the whale rider book review

• ADMIN AREA MY BOOKSHELF MY DASHBOARD MY PROFILE SIGN OUT SIGN IN

THE WHALE RIDER

by Witi Ihimaera ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2003

An ancient whale and an eight-year-old Maori girl named Kahu are archetypal figures in this luminous joining of myth and contemporary culture. In an opening Eden-like scene, a man riding a whale gives the East Coast of New Zealand gifts that will make it flourish. The last gift, however, refuses to be given, flinging itself across a thousand years to wait for the time when it will be needed. That gift becomes Kahu, a contemporary child both regular and special. Kahu is cherished by everyone in the family except her grandfather, whom she reveres but who has no time for females. But when that ancestral relationship between human and whale reaches from the past and challenges the safety of her people, Kahu alone has the gift to confront the threat. The story is narrated by her uncle Rawiri and by the whales; dazzling ocean descriptions from the whales’ perspective highlight the poetic writing. (glossary) (Sundance and Toronto film festivals winner, national release June 2003) (Fiction. YA)

Pub Date: May 1, 2003

ISBN: 0-15-205017-5

Page Count: 164

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2003

CHILDREN'S FAMILY

Share your opinion of this book

THE BIG NOTHING

From the neighborhood series , vol. 3.

by Adrian Fogelin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2004

Big brother Duane is off in boot camp, and Justin is left trying to hold the parental units together. Fat, acne-ridden, and missing his best friend Ben, who’s in the throes of his first boy-girl relationship with Cass, Justin’s world is dreary. It gets worse when he realizes that all of his mother’s suspicions about his father are probably true, and that Dad may not return from his latest business trip. Surprisingly ultra-cool Jemmie, who is also missing her best friend, Cass, actually recognizes his existence and her grandmother invites Justin to use their piano in the afternoons when Jemmie’s at cross-country practice. The “big nothing” place, where Justin retreats in time of trouble, is a rhythmic world and soon begins to include melody and provide Justin with a place to express himself. Practice and discipline accompany this gradual exploration of his talent. The impending war in Iraq gives this story a definite place in time, and its distinct characters make it satisfying and surprisingly realistic. Misfit finds fit. (Fiction. YA)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2004

ISBN: 1-56145-326-9

Page Count: 224

Publisher: Peachtree

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2004

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

More In The Series

BOOK REVIEW

by Adrian Fogelin

More by Adrian Fogelin

KEVIN AND HIS DAD

by Irene Smalls ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1999

There is something profoundly elemental going on in Smalls’s book: the capturing of a moment of unmediated joy. It’s not melodramatic, but just a Saturday in which an African-American father and son immerse themselves in each other’s company when the woman of the house is away. Putting first things first, they tidy up the house, with an unheralded sense of purpose motivating their actions: “Then we clean, clean, clean the windows,/wipe, wipe, wash them right./My dad shines in the windows’ light.” When their work is done, they head for the park for some batting practice, then to the movies where the boy gets to choose between films. After a snack, they work their way homeward, racing each other, doing a dance step or two, then “Dad takes my hand and slows down./I understand, and we slow down./It’s a long, long walk./We have a quiet talk and smile.” Smalls treats the material without pretense, leaving it guileless and thus accessible to readers. Hays’s artwork is wistful and idyllic, just as this day is for one small boy. (Picture book. 5-8)

Pub Date: April 1, 1999

ISBN: 0-316-79899-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Little, Brown

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999

More by Irene Smalls

by Irene Smalls & illustrated by Cathy Ann Johnson

by Irene Smalls & illustrated by Colin Bootman

• Discover Books Fiction Thriller & Suspense Mystery & Detective Romance Science Fiction & Fantasy Nonfiction Biography & Memoir Teens & Young Adult Children's
• News & Features Bestsellers Book Lists Profiles Perspectives Awards Seen & Heard Book to Screen Kirkus TV videos In the News
• Kirkus Prize Winners & Finalists About the Kirkus Prize Kirkus Prize Judges
• Magazine Current Issue All Issues Manage My Subscription Subscribe
• Writers’ Center Hire a Professional Book Editor Get Your Book Reviewed Advertise Your Book Launch a Pro Connect Author Page Learn About The Book Industry
• More Kirkus Diversity Collections Kirkus Pro Connect My Account/Login
• About Kirkus History Our Team Contest FAQ Press Center Info For Publishers
• Privacy Policy
• Terms & Conditions
• Reprints, Permission & Excerpting Policy

© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Popular in this Genre

Hey there, book lover.

We’re glad you found a book that interests you!

Please select an existing bookshelf

Create a new bookshelf.

We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!

Please sign up to continue.

It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!

Already have an account? Log in.

Trouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.

Almost there!

• Industry Professional

Welcome Back!

Sign in using your Kirkus account

Contact us: 1-800-316-9361 or email [email protected].

Don’t fret. We’ll find you.

Magazine Subscribers ( How to Find Your Reader Number )

If You’ve Purchased Author Services

Don’t have an account yet? Sign Up.

The Whale Rider

Witi ihimaera, everything you need for every book you read..

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Witi Ihimaera's The Whale Rider . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

The Whale Rider: Introduction

The whale rider: plot summary, the whale rider: detailed summary & analysis, the whale rider: themes, the whale rider: quotes, the whale rider: characters, the whale rider: terms, the whale rider: symbols, the whale rider: theme wheel, brief biography of witi ihimaera.

Historical Context of The Whale Rider

Other books related to the whale rider.

• Full Title: The Whale Rider ( Te Kaieke Tohorua in Maori)
• When Written: 1987
• Where Written: New York City, New York and Cape Cod, Massachusetts
• When Published: 1987
• Literary Period: Contemporary
• Genre: Young Adult Novel, Maori Literature, New Zealand Literature
• Setting: Whangara, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; Mount Hagen, Papua New Guinea)
• Climax: Kahu rides the ancient whale, saving the whale’s life.
• Antagonist: Human domination over nature, colonization and racism, Koro Apirana’s sexism and stubbornness
• Point of View: Various

Extra Credit for The Whale Rider

Into Maori and Beyond. As of 2023, The Whale Rider is the most translated book by any New Zealand author, whether Pākehā (white) or Maori.

Famous on Film. The Whale Rider may be best known today for the acclaimed 2002 film version, which was filmed in the real town of Whangara with many local actors. Reportedly, as many as 10,000 children tried out for the lead role of Kahu (who was renamed Pai in the movie).

ANZ LitLovers LitBlog

• About ANZ LitLovers
• ANZLL First Nations Literature Reading List
• Author pages
• Christina Stead
• Elizabeth Jolley
• Katharine Susannah Prichard
• Literary Biographies
• Patrick White
• Reading a Century of Books
• Review & Comments Policy
• Thea Astley

The Whale Rider (1987), by Witi Ihimaera

And now, over a decade later, I’ve finally read the book.  A novella of 148 pages, T he 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.

Rawiri also observes several instances where Kahu seems to have special powers.  An omniscient narrator in the prologue tells the story of the ancient whales and how they came to communicate with humans, and it is this special relationship which is at risk because of Kahu’s gender.  But it is Rawiri’s narration that reveals that Kahu is heard singing the whale’s song, and that it is she – not the boys chosen by Koro to take on the role – who is able to plunge to the depths to retrieve a stone cast by Koro.  (The stone is a whale tooth in the film).  The crisis comes when – the community having witnessed the deaths of 200 stranded whales not far from Whangara – a new stranding occurs and the bull whale defies all attempts to turn him around and lead the other whales out to sea.  There is a pleasing inevitability about the way Kahu resolves the crisis and the life force of their community is restored.  The Whale Rider isn’t a book to read for plot.

There are a lot of Māori words in this story, but the sentences are mostly crafted so that there is no need to consult the glossary at the back of the book.  My edition also has photo stills from the film in a glossy centre-spread, which reminded me of some of the most vivid scenes: Kahu at a school ceremony bravely reciting her whakapapa (genealogy) although devastated that her grandfather has refused to attend, and the Māori men powering their canoe through the water at the end, demonstrating what a formidable force they must have been in the days when they were warriors.

The book or the film?  I’m glad I had the vivid film images in my mind as I read, but I prefer the book.

Witi Ihimaera is of Ngati Tuwharetoa and Te Arawa descent.  He was the first Māori author to be published in New Zealand.

Author: Witi Ihimaera Title: The Whale Rider Publisher: Reed Publishing, 2002, first published 1987 ISBN: 9780790008691 Source: personal library, purchased from Brotherhood Books.

Availability

There were second-hand copies available at Fishpond on the day I looked: The Whale Rider but the novel is still in print and readily available in new editions.

Share this:

Posted in BOOK REVIEWS , FICTION — NEW ZEALAND , IHIMAERA Witi , Maori authors , NEW ZEALAND (settings) , New Zealand authors , Novellas & short novels (100-200 pp) , NZ 1987 , Read in 2017 , Reed Publishing | Tags: #IndigLitWeek , 2017 Indigenous Literature Week , BOOK REVIEWS , Maori authors , New Zealand Literature , The Whale Rider , Witi Ihimaera

I also watched the film when it first came out. For me it was extra exciting to see something from “down under.” Only a week or so ago I listened to the audiobook. Typically, they were different, I enjoyed each for different reasons. So nice to see your review about this title pop up today!

By: heidithedreamer on July 3, 2017 at 4:21 pm

The audio book sounds interesting… in the book, the passages that were about the legends of the whale were in Italics to signal a break in the contemporary narration. How did the narration do this signalling: in a different voice?

By: Lisa Hill on July 3, 2017 at 10:17 pm

The first NZ film I saw was a farce involving an old Vanguard car. I’ve seen The Piano and recently Hunt for the Wilderpeople, but not Whale Rider. Have you ever said the movie was better than the book?

By: wadholloway on July 3, 2017 at 7:06 pm

Hmmm, have I ever? *chuckle* I suspect not. But there are some where they are complementary. I really liked the BBC series for War and Peace.

By: Lisa Hill on July 3, 2017 at 10:18 pm

[…] This review of The Whale Rider (ANZ Lit Lovers)  […]

By: It’s Monday – Happy (almost) 4th of July! | Real Life Reading on July 4, 2017 at 12:01 am

[…] The Whale Rider, see my ANZ LitLovers review […]

By: Reviews from Indigenous Literature Week at ANZ Litlovers 2017 | ANZ LitLovers LitBlog on July 7, 2017 at 2:15 pm

[…] 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 here.  As the […]

By: The Uncle’s Story, by Witi Ihimaera | ANZ LitLovers LitBlog on July 13, 2019 at 9:01 am

Please share your thoughts and join the conversation! Cancel reply

• ARTICLES & OPINION
• Author events and Festivals
• Author Obituaries
• Guest reviews
• Reviews From the Archive
• LOTEs within Australia
• Finnegans Wake
• Australian Classics
• C19th women writers
• C20th women writers
• State by state
• FICTION — NEW ZEALAND
• FICTION — OTHER
• Children's Literature
• Crime/Mystery/Noir/Thriller
• Genre benders
• Historical Fiction
• Horror / Gothic
• Literary puzzles
• Speculative/ SF/ Fantasy
• Theatre-fiction
• YA (Young Adult)
• Australia's Black History
• Current Affairs
• Foodie books
• Autobiography
• Diary/Journal
• Fictionalised real lives
• Literary bios
• Musician bios
• Literary criticism
• New Zealand Non-fiction
• Audio books
• Chunksters (450 pages+)
• Collaborative Writing
• Composite novels (linked short stories)
• Drama (plays)
• Graphic novel
• Illustrated fiction and poetry
• Magic realism
• Novellas & short novels (100-200 pp)
• Verse novel
• Postmodernism
• Satire / parody / humour
• Short stories
• Single letter titles
• Art in Fiction
• Music in Fiction
• Colonialism & Postcolonialsm
• Coming of Age / Bildungsroman
• Disability (representation, issues)
• Family violence
• GayLit / LGBTQIA
• Hidden history
• Migration & refugees
• Older women in fiction
• Australian Social Novels
• Socialist realism
• Societies in transition
• Sport in Fiction
• Australians at War
• Occupation novels
• Remembrance Day
• War in Asia & the Pacific
• MEET A KIWI AUTHOR
• MEET AN AUSSIE AUTHOR
• 2016 Christina Stead Week
• 2018 Elizabeth Jolley Week
• 2020 Thea Astley Week
• 2024 Year of NZ Lit
• Best of My Books
• Blog milestones
• Book Giveaway
• 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
• Complete Booker
• Read the Miles Franklin winners
• Read the Nobels

Gifts for Booklovers

• Liam Davison Tribute
• Lisa Meets an Author
• Literary Tourism
• A Year in First Lines
• Christmas Song Book Tag
• EOY Memento Mori
• Life according to literature
• My Year in Books
• Non-fiction November
• Novella a Day in May
• Novellas in November
• Popular ANZLL Book reviews
• Reading Bingo
• Red October Russian Reads
• Spell the Month in Books
• The Last 10 Books
• Read in 2008
• Read in 2009
• Read in 2010
• Read in 2011
• Read in 2012
• Read in 2013
• Read in 2014
• Read in 2015
• Read in 2016
• Read in 2017
• Read in 2018
• Read in 2019
• Read in 2020
• Read in 2021
• Read in 2022
• Read in 2023
• Read in 2024
• Read in French
• Readers' Top 25
• Year in Review
• Zola Project
• Algerian authors
• Angolan authors
• Burundian authors
• Congolese authors
• Ethiopian authors
• Gambian authors
• Ghanian authors
• Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) authors
• Kenyan authors
• Liberian authors
• Madagascan authors
• Malawian authors
• Nigerian authors
• Rwandan authors
• Senegalese authors
• Somalian authors
• South African authors
• South Sudanese authors
• Sudanese authors
• Swazi authors
• Tanzanian authors
• Ugandan authors
• Zambian authors
• Zimbabwean authors
• Argentinian authors
• Brazilian authors
• Métis authors
• Quebecois authors
• Caribbean authors
• Chilean authors
• Cuban authors
• Latin American authors
• Mexican authors
• Afghani authors
• Bangladeshi authors
• HongKong authors
• Indian authors
• Japanese authors
• Korean authors
• Pakistani authors
• Cambodian authors
• Filipino authors
• Indonesian authors
• Malaysian authors
• Singaporean authors
• Vietnamese authors
• Sri Lankan authors
• Taiwanese authors
• ACT (Australian Capital Territory) authors
• New South Wales authors
• Northern Territory authors
• Torres Strait Islander authors
• South Australian authors
• Tasmanian authors
• Victorian authors
• Western Australian authors
• Bailgu/Palyku/Palku
• Birri Gubba (Biria)
• Bunerong/Boonwurrung
• Dharawal/Tharawal
• Gubbi Gubbi (Kabi Kabi)
• Gumbaynggirr
• Gunggari/Kungarri
• Guugu Yimidhirr
• Jangkundjara (Yankuntjatjara)
• Kakadu (Gaagudju)
• Kamillaroi/Gamilaraay
• Koa (Goa/Guwa)
• Kokatha Mula
• Kuku Yalandji
• Martu (Mardu)
• Miriwung (Miriuwong)
• Nigena (Nyikina)
• Pitjara (Bidgara)
• Rembarranga/Rembarunga
• Torres Strait Islanders
• Urban Koorie
• Wakka Wakka
• Walmadjari (Walmajarri)
• Wemba Wemba
• Whadjuk/Wadjuk
• Wurundjeri/Woiwurrong
• Yankunytjatjara / Kokatha
• Yawuru (Jawuru)
• Yorta Yorta
• Yuwaalaraay
• Maori authors
• Albanian authors
• Austrian authors
• Belarusian authors
• Belgian authors
• Bosnian authors
• Croatian authors
• Cypriot authors
• Czech authors
• Dutch authors
• French authors
• Georgian authors
• German authors
• Greek authors
• Hungarian authors
• Italian authors
• Macedonian authors
• Danish authors
• Finnish authors
• Icelandic authors
• Norwegian authors
• Swedish authors
• Polish authors
• Portuguese authors
• Romanian authors
• Russian authors
• Serbian authors
• Soviet authors (1922-1991)
• Catalan authors
• Turkmen authors
• Ukrainian authors
• Uzbekistan authors
• Egyptian authors
• Iranian authors
• Iraqi authors
• Israeli authors
• Lebanese authors
• Libyian authors
• Moroccan authors
• Palestinian authors
• Syrian authors
• Turkish authors
• Yemeni authors
• Anglo-Indian authors
• English authors
• Northern Irish authors
• Scottish authors
• Welsh authors
• Irish (Republic) authors
• Philanthropy
• 20/40 Finlay Lloyd Prize
• ACT Book of the Year
• Adelaide Festival Award
• Age Book of the Year
• ALS Gold Medal
• ARA Historical Novel Prize
• Asher Literary Award
• Australia-Asia Book Prize
• Australian Book Design Awards
• Australian Book Industry Awards
• Banjo Award
• Barbara Jefferis Award
• Best Translated Book Award (BTBA)
• Black&write Award
• Booker Prize
• CAL Scribe Fiction Prize
• Carmel Bird Digital Literary Award
• CBCA Book of the Year
• CHASS Australia Book Prize
• Colin Roderick Award
• Commonwealth Writers' Prize
• David Unaipon Award
• Deadly Award for Outstanding Achievement in Literature
• Deborah Cass Prize
• Dobbie Literary Awards
• Dorothy Hewett Award
• DSC Prize for South Asian Literature
• Dublin Literary Award (IMPAC)
• Educational Publishing Awards
• Ernest Scott History Prize
• FAW Christina Stead Award for Fiction
• Fogarty Literary Award
• Hazel Rowley Fellowship
• Hungerford Award
• Shadow Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2012
• Shadow Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2013
• Indie Awards
• International Booker
• Janet Frame Fiction Award
• Kibble Awards for Women Writers
• Kiriyama Prize for Fiction
• Shadow Man Asian Literary Prize 2011
• Shadow Man Asian Literary Prize 2012
• Mascara Lit Avant-garde Awards
• Melbourne Prize for Literature
• Miles Franklin nominations
• Miles Franklin winners
• Montana (NZ)
• Most Under-rated Book Award (MUBA)
• National Biography Award
• National Book Council Award
• NIB Literary Award
• Nobel Prize
• Norma K Hemming Award
• Novel Prize
• NSW Premier's Awards
• NSW Premier's History Prizes
• NT Literary Awards
• NZ Post Book Award
• Ockham New Zealand Literary Awards
• Patrick White Award
• Penguin Literary Prize
• Prime Minister's Literary Award
• Queensland Literary Awards
• Queensland Premier's Literary Awards
• Readings Prize
• Richell Prize
• Seizure Viva La Novella Prize
• Small Press Network Book of the Year
• SMH Young Novelists Awards
• South Australia's Premier's Awards
• Stella Prize
• Tasmanian Premier's Literary Prizes
• Thomas Shapcott Poetry Prize
• Victorian Premier's History Award
• Victorian Premier's Literary Awards
• Victorian Prize for Literature
• Voss Literary Award
• WA Premier's Award
• Walter McRae Russell Award
• Waverley Library Award for Literature
• Women's Prize for Fiction/Orange Prize
• Crowd funded
• Ginninderra Press
• Impact (imprint of Ventura)
• Lauranton Books
• Longhand Press
• Poetica Christi Press
• Ptilotus Press
• Self-published
• Sisters Publishing
• Smudge Publishing
• Affirm Press
• House of Books
• Murdoch (incl Pier 9)
• Angkitja Books (formerly Jukurrpa Books (IAD Press)
• Australasian Publishing Company
• Black Pepper
• Bolinda Audiobooks
• Brandl and Schlesinger
• Brolga Publishing
• Brolly Books
• Clouds of Magellan
• Duffy & Snellgrove
• ETT Imprint
• F.W. Cheshire
• Fine Arts Press
• Finlay Lloyd
• Forty South Publishing
• Fremantle Press
• Glimmer Press
• Grosvenor Books
• Ultimo Press
• Hybrid Publishers
• Indra Publishing
• Inkerman and Blunt
• Island Magazine
• Koorie Heritage Trust
• Louis Braille Audio
• Magabala Books
• Margaret River Press
• Melbourne Books
• Midnight Sun
• Montpelier Press
• Odyssey Books
• Pantera Press
• Puncher and Wattmann
• Recent Work Press
• Five Mile Press
• Schwarz Media
• Scribe Publications
• Sleepers Publishing
• Spineless Wonders
• Spinifex Press
• Telephone Publishing
• Text Publishing
• Transit Lounge
• Turtle & Bull Publishing
• Upswell Publishing
• Vagabond Press
• Ventura Press
• Vulgar Press
• Wakefield Press
• Wild Dingo Press
• Hodder and Stoughton
• Angus & Robertson
• Fourth Estate
• Bantam Books
• Ebury Press
• Hamish Hamilton
• Harvill Secker
• Lantern Books
• McPhee Gribble
• Penguin Australia
• Random House Australia
• William Heinemann
• Woolshed Press
• Thomas Nelson
• Walker Books
• The Bulletin Magazine (1880-2008)
• Aboriginal Studies Press (AIATSIS)
• Australian Scholarly Publishing
• Giramondo (University of Western Sydney)
• Grattan Street Press
• La Trobe University Publishing
• Monash University Publishing
• Miegunyah Press
• Museum Victoria
• New South (UNSW Publishing)
• NLA Publishing
• SUP (Sydney University Press)
• UQP (University of Queensland Press)
• UWAP (University of Western Australia Press)
• Anton Blank Ltd
• Auckland University Press
• Bateman Books
• Harper Collins (NZ)
• Lawrence & Gibson
• Penguin (NZ)
• Random House (NZ)
• Reed Publishing
• Self-published (NZ)
• Tandem Press
• Victoria University Press
• Miles Franklin winner opening lines
• Sensational Snippets
• Ancient Australia (settings)
• Ancient China (settings)
• Ancient Greece (settings)
• Ancient India (settings)
• Ancient Indonesia
• Ancient Persia (settings)
• Ancient Rome & Empire (Settings)
• Ancient Troy (settings)
• Biblical (settings)
• ANTARCTICA (settings)
• Australian settings – beach culture & coastal
• Australian settings – Colonial era
• Australian settings – Outback, bush & pastoral incl small country towns
• Australian settings – road novel
• Australian settings – Urban milieu incl large regional cities
• Canberra (settings)
• Australia Norfolk Island (settings)
• Sydney (settings)
• Darwin (settings)
• Brisbane (settings)
• Gold Coast (settings)
• Adelaide (settings)
• Hobart (settings)
• King Island (settings)
• AUSTRALIA Torres Strait Islands (settings)
• Mallee (settings)
• Melbourne (settings)
• Regional cities Vic. (settings)
• Perth (settings)
• EAST TIMOR (settings)
• NEW ZEALAND (settings)
• OTHER OCEANIA/PACIFIC (settings)
• PAPUA NEW GUINEA (settings)
• At Sea (settings)
• Battlefields (settings)
• Dystopia & Imagined Worlds
• Transnational (settings)
• Unspecified setting
• Algeria (settings)
• Angola (settings)
• Burundi (settings)
• Congo (settings)
• Ethiopia (Settings)
• Gambia (settings)
• Ghana (settings)
• Kenya (settings)
• Liberia (Settings)
• Madagascar (settings)
• Nigeria (settings)
• Rwanda (settings)
• Senegal (settings)
• Sierra Leone (settings)
• South Africa (settings)
• South Sudan (settings)
• Sudan (settings)
• Tanzania (settings)
• Uganda (settings)
• Zimbabwe (incl Rhodesia) (settings)
• Argentina (settings)
• Brazil (settings)
• Quebec (settings)
• Caribbean (settings)
• Central America (settings)
• Chile (settings)
• Colombia (settings)
• Latin America (settings)
• Mexico (settings)
• Peru (settings)
• United States (settings)
• Uruguay (settings)
• Bangladesh (settings)
• Burma (settings)
• Cambodia (settings)
• Hong Kong (settings)
• India (incl pre-Partition) (settings)
• Indonesia (settings)
• Japan (settings)
• Korea (settings)
• Malaysia (settings)
• Maldives (settings)
• Pakistan (settings)
• Philippines (settings)
• Singapore (settings)
• Sri Lanka (settings)
• Taiwan (settings)
• Thailand (settings)
• Vietnam (settings)
• Albania (settings)
• Austria (settings)
• Belgium (setting)
• Bosnia (settings)
• Bulgaria (Settings)
• Croatia (settings)
• Cyprus (settings)
• Czech & Slovak Republics & former Czechoslovakia (settings)
• Estonia (settings)
• France (settings)
• Georgia (settings)
• Germany (settings)
• Greece (settings)
• Hungary (settings)
• Italy (settings)
• Monaco (settings)
• Netherlands (settings)
• Denmark (settings)
• Finland (settings)
• Iceland (settings)
• Norway (settings)
• Sweden (settings)
• North Macedonia (settings)
• Poland (settings)
• Portugal (settings)
• Romania (settings)
• Russia (settings)
• Spain (settings)
• Switzerland (settings)
• Turkmenistan (settings)
• Ukraine (settings)
• USSR, 1922-1991 (settings)
• Afghanistan (settings)
• Egypt (settings)
• Iran (settings)
• Iraq (settings)
• Israel, can include Palestine pre 1948 (settings)
• Lebanon (settings)
• Libya (settings)
• Morocco (settings)
• Palestine (settings)
• Saudi Arabia (settings)
• Syria (settings)
• Tunisia (settings)
• Armenia under Ottoman rule (settings)
• Gallipoli (Settings)
• Yemen (settings)
• British Overseas Territories (settings)
• Channel Islands UK (settings)
• England (settings)
• Ireland (settings)
• Isle of Wight (settings)
• Northern Ireland (settings)
• Scotland (settings)
• Wales (settings)
• Uncategorized
• A-Z Editors
• Abani Chris
• ABBOTT Sally
• Abdolah, Kader
• ABERDEEN Lucinda
• Abi-Ezzi Nathalie
• Abidi, Azhar
• Abulhawa Susan
• Achebe Chinua
• ACKLAND Jenny
• ADAMS Glenda
• ADELAIDE, Debra
• Adiga, Aravind
• Adimi Kaouther
• Adler, Elizabeth
• Adorján, Johanna
• ADUT Deng Thiak
• Aebersold Carol V
• Ahmad Jamil
• AHMAD Michael Mohammed
• Aidoo Ama Ata
• AITKEN Adam
• Akbar Prayaag
• AKEC Kgshak
• Akunin Boris
• AL MUDERIS Munjed
• Al-Muqri Ali
• ALAAK Yout A
• Alabanza Travis
• Alam Rumaan
• Alderson Gelf
• ALDRIAN-MOYLE Sue-Lyn
• ALEXANDER George
• ALEXANDER Stephanie
• ALEXANDER, Todd
• ALEXANDRA Belinda
• Alexievich Svetlana
• ALIZADEH Ali
• ALLAN Louise
• ALLAN-PETALE David
• ALLEN Yvonne
• ALLINGTON Patrick
• ALLINSON Miles
• ALLUM Katherine
• ALTMAN Dennis
• Amadi Elechi
• Amis Martin
• Ammaniti Niccolo
• AMSTERDAM Steven
• Anam Tahmima
• Ananthamurthy U R
• ANASTASIOS Meaghan Wilson
• ANDERSON Jessica
• ANDERSON Lainie
• ANDERSON Richard
• Anderson Thistle
• Andreyev Leonid
• ANGEL Libby
• ANNEAR Robyn
• Appelfeld Aharon
• APPLETON, Richard
• ARAHANGA Te Awhina
• ARALUEN Evelyn
• ARATHIMOS Michalia
• ARIANHOD Robyn
• ARMANNO Venero
• ARMSTRONG Diane
• ARMSTRONG Judith
• ARNOLD John
• ARNOTT Georgina
• ARNOTT Robbie
• Arudpragasam Anuk
• Asbrink Elisabeth
• ASHLEY Melissa
• ASHMERE Emma
• Aslam Nadeem
• ASTLEY Thea
• Aswany Al Alaa
• Aswany Alaa Al
• ATHERTON Michael
• ATKINSON Alan
• Atkinson Sam
• ATKINSON Tony
• Atogun Odafe
• Atwood Margaret
• Atxaga Bernard
• Austen Jane
• AUSTIN Fiona
• Avdic Selvedin
• AVERILL Roger
• AZAR Shokoofeh
• Azzopardi Trezza
• BACON Eugen
• BAIL Murray
• Baily Virginia
• BAKER Jeannine
• Baker Kenneth
• Bakker Gerbrand
• Balestrini Nanni
• BALINT Christine
• BALL Christine
• BALLANTYNE Tony
• Balzac Honore de
• BANCROFT Bronwyn
• Banville John
• BARANAY Inez
• BARBALET Margaret
• BARBER Stella M
• Barker Nicola
• Barnard Chris
• BARNARD Edwin
• BARNARD Marjorie
• Barnes Djuna
• Barnes Julian
• BARNES Robert
• BARNES Stuart
• Barr Damian
• BARRY Bernice
• BARRY Peter
• Barry Sebastian
• BARTULIN Lenny
• Barua Jahnavi
• BASSAT Nina
• BATCHELOR Emma
• BATTY Rosie
• Batuman Elif
• Bauer Susan Wise
• Baxter Sarah
• BAYNTON Barbara
• BEAMS Maryan
• Beaussant Philippe
• BECK Deborah
• Beckett Samuel
• BEDDOE Noel
• BEDFORD Jean
• BEESLEY Luke
• Beevor Antony
• BEGBIE Richard
• BEHRENDT Larissa
• Belfrage Ixta
• Bell Chanda A
• BELLANTA Melissa
• Bellow Saul
• Bely Andrei
• Bennett Brit
• Bennett Claire-Louise
• BENNETTS Helen
• BENNIE Angela
• BENT Ngarta Jinny
• Bergen David
• Berger John
• BERGNER Herz
• Bernhard Thomas
• Bernieres Louis de
• BERRY Vanessa
• Berthoud Ella
• Besson Philippe
• BEVERIDGE Judith
• Bezmozgis David
• Bhattacharya Rahul
• BI Vivian (Xiyan)
• Bilyeau Nancy
• Binder L Annette
• Binding Tim
• Binet Laurent
• BINKS Danielle
• Birch Carol
• BIRD Carmel
• BIRDSALL Bronwyn
• BIRMAN Lisa
• BIRMINGHAM John
• BIRNS Nicholas
• BISHOP Stephanie
• BITTO Emily
• BLABEY Aaron
• Black Robin
• BLACKWOOD Diana
• BLAIN Georgia
• BLAINEY Ann
• BLAIR Anna Kate
• BLANK Arapera
• Blumenthal Heston
• BLUNT Ashley Kalagian
• BOBIS Merlinda
• Bohler Britta
• Bolano, Roberto
• BOLDREWOOD Rolf
• Boll Heinrich
• BONE, Pamela
• BONYHADY Tim
• BOOTH Sharron
• Borges Jorge Luis
• BOURAS Gillian
• BOURKE Latika
• BOVELL Andrew
• BOWEN Chris
• Bowen Elizabeth
• BOWEN Stella
• BOYCE James
• BOYD Martin
• Boyd William
• Boyden Joseph
• Boyle Nicholas
• BOYLE Peter
• Boyle, T.C.
• BRABON Katherine
• Bradbury, Ray
• BRADLEY James
• Bragg Melvyn
• BRAYLEY Annabelle
• BRENNAN Bernadette
• BRENNAN Michael
• BRETT Judith
• BRILL Sarah
• Brink Andre
• BRINSDEN Anne
• Brittain Vera
• Broich John
• Brokken Jan
• Brook Rhidian
• Brookner Anita
• BROOKS Geraldine
• BROOKS, David
• BROPHY Kevin
• BROTHERS Caroline
• Brown Becky
• BROWN Hazel
• BROWN Helen
• BROWN Honey
• BROWN James
• BROWN Sienna
• BRUCE Candice
• BRUGMAN Emily
• BRUMBY John
• BRUNE Peter
• BRYER Elizabeth
• Buchan Elizabeth
• BUCHANAN Lynn
• BUCHANAN Roderick
• Buck Pearl S
• Buckley Jonathan
• BUCKRICH Judith
• Bulawayo NoViolet
• Bullough Tom
• BUNBURY Alisa
• BUNGEY Darleen
• BURBIDGE John
• BURKE Janine
• BURMAN Paul
• Burnet Graeme Macrae
• Burns Olive Ann
• BURNUM BURNUM
• BURROWS Michael
• BURTON Mirranda
• BURTON Rebecca
• BUTCHER-MCGUNNINGLE Sarah
• Butler Christopher
• BUTLER Janet
• BUTLER Peter
• BUTLER Susan
• Bykau Vasil
• BYRNE Frank
• Cabre Jaume
• CADWALLADER Robyn
• CADZOW Allison
• CAFFREY Lyndal
• CAHILL Michelle
• Cai Jindong
• Caldwell Lucy
• CALTHORPE Mena
• Calvino Italo
• CAMBRIDGE Ada
• CAMENS Jane
• CAMERON Donna M
• Camilleri Andrea
• Campbell Joseph
• Camus Albert
• Canetti Elias
• Canin Ethan
• Canning Richard
• CANNOLD Leslie
• CANNON Michael
• CAPOTE Truman
• Capovski Ivan
• CAPPIELLO Rosa
• CAREY Peter
• CARMAN Luke
• CARMICHAEL Jay
• CARMODY Sam
• Carofiglio Gianrico
• CARROLL Mark
• CARROLL Steven
• CARTER Jennifer MT
• CARTER Paul
• CASSIDY Barrie
• CASTAGNA Felicity
• CASTLES Belinda
• CASTRO Brian
• Catherine the Great
• CATTON Eleanor
• Cayre Hannelore
• Cerami Vincenzo
• Cercas Javier
• Cervantes Miguel de
• CHAMBERS, Jeremy
• Chang EIleen
• CHANIN Eileen
• CHARLWOOD Don
• CHAROLA Erika
• CHATER Lauren
• Chatwin Bruce
• Chekhov Anton
• Chen Sanping
• Chen Te Ping
• CHENG Melanie
• CHESTERMAN John
• Chevalier Tracy
• Chiaverini Jennifer
• CHIDGEY Catherine
• Chistyakov Ivan
• Chizhova Elena
• CHONG Eileen
• CHRISTIE Alexandra
• Christie Michael
• CHUGUNA Jukuna Mona
• Chukovskaya Lydia
• Chung Catherine
• CHURCHER Betty
• CICA Natasha
• Clacy Ellen
• CLANCHY John
• CLARKE Marcus
• CLARKE Maxine Beneba
• Claudel Philippe
• CLAYTON Hamish
• CLEARY Simon
• CLEAVE Chris
• Cleland John
• CLIFT Charmian
• CLODE Danielle
• CLOHESY Bernadette
• Coates Donna
• COCHRANE Geoff
• COCHRANE Peter
• COETZEE J M
• COHEN David
• Cohen Marcelo
• Cohen-Portheim Paul
• Cohne-Scali Sarah
• COLE Jessie
• COLE-ADAMS, Kate
• COLEMAN Claire G
• COLEMAN Dylan
• Colette Sidonie-Gabrielle
• COLIN-JAMES Sally
• COLLEY Brendan
• Collier Catrin
• COLLINS Alan
• COLLINS Carolyn
• COLLINS Christy
• COLLINS Courtney
• COLLINS Ros
• Collins Wilkie
• COLLIS Paul
• COLQUHOUN Judith
• COLTHEART Lenore
• CONDON Matthew
• Conlon Evelyn
• Connolly, John
• CONNORS Libby
• Conrad Joseph
• CONROY THom
• CONSTABLE Kate
• CONTE, Steven
• COOK Kenneth
• COOKE Alana Bolton
• COOMBS Anne
• CORKE Alison
• CORKE Dr Charlie
• CORMICK Craig
• CORNELIUS Patricia
• COSGROVE Katerina
• Costello Mary
• COULTHART Ross
• Courtemanche Gil
• COUZENS Vicki
• COVENTRY David
• COWELL Brendan
• CRANE Ralph
• Crane Stephen
• CRAWFORD Anwen
• CRISP Tracy
• CROFT Julian
• CROGGON Alison
• CRONIN M T C
• CROOME Andrew
• CROSS Roger
• CROZIER J L
• Cullen Richard
• Cunningham, Michael
• CUNNINGHAM, Sophie
• Curiol Céline
• CURTIN Amanda
• CURTIN Penelope
• CURTIN Tansy
• CURTIS Lauren Aimee
• CUSACK John Bede
• DA COSTA Suneeta Peres
• DAISLEY Stephen
• DALGARNO Paul
• Damono Sapardi Djoko
• DANALIS John
• DANDO-COLLINS Stephen
• Dangarembga Tsitsi
• Dansereau Serge
• DARK Eleanor
• Darrieussecq Marie
• Dasgupta Rana
• Davey Janet
• DAVIDOW Shelley
• Davies Carys
• DAVIES Julian
• DAVIS Brooke
• DAVIS Rhett
• DAVIS Richard
• DAVISON Graeme
• DAVISON Liam
• DAY Gregory
• DAYLIGHT Tegan Bennett
• De Botton Alain
• De Courcy Anne
• DE CRESPIGNY Robin
• De Juan José Luis
• De Kat Otto
• DE KRETSER Michelle
• De Lillo, Don
• De Tessan Christina Henry
• Dean Louise
• Delacourt Gregoire
• DELAHUNTY Mary
• DELANEY Brigid
• Delerm Philippe
• DELLORA Daryl
• DENNIS Richard
• DEO Shastra
• Deon Michel
• Desai Kiran
• DeSoto Lewis
• DESSAIX Robert
• DEVANNY Jean
• DIBBLE Brian
• Dick Philip K
• DICKIE Madelaine
• Dimópulos Mariana
• DISHER Garry
• Divakaruni Chitra Banerjee
• Djavadi Négar
• Doctorow E.L.
• DOHERTY Ben
• DOHERTY Peter
• Donoghue Emma
• Dostoyevsky Fyodor
• DOUGAN Lucy
• Douglass Frederick
• DOVEY Ceridwen
• Dowlatabadi Mahmoud
• DOWN Jennifer
• Doyle Roddy
• Drabble Margaret
• Drakulić Slavenka
• Dreiser Theodore
• DREWE Robert
• Drndic Dasa
• DRUMMOND Sarah
• Du Maurier Daphne
• DUCKOR-JONES Avi
• DUIGAN Virginia
• DUIGNAN Kate
• Dunant Sarah
• Duncan David James
• DUNCAN Peter
• Dunlop Tessa
• Dunmore Helen
• Dunnett Dorothy
• Duras Marguerite
• Dusapin Elisa Shua
• EAGLE Chester
• Eaglestone Robert
• Ebershoff, David
• ECKERMANN Ali Cobby
• Eco Umberto
• EDESON Robert
• EDGAR Patricia
• EDGAR Stephen
• Edge Arabella
• Edgeworth Maria
• EDMOND Martin
• EDWARDS John
• Eggers Dave
• EIDELSON Meyer
• Elderkin Susan
• ELDERSHAW Flora
• Eliot George
• Eliseev Igor
• ELLIOTT Ron
• ELLIOTT Sumner Locke
• Ellis Alice Thomas
• ELSAOUD Maher Abou
• ELVERY Laura
• EMERSON Craig
• Emezi Akwaeke
• Endicott, Marina
• ENG Tan Twan
• ENGLISH Anthony
• Enright Anne
• Erdrich Louise
• ESKINAZI Lisa
• ESPESETH Amy
• ETHERINGTON Bonnie
• EVANS Patrick
• Faber Michel
• Fadanelli Guillermo
• FALCONER Delia
• Falcones Ildefonso
• FALKINGER Richard
• Fallada Hans
• FARID Lily Yulianti
• FARMER, Beverley
• Farooqi Musharraf Ali
• FARRAR Jill Martindale
• FARRELL Fiona
• Farrell J G
• Farrell Joseph
• FARRELL Michael
• Faruqi Shamsur Rahman
• FAULKNER Annah
• Faulks Sebastian
• FAVENC Ernest
• FEALY Susan
• FEARNLEY Laurence
• Fearnley-Whittingstall Hugh
• FEATHERSTONE Nigel
• Feigel Lara
• FERGUS Lara
• Ferrante Elena
• FIDLER Richard
• FIELDING Helen
• FIELKE Andrew
• FIENBERG, Anna
• FINDLAY Carly
• Findley Timothy
• Fitten Marc
• FITZGERALD Deborah
• Fitzgerald F. Scott
• FITZGERALD Michael
• FITZPATRICK Deb
• Fitzpatrick Joanna
• FLANAGAN Richard
• Flaubert Gustave
• FLETCHER Beryl
• FLYNN Chris
• Flynn Thomas R
• FOGARTY Lionel
• Ford Ford Madox
• Forester C.S.
• Forna Aminatta
• FORNASIERO Jean
• FORSTER Deborah
• Forster Margaret
• FOSTER David
• FOXLEE Karen
• FRAME Janet
• Frankl Viktor E
• FRANKLIN Miles
• FRASCARELLI Carmine
• Fraser Antonia
• Fraser Malcolm
• Frayn Michael
• FREEMAN Kimberley
• Frenkel Francoise
• Freud Esther
• FREYNE Catherine
• Fridlund Emily
• FRITH Marion
• Fry Stephen
• Fuentes Carlos
• Fullerton Alexander
• FULLERTON Susannah
• FULTON Margaret
• FUNDER Anna
• Gale, Patrick
• Galgut Damon
• GALL Jennifer
• Galloway Steven
• GAMMAGE Bill
• GANDOLFO Enza
• Garcia Tristan
• Gardam Jane
• GARDINER Jo
• GARDNER Paul
• Gardos Peter
• Garner Alan
• GARNER Helen
• Gary Romain
• GASCOIGNE John
• Gaskell, Elizabeth
• Gatore Gilbert
• Gaudé Laurent
• GAUNT Angus
• GEE Maurice
• GENDALL Susanna
• GEORGE Denise
• GEORGE Jonette
• George Sara
• Ghosh Amitav
• GIANNOUKOS Tina
• Gibbons Stella
• Gifford Elisabeth
• GILDFIND HC
• GINIBI Ruby Langford
• GINNANE Karen
• GIOVANNONI Moreno
• GISLASON Kari
• Gissing, George
• Glasfurd Guinevere
• GLOVER Dennis
• GNANALINGAM Brannavan
• GODDARD Emily
• Godden Rumer
• Goethe Johann Wolfgang von
• Gogerty Clare
• Gogol Nikolai
• GOLDBLOOM Goldie
• Golding William
• GOLDS Cassandra
• GOLDSMITH Andrea
• Goldsmith Barbara
• Goldsmith Oliver
• GOLDSWORTHY Anna
• GOLDSWORTHY Peter
• Goncharov Ivan
• GOODING Janda
• Goodman Simon
• GOODWIN Julie
• Gordimer Nadine
• GORDON Adam Lindsay
• GORDON Sandy
• GORTON Lisa
• GOTT Robert
• GRACE Patricia
• GRAHAM Jillian
• GRAHAME Carmel Macdonald
• Grant Linda
• GRAVES Robert
• GRAY Robert
• GREEN Dr Jenny
• Green Henry
• GREEN Jonathan
• Greene David
• Greene Graham
• Greene Richard
• Greer Andrew Sean
• GREER Germaine
• GRENVILLE Kate
• Griffiths Paul
• GRIFFITHS Tom
• Grigorenko Alexander
• Grigson Geoffrey
• GRIMSHAW Charlotte
• GRIMWADE Stephen
• Grishkovets Evgeny
• Gromova Natalia
• GROSE Peter
• Grossman David
• Grossman Vasily
• Grushin Olga
• GUEST Glenda
• GUILHAUS Fred
• GUINEAY Lana
• Gunaratne Guy
• Gunesekera Romesh
• GUNN Mrs Aeneas
• Gurnah Abdulrazak
• Haasse Hella S
• Habila Helon
• Haenel Yannick
• HAGEMANN Helen
• HAGER Mandy
• HAIGH Gideon
• Hainsworth Peter
• HALL Charles
• Hall Louisa
• HALL Rodney
• HALL Sandra
• HALLIGAN, Marion
• HALLORAN Jacinta
• HAM Rosalie
• HAMER Julia
• Hamid Mohsin
• HAMILTON Clive
• Hamilton-Paterson James
• Hammett Dashiell
• Hamsun Knut
• HANCOCK James Gulliver
• HANCOCK Susan
• Handayani Eliza Vitri
• Hanif Mohammed
• Hankir Zahra
• HANRAHAN Barbara
• Hao Phan Thanh
• HARARI Fiona
• Haratischvili Nino
• Harding Georgina
• Harding Thomas
• Harman Claire
• HARRIS Catherine
• HARRIS Trish
• Harrison Rebecca
• HARROWER Elizabeth
• Harstad Johan
• HARTNETT Sonya
• Hartsuyker Linnea
• HASKINS Victoria
• HAWKE Steve
• Hawthorne Nathaniel
• Hay Elizabeth
• HAY Sheridan
• HAYES Nicole
• HAZZARD Shirley
• Heaney Seamus
• HEARST Elise Esther
• HEATHCOTE Christopher
• HEENAN Keren
• HEISS Anita
• Hemingway Ernest
• HENDERSON Anne
• HENDERSON Gus
• HENLEY Lisa
• HENNESSEY Rachel
• HENRY Thalia
• HENRY-JONES Eliza
• HENSHAW Mark
• Hensher Philip
• HEPWORTH Sally
• Heraty Toeti
• HERBERT Xavier
• HEREAKA Whiti
• HERGENHAN Laurie
• Hermann Judith
• HERRICK Steven
• Hertmans Stefan
• Hertz Noreena
• Herwig Malte
• Hess Annette
• Hesse Herman
• HICKMAN Bronwen
• HICKMAN Ellen
• HIGHLEY Kerry
• Highsmith Patricia
• HILL Anthony
• HILL Christine
• HILL, David
• Hill, Lawrence
• HILLMAN Ken
• HILLMAN Robert
• Hilton James
• Hirata Andrea
• HISCOCK Geoff
• HISKEY Garry
• Hoay Kwee Tek
• HOBBY Nathan
• HODGMAN Helen
• Hoffman, Eva
• HOLLAND Patrick
• HOLLAND-BATT Sarah
• HOLLINGWORTH Robert
• Hollywood Paul
• Holmes à Court Simon
• HOLMES Katie
• HOLSWORTH Mark S
• Holt Penelope J.
• Holtby Winifred
• HOOPER Chloe
• HOOTON Matthew
• HOPCRAFT Matthew
• HOPKINS Lekkie
• Hornby Simonetta Agnello
• HORNE Donald
• HORNER David
• HORNUNG Eva
• HORTLE Erin
• HOSKINS Ian
• HOSPITAL Janette Turner
• Hosseini Khalid
• HOTERE Andrea
• HOUBEIN Lolo
• Houellebecq Michel
• HOWARD Matt
• HOWELL Adriane
• HOWELL Simmone
• Huggan Isabel
• HUGGINS Jackie
• Hughes Caoillinn
• HUGHES John
• HUGHES Robert
• Hugo Victor
• Humbert, Agnes
• HUME Fergus
• HUNGERFORD T A G
• HUNT Allanah
• HUNTLEY Rebecca
• HURST Cameron
• Hurston Zora Neale
• Hutchinson Ben
• HUTCHINSON Garrie
• Hutton Robert
• Huxley Aldous
• HYLTON Jane
• IENG Sovannora
• IHIMAERA Witi
• ILANBEY Sumeyya
• INGLESE Hilda and Laurie
• Inoue Yasushi
• Irani Anosh
• IRELAND David
• Irving Washington
• ISAACS Robert
• ISEMONGER Holly
• Ishiguro, Kazuo
• ISSA Mariam
• Izzidien Ruqaya
• JACH Antoni
• JACKSON Anna
• Jackson Jeffrey H
• Jacobs Emma
• JAGOSE Annamarie
• JAIRETH Subhash
• JAIVIN Linda
• JAMES Andrea
• JAMES Rodney
• JANKE Terri
• JANSON Julie
• JANSSON Tove
• JARRO Ngaire
• Jaswal Balli Kaur
• JEBB Mary Anne
• Jedrowski Tomasz
• JEFFERIS Barbara
• Jelinek, Elfriede
• Jenkins Robin
• Jennings Karen
• JENNINGS Kate
• JENSEN Erik
• Jhabvala Ruth Prawer
• JOEL Maggie
• Johnson B.S.
• JOHNSON Katherine
• JOHNSON Susan
• JOHNSON Sylvia
• JOHNSON, George
• JOHNSTON Dorothy
• Johnston Jennifer
• JOHNSTON Michelle
• JOLLEY Elizabeth
• Jones Cherie
• JONES Jennifer
• Jones Kathleen
• JONES Lloyd
• JONES Myfanwy
• Jones Nerys
• JONES Philip
• JONES Portland
• JONES S A (Sarah)
• JONES Sally-Ann
• JONSBERG Barry
• JOOSTEN Melanie
• JORDAN Toni
• JORGENSEN Lesley
• JOSE Nicholas
• Joseph Anjali
• Joyce James
• Joyce Rachel
• JUCHAU Mireille
• JUERS Evelyn
• JURGENSEN Manfred
• Kadare Ismail
• Kadish Rachel
• Kafka Franz
• KAMINSKY Leah
• KAMLER Barbara
• KANDELAARS Deb
• KARAKALTSAS S C
• KARALIS Vrasidas
• Karunatilaka Shehan
• KATZEN Hayley
• Katzen Mollie
• Kaul Aashish
• Kawakami Hiromi
• Kay Francesca
• KEARNEY Christine
• KEATING Paul
• Keefer Kyle
• Keegan Claire
• KEELER Chris
• KEFALA Antigone
• Kehlmann Daniel
• KELLS Stuart
• Kelly Catriona
• Kelman James
• Kemp Martin
• Kempowski Walter
• KENEALLY Thomas (Tom)
• Kennedy A L
• KENNEDY Cate
• KENNY Robert
• KENT Hannah
• KENT Jacqueline
• Kertész, Imre
• Khadra Yasmina
• Khakpour Porochista
• Khalifa Khaled
• Khemlin Margarita
• Khumalo Fred
• Khvoshchinskaya Sofia
• Kiberd Declan
• KIDMAN Fiona
• Kilanko Yejide
• Kingsley Charles
• KINNANE Stephen
• KINSELLA John
• Kipling Rudyard
• KISSANE Andy
• Klein Daniel
• Knausgaard Karl Ove
• KNEEN Krissy
• Knight Sabina
• Knowles John
• KNOX Malcolm
• KNYVETT R. Hugh
• KOCH Christopher
• Koch Herman
• KOENIG Cheryl
• KOHLER Alan
• KORNBLATT Joyce
• Koscec Marinko
• KOVAL Ramona
• KRASNOSTEIN Sarah
• Kratochvil Jiri
• KRAUTH Kirsten
• Kreitman Esther Singer
• KRUIMINK K M (Kate)
• Krznaric Roman
• KUIPER Elizabeth
• Kureishi Hanif
• Kurniawan Eka
• KWAYMULLINA Ambelin
• KWAYMULLINA Ezekiel
• KWON Silvia
• KWONG Andrew
• Kyomuhendo Goretti
• La Guma Alex
• LA NAUZE Robert
• LABRUM Bronwyn
• LAGUNA Sofie
• Lahiri Jhumpa
• LAKE Marilyn
• LAMB Matthew
• Lambert Shaena
• LAMOND Julieanne
• Lampedusa Guiseppe Tomasi di
• LANAGAN Margo
• LANCASTER Rosemary
• LANDSMAN Lexi
• LANE William
• LANG Steven
• LANGFORD-GINIBI Ruby
• Langley Lee
• LANGTON Marcia
• Lannister Jammy
• Lapierre Alexandra
• LARKIN John
• Larrington Caroline
• LAU Jamie Marina
• Laurence Margaret
• LAVERICK Sarah
• LAW Benjamin
• LAWSON Henry
• LAWSON Mary
• LAWSON Valerie
• Lazarevska Alma
• LAZAROO Simone
• Lévy Bernard-Henri
• Le Carre John
• Le Chanu Patrick
• Le Clezio J M G
• Le Guin Ursula
• LE HUNTE Bem
• Lea Caroline
• LEANE Jeanine
• LEARY Rachel
• Leblanc Maurice
• Leduc Violette
• LEE Geum-yi
• Lee Janice YK
• Lee Lily Xiao Hong
• LEE Micheline
• LEES Adam C
• LEES Pattie
• LEFEVRE Carol
• Lefteri Christy
• LEHMANN Geoffrey
• LEIGH Andrew
• LEIGH Julia
• Lemaitre Pierre
• LEMON Andrew
• Lennox Charlotte
• LEONHARDT Lynne
• Lernet-Holenia Alexander
• Leroux Gaston
• LESTER Natasha
• LESTER Yami
• Levy Deborah
• Levy Tatiana Salem
• LEW Henry R
• Lewis Damien
• LEWIS Helen
• LEWIS Julie
• Lewis Sinclair
• Lewycka Marina
• LIBERMAN Serge
• LIMPRECHT Eleanor
• LINDSAY Joan
• Lipstadt Deborah E
• Lively Penelope
• Llop Jose Carlos
• Lloret Bruno
• LOBB Joshua
• Lodge David
• Loh Christine
• LOHREY Amanda
• London Jack
• LONDON Joan
• Lorca Federico Garcia
• LORENZO Olga
• LOVEDAY Gert
• Lovett Charlie
• LOWE Robert
• Loy Rosetta
• LOYOLA Roman
• LUCASHENKO Melissa
• LUDWICK Harold
• LUI Nakkiah
• Luiselli Valeria
• Lukacs John
• LUKINS Robert
• LUMBY Catharine
• Lurie Alison
• LURIE Morris
• Lyons John D
• LYONS-LEE Belinda
• Macaulay Rose
• MACAULEY Wayne
• MACCALLUM Mungo
• MACCARTER Kent
• MACCOLL Mary-Rose
• MACDONALD Anna
• MACHERAS Chris
• MACINNIS Peter
• MACK Louise
• MACKAY Hugh
• MACKENZIE Jennifer
• MACKINNON A.J.
• MACKLIN Robert
• MacLaverty Bernard
• MACRIS Anthony
• MAGAN Magan
• MAGAREY Susan
• Magee Audrey
• MAGUIRE Emily
• Maine Sarah
• Mair Victor H
• Mairal Pedro
• MAKERETI Tina
• Makine Andreï
• Makkai Rebecca
• MAKKLER Irris
• MALEZER Rosie
• MALONEY Shane
• MALOUF David
• MANAWATU Becky
• Mandela Nelson
• MANDOKI Anna
• Mann Thomas
• MANNE Robert
• MANNING Frederic
• MANNING Melissa
• MANSFIELD, Katherine
• Mantel Hilary
• Marahimin Ismail
• Marais Javier
• Marani Diego
• Marcus Laura
• MARNER Annette
• MARSHALL Alan
• MARSHALL Owen
• Martel Yann
• MARTIN Susan K
• Martin Valerie
• Martinez Gabi
• Martinez Virgilio
• Mashigo Mohale
• MASTERS Olga
• Matar Hisham
• MATHERS Peter
• MATHEWS Iola
• Mathiane Nomavenda
• MATTHEWS Amy T
• MATTHEWS Rachel
• MATTINGLEY Christobel
• Maugham Somerset W.
• Maupassant Guy de
• Mawer Simon
• MAWSON Douglas
• MAYNARD John
• MAYOR Thomas
• MAZZA Donna
• McCALMAN Janet
• McCann Colum
• McCARTHY Maureen
• McCAUGHEY Patrick
• McCLELLAND Roanna
• MCCONNELL Peter
• McCOOEY David
• McCormack Mike
• McCourt Frank
• McCoy Sarah
• McCrae Gavin
• McCULLOCH Alan
• MCCULLOCH CHILDS Emily
• MCCULLOCH Susan
• MCDEVITT Katy
• McDONALD Meme
• MCDONALD Roger
• McEACHERN Doug
• McFARLANE David
• MCFARLANE Fiona
• MCGAHAN Andrew
• McGahern John
• MCGREGOR Alasdair
• MCGREGOR Fiona Kelly
• Mcgregor Jon
• McGREGOR Russell
• McGUIRE Magdalena
• McKAY Laura Jean
• MCKELVEY Ben
• MCKENNA Mark
• McKenna Thomas
• McKenzie Alecia
• McKINNON Catherine
• McKISSOCK Diane
• McKISSOCK Mal
• MCLAREN Jack
• McLAREN Philip
• MCMAHON L P
• McMANUS Sally
• McMillan George
• MCPHEE Hilary
• MCPHERSON Sue
• McWatt Tessa
• MEAD Rachael
• MEAKINS Felicity
• MEANY Helen
• MEARS Gillian
• Medie Peace Adzo
• MEEHAN Michael
• MEGALOGENIS George
• Melrose Fiona
• Melville Herman
• Melvin Sheila
• Mengiste Maaza
• Meredith George
• MEREDITH Gwen
• MERRILEES Margaret
• MESSER Jane
• Messud Claire
• MEXTED Kathy
• MEYER Angela
• Michaels Anne
• MIDALIA Susan
• MIDDLETON Murray
• Mihardja Achdiat K
• MILLER Alex
• Miller Andrew
• Miller Laura
• Miller Madeline
• MILLER Patti
• MILLER Steven
• MILLS Jennifer
• Mills Sam and Cuell Thom editors
• Mingarelli Hubert
• Minoui Delphine
• MINTER Peter
• MIRMOHAMADI Kylie
• Mishra Pankai
• MITCHELL Adrian
• Mitchell David
• Mitford Nancy
• Modiano Patrick
• MODJESKA Drusilla
• Moggach Deborah
• Molesini Andrea
• Molina Antonio Munoz
• MOLONEY James
• MONTEATH Peter
• Moore Brian
• MOORE Nicole
• Moore Wayetu
• MOORE-GILBERT Kylie
• Moorehead Caroline
• MOORHOUSE Frank
• Moravia Alberto
• MORE Thomas
• MOREY Kelly Ana
• MORGAN Andrew
• MORGAN Sally
• MORIARTY Jaclyn
• MORIARTY Ros
• Morpurgo Michael
• Morrall Clare
• MORRELL Timothy
• MORRIS Heather
• MORRIS Paula
• Morrison Toni
• MORRISON Zoë
• MORSI Mohammed Massoud
• Mortimer Penelope
• Moser David
• Mozley Fiona
• Msimang Sisonke
• MUDROOROO a.k.a. JOHNSON Colin
• Mujila Mwanza Fiston
• Mukasonga Scholastique
• Muller Herta
• MULREADY Rose
• MULVANY Kate
• Munaweera Nayomi
• MUNDAY Bruce
• MUNDELL, Meg
• MUNDY Robyn
• MUNKARA Marie
• Munmuir Wyl
• MUNRO Craig
• Murakami Haruki
• Murari Timeri N
• Murdoch Iris
• MURGATROYD Sarah
• MURNANE Gerald
• MURPHY Kate
• MURPHY Katharine
• MURPHY Lois
• MURPHY Rashida
• MURPHY Ruairi
• Murray Paul
• MURRAY Ruby J
• MURRAY-SMITH Joanna
• MUSGRAVE David
• MUSHITA Lucy
• MYLES Sarah
• Mytting Lars
• Naipaul V.S.
• NANNI Giordano
• NAPIER Kali
• Narayan R K
• Narrators A-Z
• Naydan Michael M
• Ndebele Njabulo
• NEALE Margo
• NEIDJIE Bill
• NELSON Alice
• NELSON Brian
• Nemirovsky Irene
• Nesbit Edith
• Nettel Guadalupe
• Neuman Andres
• Neville Peter
• NEVILLE Richard
• NEWTON Nerida
• Ngugi wa Thiong'o
• Nguyen Phan Que Mai
• Nguyen Viet Thanh
• Ngũgĩ Wanjikũ Wa
• NIALL Brenda
• Nielsen Susin
• NIKULINSKY Alex
• NIKULINSKY Philippa
• NILAND D'Arcy
• Noble Barbara
• NORMA Caroline
• Norman Elizabeth M
• Norman Michael
• Northrop Solomon
• NOWRA Louis
• Nudanu Celestine
• Nwaubani Adaobi Tricia
• O'BRIEN Charmaine
• O'Brien Edna
• O'Brien Flann
• O'CONNELL Deirdre
• O'CONNER Elizabeth
• O'Connor Joseph
• O'Connor Nuala
• O'CONOR Juliet
• O'FLYNN Mark
• O'GRADY Emily
• O'KEEFFE Angela
• O'NEIL Clare
• O'Neill Mark
• O'NEILL Ryan
• O'REILLY P A (Paddy)
• O'Shaughnessy Kathy
• O'SULLIVAN Vincent
• OAKLEY Barry
• O’BRIAN Patrick
• O’Brien Tim
• Oberski Jona
• Obioma Chigozie
• Oe Kenzaburo
• Offill Jenny
• Olafsdottir Auour Ava
• OLLER Narcis
• Olmi Veronique
• OLSEN Penny
• OLSSON Kristina
• OLSSON Linda
• Omotoso Yewande
• Ondaatje Michael
• Onuzo Chibundu
• OOCHUNYNG Fiona Wirrer-George
• Op de Haar Arnold Jansen
• Orange Tommy
• ORCHARD Sonia
• ORR Stephen
• Orwell George
• OSBORNE G.L. (Glenys)
• OTTO Kristin
• Ottolenghi Yotam
• OUSTON Adam
• OWEN Professor Earl
• Oyeyemi Helen
• PAHEER Para
• PAISLEY Fiona
• PAJALIC Amra
• Palma Felix J
• PALMER Nettie
• PALMER Vance
• Pamuk Orhan
• Pane Armijn
• Pant Monika
• Papadiamantis Alexandros
• PAPAS Maria
• PARKER-CHAN Shelley
• Parmar Priya
• PARRETT Favel
• PARRITT Sue
• PASCOE Bruce
• Pasternak, Boris
• PATERSON A B (Banjo)
• PATTERSON, Diana
• PAULL Emily
• Pavlova Karolina
• PEARLMAN Jonathan
• Peixoto Jose Luis
• Pergaud Louis
• PERICIC Marija
• PERKINS Emily
• PERLMAN, Elliot
• Perreault Annie
• Perry Sarah
• PERSHALL Mary K
• Pessoa Fernando
• Petit Caroline
• Petterson Per
• Picardie Justine
• Pickering Outi
• Picoult Jodi
• PIEPER Liam
• PIERCE Nell
• PIERCE Peter
• PIKE Deborah
• Pilch Jerzy
• Pinker Steven
• PIPER Christine
• PIPER Sally
• Pisani Elizabeth
• Plath Sylvia
• Platzova Magdalena
• Poe Edgar Allan
• POLAIN Marcella
• POLITES Peter
• Politycki Matthias
• Polyakova Olga A
• PORTER Jennifer
• PORTER June
• Pouncey Peter
• Powell Anthony
• POWELL Judy
• POWELL Nicholas
• POWER Robert
• Prentice Dale
• Prescott Lara
• PRESCOTT Shaun
• PRESLAND Gary
• PRESSER Bram
• PRESTON Edwina
• PRICHARD Katharine Susannah
• Prilepin Zakhar
• PROBERT Belinda
• PROUDFOOT Julie
• Proust Marcel
• PRYOR Monty Boori
• Puenzo Lucía
• PULLIN Ruth
• Pullman Philip
• PURCELL Leah
• Pushkin Alexander
• Pyetsukh Vyacheslav
• QUIGLEY Sarah
• Quimper Charles
• RABALAIS Kevin
• Radcliffe, Ann
• RADOK Stephanie
• Rahimi Atiq
• RAJA Christopher
• RANDALL, Charlotte
• Rappaport Helen
• RASER-ROWLAND Annie
• RAWSON Jane
• RAYNES Cameron
• RAYSON Hannie
• REECE-LANE, Lisa
• REED-GILBERT Kerry
• REEDER Stephanie Owen
• REES Dymphna Stella
• REID Anthony
• Reimann Brigitte
• REIST Melinda Tankard
• RENDLE-SHORT Francesca
• REYNOLDS Henry
• Reynolds Matthew
• RICHARDS Eirlys
• RICHARDS Kate
• Richardson Dorothy
• RICHARDSON Henry Handel
• RICHARDSON Tamzyne
• Rilke Rainer Maria
• RINGL:AND Holly
• RINTOUL Stuart
• RISEMAN Noah
• Ritter Christiane
• RIWOE Mirandi
• ROBERTSON Deborah
• Robertson Ritchie
• Robey David
• ROBINSON Alice
• Robinson Henry Morton
• Robinson Marilynne
• ROBSON Debbie
• Rodoreda Mercè
• ROONET Brigid
• ROSE Heather
• Rosner Jennifer
• ROSSITER Richard
• Roth Joseph
• Roth Philip
• Rothschild Hannah
• ROTHWELL Nicolas
• Rousseau Jean-Jacques
• ROWE Josephine
• Rowley Della
• ROWLEY Hazel
• Roy Anuradha
• Roy Arundhati
• Roy-Bhattacharya Joydeep
• Rubens Bernice
• Rubin Gareth
• RUBIN Halina
• RUBUNTJA Wenten
• RUDD Jessica
• RUDD Steele
• Rugero Roland
• Rushdie Salman
• RUSSELL Lynette
• RUSSELL Vanessa
• Russo Richard
• RUSSON Penni
• RYAN Brendan
• RYAN Lyndall
• Rybakov Anatoli
• Rydell Anders
• Saadawi Ahmed
• Sachs Maryam
• SADDLER Harry
• Sagan Françoise
• SAINT PHALLE Catherine de
• SALA Michael
• Salaman Clara
• Salih Tayeb
• Salim Muhammad
• SALMON Peter
• SALOM Philip
• Salter James
• Sanchez-Andrade Cristina
• Sand George
• Sands Philippe
• SANTICH Barbara
• Saramago José
• Sarid Yishai
• Sarif Shamim
• SARKS Anne-Louise
• SARRE Alastair
• Sartori Giacomo
• Sartre Jean-Paul
• Satrapi Marjane
• Saunders George
• SAUNDERS Kirli
• SAVAGE Angela
• SAVAGE Tristan Michael
• SAVANADASA Rajith
• SAYER Mandy
• SAYER Rosemary
• SCALMER Sean
• SCARFE Allan
• SCARFE Wendy
• SCAUNICH Sandi
• Scharer Whitney
• SCHEDING Stephen
• Schlink, Bernard
• Schloss Eva
• Schmitt Éric-Emmanuel
• Scholz-Hänsel Michael
• SCHULTZ Julianne
• SCHWARTZ Oscar
• SCOTT John Alan
• SCOTT Rosie
• Scott Sir Walter
• SCOURFIELD Stephen
• Sebestyen Victor
• Seethaler Robert
• Seghers Anna
• Sehic Faruk
• Sehlberg Dan
• Seiffert Rachel
• Seiler Lutz
• Sem-Sandberg Steve
• SERONG Jock
• Setyaningsih Sri
• Severin Tim
• SEYMOUR Margaret
• Shafak Elif
• Shaffer Mary Ann
• Shalamov Varlam
• Shalev Meir
• Shamsie Kamila
• Shanbhag Vivek
• SHAPCOTT Thomas
• SHAW Edwina
• Shcherbina Tatyana
• SHEARSTON Trevor
• Sheers Owen
• SHEPHERD Tory
• SHERBORNE Craig
• Shibli Adania
• Shields Carol
• Shihor Rachel
• Shin Kyung-Sook
• SHIOSAKI Elfie
• SHIRM Gretchen
• Shree Geetanjali
• SHUKER Carl
• SHUKUROGLOU Vicky
• Siblin Eric
• Silva Lorenzo
• SILVEY Craig
• Simenon Georges
• SIMONS Margaret
• SIMPSON Inga
• SIMPSON Jane
• SIMPSON Nardi
• SIMSION Graeme
• SINCLAIR Nicole
• Singateh Sally Sadie
• SINGER Peter
• Singh Khushwant
• Skibsrud Johanna
• SKOVRON Alex
• Skvorecky Josef
• SLATTERY Luke
• Slimani Leila
• Sloan Robin
• SMAILES Lynn
• SMAILL Anna
• SMEE Sebastian
• SMETHURST Sue
• SMITH Annabel
• SMITH Charlotte
• SMITH Dominic
• SMITH Nicole
• Smith Zadie
• SMYTH Terry
• SOLDING Anna
• Solnit Rebecca
• SOLONEC Cindy
• Solstad Dag
• SORENSEN Tracy
• Sorokin Vladimir
• Soseki Natsume
• SOUTER, Gillian
• SOUTPHOMMASANE Tim
• Soyinka Wole
• SPARGO-RYAN Anna
• Spark Muriel
• SPARROW Jeff
• SPARROW Jill
• SPENCE Catherine Helen
• SPICER Christopher
• Spufford Francis
• St John Mandel Emily
• ST JOHN, Madeleine
• STACKHOUSE Shirley
• Stanisic Sasa
• STEAD Christina
• STEAD Elizabeth
• STEDMAN M L
• STEED Laurie
• STEFANOVIC Sofija
• STEGGALL Stephany Evans
• Steinbeck John
• Stelling Anke
• Stephenson Robert
• STEWART Meg
• Stewart Michael J
• STINSON Emmett
• STIVENS Dal
• Stockett Kathryn
• STORRS Elisabeth
• STOW Randolph
• Strauss Gwen
• STREET Jessie
• STREHLOW T G H
• Strout Elizabeth
• Struther Jan
• STUART Lurline
• SULLIVAN Jane
• SULWAY Nike
• SUMMERS Anne
• Suskind Patrick
• SUSSMAN Fiona
• Svensson Amanda
• Swafford Jan
• Swift Graham
• Swift Jonathan
• Szabo Magda
• Szerb Antal
• Szpilman Wladyslaw
• Tacou-Rumney Laurence
• Tadjo Véronique
• TAKOLANDER Maria
• Talty Stephan
• TAMPKE Ilka
• TANG Estelle
• TANNER Lindsay
• Tanweer Balil
• TAPSELL Miranda
• TAYLOR Cory
• TAYLOR Rebe
• Tearne Roma
• Tejpal Tarun J
• TENNANT Kylie
• Teodorescu Bogdan
• TERRELL Nick
• TESARSCH John
• Thackeray William Makepeace
• Thayil Jeet
• Thériault Denis
• THOMAS Benjamin
• THOMAS Claire
• THOMAS Jared
• THOMAS Martin
• THOMPSON Adam
• THOMPSON Karenlee
• THORNELL Kristel
• THROSSELL Ric
• TIFFANY Carrie
• TIMMS Peter
• Tindall William York
• Toer Pramoedya Ananta
• Toews Miriam
• Toibin Colm
• Tokarczuk Olga
• Tolkien J R R
• Tolstoy Leo
• TOLTZ Steve
• TORRESAN Raffaella
• Tournier Michel
• Towles Amor
• TOWNSEND Ian
• TRANTER Kirsten
• TRELOAR Lucy
• Tremain Rose
• TREMBATH Richard
• Tremlett Giles
• Treuenfeld Andrea Von
• TREVITT Annette
• Trevor William
• TREWEEK David
• Trigg David
• TRINCA Helen
• Triolo Rosalie
• Trollope Anthony
• Trubek Anne
• Truong Monique
• Tshuma Novuyo Rosa
• TSIOLKAS Christos
• TUCKER Margaret
• TUCKER Michelle Scott
• TULBA Majok
• TUMARKIN Maria
• Turgenev Ivan
• TURNBULL Sarah
• TURNER Ethel
• TURNER George
• Ugresic Dubravka
• UHLMANN Anthony
• ULGEZER Alice Melike
• Ulitskaya Ludmila
• Undset Sigrid
• Van Es Bart
• VAN GENT Sally
• VAN LOON Julienne
• VAN LUYN Ariella
• VAN NEERVEN Ellen
• Vanderbeke Birgit
• VANE-TEMPEST Krista
• Verble Margaret
• Vercors (Jean Bruller)
• Vermette Katherena
• Vernay Jean-Francois
• VIDAL Sara Rena
• VIGGERS Karen
• Vila-Matas Enrique
• Vilmorin Louise de
• Vincenzi Penny
• Viswanathan Padma
• Von Bremzen Anya
• VOUMARD Sonya
• Vreeland Susan
• VRIES Susanna de
• Vuillard Eric
• VUKASIN Filip
• WAINWRIGHT Robert
• WAKEFIELD Vikki
• WALKER Brenda
• WALKER Peter
• WALKER Shirley
• WALKER Yvette
• WALL Barbara
• Wallace David Foster
• Wallace Edgar
• WALLACE Jan Dickinson
• WALLACE-CRABBE Chris
• WALPERT Bryan
• Walpole High
• WALSH Christopher A
• Walter Eugene
• WALTON Storry
• WARD Marlee Jane
• Waters Sarah
• WATKINSON Jillian
• Watson Andi
• WATSON Samuel Wagan
• Watson Winifred
• Waugh Evelyn
• Weber Katharine
• WEETUNGA Pemulwuy (WENITONG John)
• Weidermann Volker
• Weir Alison
• Welsapar Ak
• WENDT Albert
• WESLEY Michael
• WEST Margie
• WEST Morris
• West Rebecca
• WEST-SOOBY John
• Wharton, Edith
• White Dana Angelo
• WHITE Jessica
• WHITE Michael
• WHITE, Patrick
• Whitehead Colson
• WHITMORE James
• WHITTAKER Alison
• WHITTING Glenice
• WICKREMESEKERA Channa
• Wieringa Tommy
• WILDING Michael
• WILKINSON Gina
• WILKINSON Marian
• Williams Diane
• Williams John
• WILLIAMS Lesley
• Williams Niall
• WILLIAMS Pip
• WILLIAMS Tammy
• WILLIAMSON Geordie
• WILMOT Chester
• WILSON Dominique
• WILSON Josephine
• WILSON Louise
• WILSON Rohan
• WINCH Tara June
• WINDSOR Gerard
• Winman Sarah
• Winterbach Ingrid
• WISEMAN Rowena
• WITTING Amy
• WOCKNER Cindy
• WOLF-TASKER Alla
• WOMERSLEY Chris
• WONG Alison
• WOOD Charlotte
• WOOD Danielle
• Wood Ellen (Mrs Henry) Wood
• Wood Frances
• Wood Michael
• Woodward Gerard
• WOOLAGOODJA Yornadaiyn
• Woolf Virginia
• WOOLLER Geraldine
• WRIGHT Alexis
• WRIGHT Clare
• WRIGHT Fiona
• WRIGHT Jacqueline
• WRIGHT Michelle
• Wright Richard B
• WRIGHT Stephen
• WRITER Larry
• Wroblewski David
• Wroe Jo Browning
• Yakhina Guzel
• Yale Charles
• Yates Richard
• YAXLEY Richard
• Yeats William Butler
• Yoshimoto Banana
• YOUNG Ashleigh
• YOUNG Damon
• YOUNG Sherman
• YUSSUF Ahmed
• ZABLE Arnold
• Zafon Carlos Ruiz
• Zambra Alejandro
• ZAVLASVSKY Alice
• Zeniter ALice
• Ziervogel Meike
• Zvyagintsev Alexander
• Zweig Stefan
• 16th century
• 18th century
• Lost in the mists of time

Search by author, country, genre &c

Recent posts.

• Dust Child (2023), by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
• Edith’s Blake’s War (2021), by Krista Vane-Tempest
• The Skeleton House (2024) by Katherine Allum
• 2024 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship winner
• The Death of Noah Glass (2018), by Gail Jones
• Spell The Month in Books: March 2024
• We All Lived in Bondi Then (2024), by Georgia Blain
• A Resilient Life (2012), by Mariam Issa
• 2024 Ockham NZ Book Awards shortlist
• One Day We’re All Going to Die (2023), by Elise Esther Hearst

Recent Comments

Your favourites today.

• In the Fog of the Seasons’ End (1972), by Alex La Guma
• Question 7 (2023), by Richard Flanagan
• Dust Child (2023), by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
• Death of a Coast Watcher (2020), by Anthony English
• The Penguin Best Australian Short Stories (2000), edited by Mary Lord

Subscribe (free)

• Edith’s Blake’s War (2021), by Krista Vane-Tempest
• The Skeleton House (2024) by Katherine Allum
• 2024 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship winner
• The Death of Noah Glass (2018), by Gail Jones

Follow ANZLitLovers by email (free)

Email Address:

Click here!

• Australian Society of Authors
• Project Gutenberg Australia

Booklovers' Blogs

• Alys on the Blog
• Book Around the Corner
• Brona's Books
• Complete Booker, The
• H.V.Morton Society
• Helen Edwards CYA reviews
• His Futile Preoccupations
• Me Fail? I Fly (Jonathan Shaw)
• Messenger's Booker
• Pechorin's Journal
• Reading Matters
• Tony's Book World
• Travellin' Penguin
• Vishy's Blog
• Whispering Gums
• Winston's Dad

Booksellers

• Untapped AustLit Heritage

Collaborative Blogs

• La Comedie Humaine by Balzac
• Marvellous Maupassant
• Works of Emile Zola
• Alissa Duke cards
• Honest History
• Resident Judge of Port Phillip

Lisa's Other Life

• LisaHillSchoolStuff
• Travels with Tim and Lisa

Recommended

• aboc IT Consulting

SOME OF MT TBR

• 1,881,219 hits

© Lisa Hill

All content on this site is © Lisa Hill 2008-2021 Contact [email protected] for permission to reproduce 10% of the number of words in an article or review for educational purposes in any Australian education institution provided that it has given a notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) Level 15, 233 Castlereagh St, Sydney NSW 2000 Ph 612 93947600 Fax 612 93947601 Email: [email protected] Except for personal use or fair dealing for the purposes of research or study no part of this website may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, communicated or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission.

This site is archived at

• Entries feed
• Comments feed
• WordPress.com

Blog at WordPress.com.

• Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
• Subscribe Subscribed
• Copy shortlink
• Report this content
• View post in Reader
• Manage subscriptions
• Collapse this bar

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Whales, tales and the funny side of a hijacking

The Whale Rider, by Witi Ihimaera (Robson, £6.99)

It's almost two decades since the first publication of Witi Ihimaera's gentle story of how a Maori girl and an elderly whale re-establish ancestral links between man and nature. Written in the US for his daughters who were holidaying from New Zealand when a whale appeared in the Hudson river, the story is compelling for its simplicity. Ihimaera gives us a modern Maori family unit made up of irascible grandfather and tribal elder, scolding but well-meaning granny, a narrator who guns his motorbike through the village but is happy to bury his niece's afterbirth according to Maori custom. The niece, Kahu, is the whale rider who inherits a gift for communicating with animals, but she is also the bearer of a feminist message, showing grandpa that girls can be heroes too. The essential lesson, though, is about man's loss of respect for the sea, "Tangaroa's kingdom" in Maori fable. While the message is inescapably clear, the story and its telling enchant. IM

My Name is Legion, by AN Wilson (Arrow, £7.99)

Reviewers who fancy themselves as Fleet Street insiders may enjoy guessing at models for AN Wilson's monstrous newspaper proprietor, thuggish editor and disillusioned hack, but other readers might wonder why Wilson has got himself so worked up satirising the media for being so celebrity-struck. He sets the almost entirely good priest, Vivyan Chell, against the almost wholly rotten press baron, Lennox Mark, to show a society's descent into valueless vacuity. Back from west Africa, Chell finds England "a mean, ugly, filthy little fraud of a place", its tawdry ideology of "shoot burglars ... keep out foreigners" trumpeted by Mark's papers. Wilson's grotesque vignettes are given impetus by a plot involving a schizophrenic teenager that relies on Dickensian coincidence and depth by Chell's Dostoevskian questioning of the nature of God's love. While his caricatures might be creations to relish in a TV adaptation, you never entirely engage with them on the page. IM

The Effect of Living Backwards, by Heidi Julavits (Virago, £7.99)

Few writers are brave enough even to refer to 9/11 in a novel, let alone make a joke about a hijacking. Heidi Julavits doesn't give the "Big Terrible" its proper name, but in this bizarre exploration of terrorism she comes up with the idea of survivors of a 543-day hijacking odyssey claiming frequent-flyer points and touring the world on their fortune, which is a reassuring image for the nervous flyer. Narrator Alice learns this as part of her course at the International Institute for Terrorist Studies, an X-Files sort of set-up in Switzerland where she ends up as a result of her own involvement in a hijacking. All the power games and role-play that passengers and terrorists act out are, we learn, a metaphor for family relationships, in particular Alice and sister Edith's rivalry. Julavits is a smart writer, creating an absurdly unreliable Alice-in-Wonderland reality, but her Alice is stuck in a pressurised cabin of her own self-regard that is hard to penetrate. IM

Snow, by Orhan Pamuk, translated by Maureen Freely (Faber, £7.99)

Poet and former political exile Ka returns to Turkey and visits the isolated town of Kars, to report on the coming election and a rash of virgin suicides. The stories meet at the faultlines of secularism and fundamentalism, and Ka is whirled between opinions, lovestruck by his former classmate Ipek. An assassin modulates from pleading reason to gunfire over pastries; Ka gives a reading of his new poem, only to become enmeshed in a bloody coup de théâtre. His transforming poem on the cusp of creativity and belief is lost in static when the broadcast cuts out. Art becomes anguished reality, while reality seems increasingly to dissolve into dream. And all the while it snows — blanketing the town in "a strange and powerful loneliness", "as if it were snowing at the end of the world". Tenderly translated, it's a dizzying, beautiful story — but not, I hope, "so beautiful that a man could kill for it". DJ

Death of an Ordinary Man, by Glen Duncan (Scribner, £6.99)

Nathan Clark is in Exeter, he's with his family, and he's dead. Peering down at his own funeral, Nathan squints through negligible rain and feels as though he's treading water. Back home, he hovers close to his bereaved wife and surviving children, and slowly rediscovers how he died and what happened to his youngest daughter, Lois. If he gets too close to the most remorseless memories, the effect hurls him through a vortex and scours him like barbed wire, so mostly he edges closer to their hushed thoughts. Duncan has a fine touch for the way people register signals of each other's sensitivities, the clamour of static — "dog-tired or filled with energy" — they seem to emit. The entire family seems to have stumbled deep into themselves, far from each other, in the wake of Lois's death. The more we learn, the more we dread, especially when we see Nathan's wife join an anti-paedo lynch mob. There's nothing lovely about the bones of family life in Duncan's inconsolable novel. DJ

The Bus Stopped, by Tabish Khair (Picador, £7.99)

"Houses are made of brick, but homes are made of breath," pronounces the narrator of this collection of stories linked by an Indian bus route that begins in a real town and ends in an imaginary one. Now a literature professor in Denmark, Khair has written sternly about "Babu fictions" ("literature written by a privileged section of a once-colonised people"). He challenges the tendency by weaving the memories of his middle-class narrator between vignettes of less comfy characters, including a boy on the run and a hijra (eunuch) fallen from fashion to become "something between a tart and a circus freak". The most inquisitive eyes here belong to Mangal Singh, the bus driver, who collects mental images, "one from each trip of his life", and restlessly assesses his passengers. The journey allows stories to emerge with immediacy and leisure, with abrupt shafts of humour — like the graffito "Proust Pradho!" ("Read Proust!"): "What, he wonders, is fucking Proust?" DJ

Most viewed

The Whale Rider

Witi Ihimaera | 4.17 | 7,742 ratings and reviews

Ranked #3 in New Zealand

Similar Books

If you like The Whale Rider, check out these similar top-rated books:

Learn: What makes Shortform summaries the best in the world?

The Whale Rider

The Whale Rider

By witi ihimaera.

• The Whale Rider Summary

The story begins with a focus on the ancient days, when nature and all wildlife were excitedly waiting for the coming of man. Then man arrived from the east, and the relationship between nature and man throve. One relationship in particular -- that between the whale rider and his giant whale -- was exemplary of a symbiotic connection. This whale rider casts spears as life-giving objects to the islands, but one spear he casts 1000 years into the future, which is the time of the story’s young heroine Kahu .

The focus shifts to a herd of whales. The whale mothers look over their young while the single leader whale—the bull whale—reminisces about his own youth so long ago, and the precious time he spent with the whale rider. Now, so many years after their separation, the nostalgia for their time spent together cuts away at the old bull whale. But then the story shifts to Kahu. The narrator of this time period is Rawiri , her uncle. When she is born, her great-grandfather expresses great disdain that she is a girl. He is looking for a suitable successor, which according to local culture ought to be passed from eldest child to eldest child. Porourangi , the girl’s father, is his eldest grandson so he is the successor for that generation. The problem in Koro’s mind, however, is that Porourangi’s eldest child is now Kahu, who—because she is female—is not fit to lead according to Koro.

Thus out of disdain for the girl, Koro refuses to show any love towards her and even refuses to conduct the traditional burial of the birth cord. Instead, Nanny Flowers , Koro’s wife and Kahu’s great-grandmother, must enlist the aid of Rawiri and some friends to help her bury it herself in the town center.

Part I begins by refocusing on the herd of whales. The bull whale leads his herd away from their most-feared predator: mankind. The old whale remembers the days when man and animal were united and in communication, but those are long past. However, he is unable to let go, and thoughts of returning to the place of his youth at whatever cost gnaw at his heart.

Then the story shifts back to Kahu, whose mother dies within a year of Kahu’s birth. Kahu is taken by her mother’s family and raised away from Whangara—the setting of the story, a small town in New Zealand populated by the Maori people. A few years pass in this way. Koro decides to begin a language school to teach the future generations the threatened Maori language, and he also beings culture classes for similar purposes. Kahu returns to Whangara several times when she is able. Each time she comes she expresses love for her family there, but special deep love for Koro her great-grandfather. This love remains unreciprocated, as Koro actively pushes her away. He remains dedicated in his mission to find a suitable successor, and he is doing all he can as leader of the Whangara Maori community to preserve the Maori culture for future generations in a time of spreading modernity.

Part II begins with another short focus on the whale herd. They head towards a sea trench that used to provide them bounty and shelter but they find there an inhospitable and radioactive place. They are forced to travel to other havens as this long-time home for them has become too inhospitable to live in.

Returning to Kahu’s tale, Rawiri narrates that he decided to see a bit of the world when Kahu was in her fourth year. He travels to Sydney, Australia, where he meets several of his cousins and notes that they seem to have drifted away from Maori cultural traditions and have fully embraced the lifestyle of the big city. There, he meets Jeff and the two become fast friends. When Jeff is called back to his parents’ plantation in Papua New Guinea, he asks Rawiri to accompany him and so the two leave Australia for Papua New Guinea. Jeff’s mother and father run a plantation, but his father has become too physically weak to continue with more help, hence their plea to their son to return. Rawiri thus spends two years in that country with Jeff; they attempt to cultivate the land. During the course of his stay, Rawiri has to face racist behavior from Jeff’s social circle, especially his mother. Eventually this racism, combined with Rawiri’s desire to see home again impel him to leave Papua New Guinea and head back to Whangara, New Zealand.

Back home, Rawiri notes that Koro has become even more obsessed in his mission of finding a male successor. The old man feels himself to be under increasing pressure to teach and preserve the cultural knowledge that he and so few others currently possess. As for Kahu, she has returned to stay with her father longer-term. During Rawiri’s absence, Porourangi remarried and his wife had a child: another baby girl. This only upsets Koro more, as he was hoping for a male descendent. Kahu does not mind all this anger from Koro though, and she continues to fervently seek his love and acceptance.

Towards the end of the year, Kahu invites her family to a school ceremony that will include cultural presentations. Rawiri, Porourangi and Nanny all attend, but the seat marked “reserved” next to Nanny—a measure Kahu herself had taken to guarantee a spot for Koro—remains conspicuously empty throughout the ceremony. Kahu herself plays a prominent role in the ceremony. She leads a group of young girls in a traditional dance and also recites a speech she wrote in the Maori tongue. Her speech expresses her utmost desire to please her great-grandfather and to uphold the Maori culture. However, the great tragedy of the event is that Koro never shows up. This brings Kahu to tears.

This part concludes with another momentous event. One day, Koro takes some of his star pupils out to sea. He drops a rock in the sea and once it has sunk to the depths, he tells the boys they must retrieve it as a test of their endurance and strength and ability to lead. Despite their best efforts, they are not able to do so and Koro returns dejected. Back home he cracks under all the pressure and weeps. Later on, Kahu goes out to sea with Nanny and Rawiri, and when they reach the spot above the stone, Kahu dives into the sea and retrieves the stone. She does so by doing what Nanny and Rawiri find extremely amazing: Kahu appears to communicate with dolphins and other sea creatures, and through their aid she is able to retrieve the stone. Nanny orders Rawiri not to tell Koro of this strange incident, as he is not yet ready to accept Kahu’s special status.

Part 3 begins, as usual, by focusing on the whale herd. The bull whale is leading his herd through the frozen waters of Antarctica. A collapsing of the ice there and the life-threatening nature of this collapse forces him to make a snap decision in guiding his herd. He chooses to take them down the paths leading back to the seas of his youth, a decision that causes dismay among the elder mothers because they know his nostalgia for the past is clouding his present judgment. But he leads them on anyway to what they know will be their final journey.

Back in Whangara, big events soon take place. All the whales of a herd come and to the beach and strand themselves there. They will soon die if they are not pushed back to sea. While some humans take advantage of these whales to harvest their meat and organs, most of the locals of Whangara attempt to organize a rescue attempt and deliver the whales back to sea. Rawiri and his biker gang work with the police and rangers to keep whale butchers fro coming near the whales, while the navy is called in to attempt to pull the whales back out to sea. Ultimately, all the dedicated efforts of Rawiri, his friends, Nanny, and all the other locals fail and all of the whales perish on the beach. When Koro returns from a trip he had been on during the ordeal, he remarks with great anguish that this is a sign for them.

The next evening an even bigger event occurs, this time witnessed not by everyone but just by the small Maori community within the town. During the night, Rawiri, Koro, Kahu and Nanny hear a booming sound coming from the sea, as if a great door has just opened, and then they witness a large group of huge whales emerge from the bottom of the sea. At their head is a great bull whale with an ancient sacred Maori tattoo. The bull whale pulls itself onto shore and strands itself there, waiting for its death.

Koro recognizes in this event a spiritual warning to him and his people; their test is to return this ancient whale back to sea because they are so connected to this supernatural whale herd that if it lives they live and f it dies they die. Koro calls a meeting of the local Maori people and impresses upon them the spiritual significance of this event. Their way of life is being put to the test: they can either save the whale or fail and fall into ruin. They organize all available vehicles and manpower down on the beach and attempt all sorts of measures to get the bull whale back to sea, but the giant creature stubbornly resists and continues to wait for itself to die on the shore.

In desperation, Kahu swims out to the whale and climbs up its back after communicating with it. The whale mistakes Kahu for its old master—Kahu’s ancient ancestor, Kahutia Te Rangi. Overjoyed, the whale returns to sea and it descends back into the water with the rest of the herd and Kahu in tow. Kahu agrees to come with the herd in the hopes that she will thus save them and save her own people. She thinks that this will be the last time she will ever see her home and family and that accompanying the herd means losing all that she holds dear, but she sacrifices herself nonetheless and chooses to remain as the whale rider. Back on the shore, Koro finally realizes Kahu’s special status and her suitability to lead. His anguish is now doubled as he must accept that he has been so harsh to the very person he needed so badly this whole time.

The epilogue narrates that the oldest mother whale notices Kahu and realizes that her husband, the bull whale, has mistaken this little girl for her ancestor. She leads to him the conclusion that she is Kahutia’s descendent, and she is the spear he cast into the future and thus she must be returned to her people so she can bring them life-giving benefit and guide them through these troubled times. The bull whale eventually agrees and they return Kahu, now unconscious, to Whangara. When found by humans, Kahu is brought to the hospital to recover and there she is near to Nanny, who collapsed in shock after her dear great-granddaughter left with the whale her Three days have passed since then and Koro and Rawiri have been taking care of the two of them. When Nanny awakens, Koro admits to her that this is entirely his fault, and that he has been stubborn and blind in the matter of Kahu. Later when Kahu also awakens, he tells her for the first time that he loves her. Then the story ends with Kahu telling her dear great-grandfather that she can still hear the singing of the whales.

The Whale Rider Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Whale Rider is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Why does this name upset Koro?

I'm sorry, what name are you referring to?

Whale Rider

Kahu moves along the massive body of the whale, fighting against the crashing waves. Then she starts singing to the whale. She tells it that she is coming to it, and that she is Kahu, Ko Kahutia Te Rangi—which is the same name as her ancient...

whale rider

A golf/taiaha trophy.

Study Guide for The Whale Rider

The Whale Rider study guide contains a biography of author Witi Ihimaera, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Whale Rider
• Character List

Essays for The Whale Rider

The Whale Rider essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera.

• Tradition as a Tool for Oppressing Women in Witi Ihimaera’s The Whale Rider
• The Influence of Beliefs on Individual Life in Witi Ihimaera’s “The Whale Rider.”

Wikipedia Entries for The Whale Rider

• Introduction

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

Get our Newsletter

• by Title by Author by Narrator
• New Reviews Check out our recent audiobook reviews.
• Search Reviews Find a pick by author, narrator or title.
• Earphones Awards Search our favorite listens with these award winners.
• Podcast Check out our Behind the Mic podcast.
• Curated Lists Editors' Picks on special topics.
• Golden Voices Explore & listen to the "Best of the Best" narrators
• Editors' Spotlight Features on narrators
• Talent Guide Professional resource to hire a narrator
• Best Audiobooks 2023 Best Audiobooks
• Articles Discover the diverse voices of audiobooks
• Narrators Spotlight on popular narrators
• Authors Authors talking about their audiobooks
• Upcoming Titles Find upcoming audiobook release announcements
• Kids and Teens Listening selections for kids & teens with age levels
• Audie Awards 2024 Audie Awards
• Newsletters Sign up for FREE e-newsletters
• Subscribe to AudioFile Get print, digital, or gift magazine subscriptions
• Subscription Services Everything you need to know about subscriptions
• Pay your Bill Make a secure payment online
• What AudioFile? What can I do here?
• Who We love audiobooks! Meet our team of editors and reviewers
• Contact For customer service or with your feedback
• Community Collaboration with I'm Your Neighbor Books
• Articles Checkout the latest features
• SYNC Explore AudioFileSYNC
• Articles Features about AudioFileSYNC titles
• Add to Favorites

THE WHALE RIDER

By witi ihimaera | read by jay laga'aia, young adult family listening • 4.25 hrs. • unabridged • © 1987.

The book behind the award-winning movie opens with the tale of the original whale rider, immersing the listener in the sweep of Maori culture at the heart of this remarkable story. The new young whale rider takes her rightful name, Kahu. The girl-child’s story is told by her uncle Rawiri: her breaking of the male chain of descendants, her rejection by her great-grandfather, her role in saving her people, and her extraordinary ride on the old bull whale. New Zealander Jay Laga’aia effortlessly navigates the Maori names, facilitating the listener’s entrance into another culture. His pacing is confident, and his inflections, though sometimes a bit comical for the women, allow for easy differentiation among characters. Laga’aia’s narration acts as a guide as the story’s characters move from traditional beliefs to new awareness. The audio is instrumental in proving that even with such a wonderful movie, the book is better. S.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 05]

Library Ed. • Bolinda Audio • 2005

CD ISBN $32.00 • Four CDs

DD ISBN multiple sources

More Reviews

The latest audiobook reviews, right in your inbox.

Get our FREE Newsletter and discover a world of audiobooks.

AudioFile Newsletter

Let us recommend your next great audiobook!

No algorithms here! We pick great audiobooks for you. Sign up for our free newsletter with audiobook love from AudioFile editors.

If you are already with us, thank you! Just click X above.

Thank you for signing up.

Thank you for contacting us!

Our group will review and follow up within 72 hours. Thanks for your interest!

Thank you for signing up!

Our group will review and follow up soon.

The Whale Rider

70 pages • 2 hours read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-8

Chapters 9-13

Chapters 14-20

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

Summary and Study Guide

The Whale Rider is a 1987 novel by New Zealand author Witi Ihimaera. A film adaptation was made in 2002 that would go on to win several awards. Throughout the novel, Ihimaera juxtaposes the migration of a herd of whales with the Maori tribe’s search for a male heir. The Whale Rider comprises four major sections, as well as a prologue, epilogue, and glossary. Each section of text is named after one of the seasons and has a subtitle. Man’s relationship to nature is a significant theme in the novel, specifically the idea that it was man who destroyed the union with animals. The inclusion of women and the belief that women are suitable for authoritative roles also forms the bulk of the novel, as Koro Apirana struggles with the destruction of his male lineage. The restoration of oneness through Kahu , as the incarnated final spear, drives the plot.

Plot Summary

Get access to this full Study Guide and much more!

• 7,250+ In-Depth Study Guides
• 4,950+ Quick-Read Plot Summaries
• Downloadable PDFs

The novel begins with the legend of the Maori tribe. The sea is discovered by the ancients who live in complete oneness with the gods and nature. This story specifically addresses the life of Kahutia Te Rangi, the ancestor of the Maori tribe. He is the first whale rider who uses spears to create life on the island, which he later names Whangara. One spear is cast into the future and eventually incarnated in Kahu, the novel’s protagonist . The narrator of the modern sections of the novel is Rawiri , Kahu’s uncle. The Maori tribe traditionally traces the lineage of Kahutia Te Rangi through his male descendants, yet Kahu disrupts this lineage as the eldest granddaughter. Koro Apirana becomes obsessed with locating a male heir to become chief, neglecting Kahu. In Koro Apirana’s mind, women cannot be chief, and he attempts to preserve tradition throughout the novel.

Kahu routinely sneaks into Maori culture lessons, which angers her grandfather. While the boys struggle to complete the tasks Koro Apirana sets out before them, Kahu completes them with ease. For example, she effortlessly fetches a carved stone cast into the water. Koro Apirana’s ignorance is further displayed when he refuses to attend Kahu’s break-out ceremony. If he had attended, he would have seen Kahu lead a traditional ceremony and give a speech in the Maori language. Kahu tries desperately to have her grandfather love her, but her efforts continuously go unnoticed.

The SuperSummary difference

• 8x more resources than SparkNotes and CliffsNotes combined
• Study Guides you won ' t find anywhere else
• 100+ new titles every month

Each section of the novel begins from the perspective of the whale herd. The leader, the ancient bull whale , remembers the days of the whale rider. He laments his lost master, which drives him into a deep depression. The whale innately understands that the modern world has rejected him, and he cannot live separated from the oneness man and beast once shared. This oneness is also connected to the preservation of Maori tradition, which is intimately linked with the whales’ survival. The elderly female whales worry about their leader’s growing nostalgia as they begin to realize they are being led toward the dangerous islands of the south-west. The ancient bull whale eventually leads the herd to New Zealand.

A different herd of whales washes up on the beaches of Whangara. While many locals attempt to save them, the whales refuse all rescue attempts. Each whale eventually perishes. Koro Apirana interprets the arrival of the whales as a sign of man’s transgressions against nature. Later on, the bull whale beaches himself, apparently waiting to die. Koro Apirana believes that if they can successfully return the whales to sea, it will show God and the beasts that man still believes in oneness. Kahu—distraught by the thought that if the whale dies, so too will her grandfather—decides to swim out and communicate with the bull whale. She remembers how to ride the ancient bull whale and mounts him. The ancient bull whale is overfilled with joy, as he believes Kahu to be his original master, Kahutia Te Rangi. Kahu sacrifices herself so that her people may continue to thrive, deciding to remain with the herd. However, the older mother whale understands Kahu is not Kahutia Te Rangi but the final spear. She relays this information to her husband, who realizes that Kahu must be returned to land to fulfill her purpose of restoring oneness. Koro Apirana realizes his ignorance, and the ancient bull whale finally feels closure, proclaiming that man and nature will live on as one.

Don't Miss Out!

Access Study Guide Now

Ready to dive in?

Get unlimited access to SuperSummary for only $ 0.70 /week

Featured Collections

Childhood & youth.

View Collection

Required Reading Lists

Brought to you by The Reading Agency

Home / Book reviews / The Whale Rider

The Whale Rider

By Witi Ihimaera

Find your local library.

Find your local bookshop.

Buy this book from Bookshop.org or hive.co.uk to support The Reading Agency and local bookshops at no additional cost to you.

A mystical story of Maori culture. The birth of a daughter – Kahu – breaks the lineage of a Maori tribe.

Rejected by her grandfather, Kahu develops the ability to communicate with whales, echoing those of the ancient Whale Rider after whom she was named.

This magical and mythical novel tells of the conflict between tradition and heritage, from the perspective of Kahu’s grandfather, and Kahu’s destiny to secure the tribe’s future.

Resources for this book

• The Big Jubilee Read Discussion Guide: 1982-1991

This book was a bit hard to read. I didn't understand some of it when I read it on my own. I read it with my Mum instead and it was great.

I tried to read this and it was a bit hard. My mum read it with me and I loved the story.

It was a fiction story. I liked that the girl got the trust of the whale to ride it in the end. It looked like an interesting book from the cover.

Just a juicy magic book. Perfect for EVERYONE.

From the noticeboard

*Last chance* B...

Sweetness in th...

WIN 5 copies of...

Win copies of H...

WINDMILL HILL b...

Win, read and r...

Win review copi...

View our other programmes

• Chatterbooks reading groups
• Quick Reads
• Reading Ahead
• Reading Hack
• Reading Well
• Reading Friends
• Summer Reading Challenge
• World Book Night

Movie Reviews

Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, whale rider.

Now streaming on:

"Whale Rider" arrives in theaters already proven as one of the great audience-grabbers of recent years. It won the audience awards as the most popular film at both the Toronto and Sundance film festivals, played to standing ovations, left audiences in tears. I recite these facts right at the top of this review because I fear you might make a hasty judgment that you don't want to see a movie about a 12-year-old Maori girl who dreams of becoming the chief of her people. Sounds too ethnic, uplifting and feminist, right? The genius of the movie is the way is sidesteps all of the obvious cliches of the underlying story and makes itself fresh, observant, tough and genuinely moving. There is a vast difference between movies for 12-year-old girls, and movies about 12-year-old girls, and "Whale Rider" proves it.

The movie, which takes place in the present day in New Zealand, begins with the birth of twins. The boy and the mother die. The girl, Pai ( Keisha Castle-Hughes ) survives. Her father, Porourangi ( Cliff Curtis ), an artist, leaves New Zealand, and the little girl is raised and much loved by her grandparents Koro and Nanny Flowers.

Koro is the chief of these people. Porourangi would be next in line but has no interest in returning home. Pai believes that she could serve as the chief, but her grandfather, despite his love, fiercely opposes this idea. He causes Pai much hurt by doubting her, questioning her achievements, insisting in the face of everything she achieves that she is only a girl.

The movie, written and directed by Niki Caro , inspired by a novel by Witi Ihimaera , describes these events within the rhythms of daily life. This is not a simplistic fable but the story of real people living in modern times. There are moments when Pai is lost in discouragement and despair, and when her father comes for a visit she almost leaves with him. But, no, her people need her--whether or not her grandfather realizes it.

Pai is played by Keisha Castle-Hughes, a newcomer of whom it can only be said: This is a movie star. She glows. She stands up to her grandfather in painful scenes, she finds dignity, and yet the next second she's running around the village like the kid she is. The other roles are also strongly cast, especially Rawiri Paratene and Vicky Haughton as the grandparents.

One day Koro summons all of the young teenage boys of the village to a series of compulsory lessons on how to be a Maori, and the leader of Maoris. There's an amusing sequence where they practice looking ferocious to scare their enemies. Pai, of course, is banned from these classes, but she eavesdrops and enlists a wayward uncle to reveal some of the secrets of the males.

And then--well, the movie does not end as we expect. It does not march obediently to standard plot requirements but develops an unexpected crisis and an unexpected solution. There is a scene set at a school ceremony, where Pai has composed a work in honor of her people and asked her grandfather to attend. Despite his anger, he will come, won't he? The movie seems headed for the ancient cliche of the auditorium door which opens at the last moment to reveal the person that the child onstage desperately hopes to see--but no, that's not what happens.

It isn't that Koro comes or that he doesn't come, but that something else altogether happens. Something in a larger and more significant scale, that brings together all of the themes of the film into a magnificent final sequence. It's not just an uplifting ending, but a transcendent one, inspired and inspiring, and we realize how special this movie really is. So many films by and about teenagers are mired in vulgarity and stupidity; this one, like its heroine, dares to dream.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

Now playing

Christy Lemire

Asleep in My Palm

Tomris laffly.

God & Country

Matt zoller seitz.

Sheila O'Malley

Dune: Part Two

Brian tallerico.

Carol Doda Topless at the Condor

Marya e. gates, film credits.

Whale Rider (2003)

Rated PG-13 For Brief Language and A Momentary Drug Reference

105 minutes

Cliff Curtis as Porourangi

Vicky Haughton as Nanny Flowers

Keisha Castle-Hughes as Pai

Grant Roa as Rawiri

Rawiri Paratene as Koro

Mana Taumaunu as Hemi

Rachel House as Shilo

Based On The Novel by

• Witi Ihimaera

Directed by

Latest blog posts.

Doug Liman Never Does Things the Easy Way

Trapped in the System: Julio Torres on Problemista

Rise of the Ronin Wastes Interesting Setting with Clunky Gameplay

I Need Your Magic: M. Emmett Walsh (1935-2024)

• Children's Books
• Growing Up & Facts of Life

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required .

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

Image Unavailable

• To view this video download Flash Player

Follow the author

The Whale Rider Hardcover – May 1, 2003

• Reading age Baby - 12 years
• Print length 152 pages
• Language English
• Grade level 4 - 6
• Dimensions 5.5 x 0.5 x 9 inches
• Publisher Harcourt Childrens Books
• Publication date May 1, 2003
• ISBN-10 0152050175
• ISBN-13 978-0152050177
• See all details

Similar items that may deliver to you quickly

Editorial Reviews

From school library journal, from booklist, about the author, excerpt. © reprinted by permission. all rights reserved., product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harcourt Childrens Books; 1-Simul edition (May 1, 2003)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 152 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0152050175
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0152050177
• Reading age ‏ : ‎ Baby - 12 years
• Grade level ‏ : ‎ 4 - 6
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.9 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.5 x 9 inches
• #437 in Children's Australia & Oceania Books
• #5,952 in Children's Multigenerational Family Life
• #11,163 in Children's Books on Girls' & Women's Issues

About the author

Witi tame ihimaera.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.

Reviews with images

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Start Selling with Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Host an Amazon Hub
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Your Ads Privacy Choices