Witi Ihimaera

Witi Ihimaera is one of New Zealand’s best-known and most loved writers. Author of seven volumes of fiction – including the award-winning Pounamu, Pounamu, Tangi and The Matriarch – he has also written essays, editorials, and an opera, Waituhi.

Here at last is a critical evaluation of Ihimaera’s writings, spanning 20 years of social and political change. Nigerian scholar Umelo Ojinmah writes about the work of Witi Ihimaera with enthusiasm and insight, relating his aims to his achievements, and his life to his times.

In particular, he traces the development of Ihimaera’s vision of biculturalism: the hope for a shared future for Maori and Pakeha that involves both coming to terms with the past.