Author(s): Witi Ihimaera (Editor); Michelle Elvy (Editor)

Essay | Poetry | Short Stories | Aotearoa New Zealand

Sixty-eight writers and eight artists gather at a hui in a magnificent cave-like dwelling or meeting house.

In the middle is a table, the tepu korero, from which the rangatira speak; they converse with honoured guests, and their rangatira-korero embody the tahuhu, the over-arching horizontal ridge pole, of the shelter.

In a series of rich conversations, those present discuss our world in the second decade of this century; they look at decolonisation, indigeneity, climate change . . . this is what they see.

Edited by Witi Ihimaera and Michelle Elvy, this fresh, exciting anthology features poetry, short fiction and creative non-fiction, as well as korero or conversations between writers. The lineup from Aoteraoa includes Alison Wong, Paula Morris, Anne Salmond, Tina Makereti, Ben Brown, David Eggleton, Cilla McQueen, Hinemoana Baker, Erik Kennedy, Ian Wedde, Nina Mingya Powles, Gregory O'Brien, Vincent O'Sullivan, Patricia Grace, Selina Tusitala Marsh and Whiti Hereaka. Guest writers from overseas include Jose-Luis Novo and Ru Freeman.

Ihimaera and Elvy have curated a luminous hui, a book to return to time and again.

Contents: He karakia ki a Papatuanuku Hinemoa Elder 9 Introduction Witi Ihimaera and Michelle Elvy 12 Part one The sheltered curving side of Papatuanuku Woven triptych Nina Mingya Powles 18 Atea Tina Makereti 20 We are family Lisa Matisoo-Smith 24 Ka mua, ka muri Kiri Piahana-Wong 30 Four Pacific shores Paul D'Arcy 33 What the river said to me Ben Brown 42 The lifeboat Gina Cole 44 Our human and more-than-human world Craig Santos Perez and Lana Lopesi 49 Way up south Cilla McQueen 57 Hazel Avenue Faisal Halabi 63 Tabula rasa Siobhan Harvey 70 A long walk Alison Wong 73 A canopy of cousin trees Cybella Maffitt 80 This river of life Ami Roge and Brannavan Gnanalingam 82 Contents Peonies Emma Neale 92 Our house at Staytrue Bay Hinemoana Baker 97 Part two From inside the cave Tree house Ian Wedde 102 At the Kauri Museum Wendy Parkins 105 Looking for boas in the mangroves Ashley Johnson and Pip Adam 112 Tomorrow David Eggleton 125 Every grain is careful labour Renee Liang 128 Ancestry, kin and shared history Aparecida Vilaca, Dame Anne Salmond and Witi Ihimaera 136 Dangeropportunity on the lake Anne Kennedy 149 Come and see it all the way from town Laura Jean McKay 152 Ram Raid Essa Ranapiri and Michelle Rahurahu 158 Holding the line Alice Te Punga Somerville 162 Overturning motherhood Catherine McNamara and Ghazaleh Golbakhsh 171 Finders, keepers Sonya Wilson 177 The devil's coach horse (Ocypus olens) Serie Barford 187 The intentional community Erik Kennedy 189 An invocation Gregory O'Brien 193 Inside / Outside Reihana Robinson 198 We should be Witi Ihimaera 200 You'll never see unless you look Janis Freegard 207 Standing tall Louise Umutoni-Bower and Apirana Taylor 209 Coracle at a confluence Sudha Rao 222 The four limitations James Norcliffe 230 Part three Stepping out into the world before us Before dawn Victor Billot 234 Sailing to Aotearoa Michelle Elvy 236 Not feeding the world today Diane Brown 248 Nga Rarangi Whiti Hereaka 251 An appreciation of mentors Aparecida Vilaca, Dame Anne Salmond and Witi Ihimaera 261 On parenting during the zombie apocalypse Emma Espiner 272 To inherit Ya-Wen Ho 277 Young god Courtney Sina Meredith 281 Five photographic moments Day Lane 284 On bushfires, blood sugars and babies Kate Rassie 290 One metre Emma Barnes 297 Break the calabash | discover and rejoice Jose-Luis Novo and Ruby Solly 299 If we give up flying it doesn't mean we can't speak to each other as if countries or scan our genomic sequences for travel to the flats Vana Manasiadis 306 Loemis song cycle: 'Epilogue' Harry Ricketts 309 You send me Seneca Selina Tusitala Marsh 318 On writing humanity forward Ru Freeman and Paula Morris 321 How am I going to make it right? Chris Tse 329 I prefer sunshine Helen Rickerby 331 taku taiao Vaughan Rapatahana 334 Whakarongo Patricia Grace 336 Dance me to the end of the world Mohamed Hassan 340 Attend Vincent O'Sullivan 346 Poroporoaki 348 Select bibliography 350 About the artists 355 Acknowledgements 358