Books with a N.Z. setting

Press, 1 June 1989, Page 12

Books with a N.Z. setting

Miriam Smith’s story of "Kimi and the Watermelon,” first published by Brick Row in 1983, has been reissued in both English and Maori Picture Puffin editions at $7.99. It is a simple story of a little Maori girl living in the country with her grandmother and her Uncle Tau. David Armitage’s sympathetic paintings catch the atmosphere well.

Miriam Smith is of Ngapuhi descent and was born and educated in Hawkes Bay. She works in early childhood education and says she has long

wanted to write a book about special Maori values, including the importance of the relationship between the very young and very old.

Her latest book, “Annie and Moon,” is also published in English and Maori editions (the Maori translation, “Ko Annie Raua Ko Marama,” is by A. T. Mahuika) by Mallinson Rendel at $15.95. Annie and her cat, Moon, move from place to place after her father leaves and her mother tries to find a new home. They try living in a flat in town, with relatives, and with friends, but each

place has its disadvantages. “It isn’t easy for a little cat to get used to a new home,” says Annie. "It’s hard for little girls — and for mothers,” agrees her mother.

Finally, the right place turns up, and there’s a happy ending, but not before Moon faces his severest challenge yet. Lesley Moyes’ beautiful illustrations are warm and satisfyingly Kiwi in every detail. The book is aimed at children aged three to six.

"Annie and Moon” was produced with assistance from the New Zealand

Literary Fund and the Council for Maori and South Pacific Arts. Lisa Vasil is a 16-year-old from Taihape who has had cerebral palsy since birth, and made this the subject of her first novel, “Just an Ordinary Kid” which has published when she was only 13. Her new book, “Dark Secret” (Collins, $8.95), concerns the relationships between three teen-age girls, one of whom is blind.

Given the present rash of teen-age “problem” novels dealing with incest, sexual abuse, and violence, it was a relief to find that the “dark

secret” of the title involved nothing so horrific, and that the people involved were so wholesome.

Vasil tells her story well, and one is only occasionally aware of her youth. If the “dark secret” seems rather too simply resolved and the happy ending comes a little too pat, her insight into the way teen-agers think and feel more than makes up for it.

Especially valuable is her message to the able bodied that disabled people need to feel “ordinary.”