{"id":365,"date":"2014-04-13T21:44:07","date_gmt":"2014-04-13T21:44:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/?p=365"},"modified":"2014-05-14T23:02:51","modified_gmt":"2014-05-14T23:02:51","slug":"tina-dahlbergs-latest-novel-explores-cross-cultural-complexities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/2014\/04\/13\/tina-dahlbergs-latest-novel-explores-cross-cultural-complexities\/","title":{"rendered":"Tina Dahlberg’s latest novel explores cross-cultural complexities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"dahlberg-tina-02\"<\/a>

Tina Dahlberg, author and creative writing tutor in the School of English and Media Studies.<\/p><\/div>\n

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When she visited the Chatham Islands to find out about her ancestral links to the Moriori people for her debut novel\u00a0Where the Rekohu Bone Sings<\/em>, Tina Dahlberg says she felt a profound connection to the land.<\/p>\n

\u201cSounds a bit dramatic but I felt like the land really spoke to me,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Exploring the complexities of Pakeha, M\u0101ori and Moriori cross-cultural history through fictional characters was a powerful way to write about things that are both deeply personal and difficult to define, says the cover.<\/p>\n

Where the Rekohu Bone Sings<\/em>\u00a0(Random House) was launched in March and is currently sitting at number two behind\u00a0The Luminaries<\/em>\u00a0on the NZ Bookseller\u2019s weekly bestseller list. \u00a0Rekohu\u00a0<\/em>is the Moriori name for Chathams\u2019 largest island and means \u2018misty rain\u2019.<\/p>\n

Dr Dahlberg, who writes under the name of Tina Makereti and is of Ng\u0101ti T\u016bwharetoa, Te Atiawa, Ng\u0101ti Rangatahi and Moriori descent, says her book reflects her \u201cobsession with identity and having multiple ethnic origins\u201d.<\/p>\n

The idea for the story \u2013 which spans the Chatham Islands to London, from 1835 to the 21st century \u2013 had been incubating since the birth of her daughter Aquila in 2002, when she was given a name that was believed to be Moriori, in keeping with family tradition of bestowing ancestral names.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d always known the story [about a Moriori ancestor], but the question was \u2013 now that it had become more real to me \u2013 how would a person who is Moriori understand themselves now? I thought if she\u2019s going to carry a name like that we should know about it. I thought it might be something I researched eventually,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

The idea first took shape as a PhD project, which included writing a novel that explores a complex history \u201cwith so many layers of false versions\u201d. The result entwines the stories of three characters separated by time but connected by blood ties.<\/p>\n

While she grew up knowing more about her Pakeha roots, Dr Dahlberg had immersed herself in M\u0101ori history and culture through studying a Postgraduate Diploma of M\u0101ori development. She also credits having a social sciences undergraduate degree \u2013 a Bachelor of Arts in Social Anthropology and M\u0101ori Studies \u2013 with giving her a good foundation to work from.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think social sciences is a really strong place to create fiction from. It opened up the world for me \u2013 well, all books open up the world \u2013 but for my path, it was very helpful for what I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the writing of the book, her two trips to the Chatham Islands, an archipelago 680 kilometres southeast of mainland New Zealand, provided tangible clues and vivid impressions for the book.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn’t establish on paper my genealogy so it was really important to go there and have a response to the land. I felt there was something stronger here than just visiting a place I\u2019ve never been before.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond personal connections and imaginative renderings, she had to pull apart the myths and contentious issue of who Moriori were, where they came from and what happened to them. \u201cI found out there\u2019s so much not known, but buried and misconstrued \u2013 including by academics.\u201d<\/p>\n

She turned to the late Michael King\u2019s authoritative 1989 book,\u00a0Moriori: A People Rediscovered<\/em>, as well as the\u00a0Journal of the Polynesian Society<\/em>\u00a0and the Waitangi Tribunal for reliable accounts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe novel was a chance to explore the complexities and give the situation context \u2013 to show the humanity of all sides of that picture,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

And while she is concerned that she doesn\u2019t contribute to misrepresentations, she says: \u201cYou\u2019ve got to take a point of view in a novel, and you can\u2019t control what people think. I\u2019m not making any claims on history or truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr Dahlberg, the inaugural winner of the Nga Kupu Ora award for fiction in 2011, for her book\u00a0Once Upon a Time in Aotearoa<\/em>, and Huia Publishers\u2019 Best Short Story Award in 2009 for\u00a0Skin and Bones<\/em>, a tale that puts a new twist on a classic legend, hopes to see more New Zealand fiction by writers of diverse cultural backgrounds and multiple identities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much in New Zealand fiction that hasn\u2019t been done. We have so many historical and cultural stories starting with M\u0101ori, Pasifika, and from the Asian community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having shed light on some of the myths and mistruths surrounding Moriori, she hopes to launch the book in the Chatham Islands in the near future.<\/p>\n

She will be appearing at the Auckland Writers Festival on Sunday May 18, Aotea Centre, in a session titled Pieces of History, along with Fiona Kidman, Kerry Donovan Brown and Lawrence Hill.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Cover of\u00a0Where the R\u0113kohu Bone Sings.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Bloody, funny – the golden age of NZ crime fiction<\/a>
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\nNga Kupu Ora Awards celebrate Maori publishing milestones<\/a>
\nFirst Fiction Winner at Nga Kupu Ora Maori Book Awards<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                                    When she visited the Chatham Islands to find out about her ancestral links to the Moriori people for her debut novel\u00a0Where the Rekohu Bone Sings, Tina Dahlberg says she felt a profound connection to the land. \u201cSounds […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":52,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-365","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-expressive-arts-subject"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/52"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=365"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":440,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/365\/revisions\/440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.massey.ac.nz\/expressivearts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}