Welcome to Lit Illuminated. Join me as I pull a book off the shelf of my library and share my study of patterns and insights with you. Whether you’re a bibliophile, a casual reader, or someone who simply loves a good story, this podcast takes you on an enlightening journey through the pages of classics and contemporary gems.
As a fellow book lover, I know the joy of being lost in the world of books. I’m thrilled to have you join me on this journey with Lit Illuminated, where we celebrate the sheer pleasure of reading and exploring literature.
Today, we are looking at Kataraina by Becky Manawatu
Throughout the novel, we glimpse moments that are layering and creating a story a moment at a time. This layering makes Kataraina a marvelous work of fiction, bringing together multiple lives into a single storyline. The First-Person ,Plural point of view is a brilliant way for Manawatu to weave time and
generations within a single novel.
Book blurb:
In Auē eight-year-old Ārama was taken by his brother, Taukiri, to live with Kat and Stu at the farm in Kaikōura, setting in train the tragedy that unfolded. Ārama’s aunty Kat was at the centre of events, but silenced by abuse her voice was absent from the story.
In Kataraina, Kat and her whānau take over the telling. As one, they return to her childhood and the time when she first began to feel the greenness of the swamp in her veins – the swamp that holds her tears and the tears of her tīpuna, the swamp on the land owned by Stu that has been growing since the girl shot the man.
Becky Manawatu’s new novel is the much-awaited sequel to award-winning bestseller Auē and is unflinching in its portrayal of the destructive ways people love one another and the ancestral whenua on which they stand.
New Zealand book retailer that ships to the US - https://www.mightyape.co.nz/mn/buy/mighty-ape-kataraina-38920778/
Looks like it comes out September 2025 in the USA, and you can pre-order it on Bookshop.org
Note: Kataraina is a sequel to Becky Manawatu’s Auē
Other books quoted:
John Gardner The Art of Fiction
James Wood How Fiction Works
Robert Boswell The Half-Known World on Writing Fiction
Also, check out the podcast Nothing is Wrong with You: Book Podcast on YouTube
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