her, except Leanne, and she can't tell.
One morning Jason and Rory wake up in their dorm room at boarding school, the next, they have been transported to an intensive training facility for teens with superpowers. Equipped with the abilities to manipulate gravity and harness dark energy, Jason and Rory discover their strengths, weaknesses, and themselves. Enveloped in a realm of action, mystery and superhuman powers, the two protagonists believe they are being trained to hone their powers and ensure the ongoing survival of humanity. But as they grow more powerful and discover the secrets of the Watchers, Jason and Rory struggle to keep their friendship intact and support the Watched whose real aim is to control the Earth and all on it.
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