Hastings Girls' High School, Ngā Rau Huia o Ākina

63,804 pages read and 5,661 team points

Team members

Moniqa

3,203 pts

(2,423 pages read)

Somewhere Beyond the Sea

By TJ Klune

4 stars

I was expecting a lot from this book after loving the first one. In some parts, the book felt a bit preachy and used a lot of "therapy speak". The dialogue didn't feel realistic for the characters. In the previous book, one of the main characters spoke in this way, but to a much lesser degree that felt like what real people say. In this book, it was just dialed up too much. That being said, I loved the ending and it made me tear up :')
The House in the Cerulean Sea

By TJ Klune

5 stars

An extremely heart-warming story about found family and resilience. As a queer person, it truly warmed my heart and gave me all the feels. I'm re-reading this book in preparation to read the sequel that I'm just now getting around to in my "to read" pile.
Whale Rider

By Witi Ihimaera

5 stars

I've taught the Whale Rider film as a film study for the past six years, but I'd never gotten around to reading the book in that time. I'm glad I finally did! The book is told from the perspective of Rawiri, Paikea's uncle, and contains more depth than I expected in relation to its themes. These themes are a bit different from the film and there is a stronger focus on environmentalism and colonialism which I found engaging. I can see why this book has been used as a novel study for decades. I'd highly recommend reading it, and is usually true, the book is better than the movie :)
The Dawnhounds

By Sascha Stronach

5 stars

I loved this book! I haven't read as many fantasy novels with LGBTQIA+ characters, so that was a real treat. On top of that, this is written by an author from Aotearoa who isn't afraid to sound like a Kiwi. The characters describe things as "sweet as" and some of the characters speak a language called "Tangata". While one might expect this was written for a mostly Kiwi audience, this book has had great success internationally as well. I'm on holiday at the moment, but I'm going to call around to the local bookstores to see if they have the second book in the series (released last year) in stock so I can keep reading :)
Turn Coat

By Tīhema Baker

5 stars

I got this book a couple of years ago when it was longlisted for the New Zealand Book Awards in 2024, and I've finally gotten around to reading it. From the start, it's a book that makes clear parallels between modern-day Aotearoa and the book's science-fictional version of it. At first, I thought the parallels were a bit heavy-handed and that the book simply recounted the issues around contemporary Te Tiriti issues and the Waitangi Tribunal by substituting "pākeha" for "aliens" and "Māori" for "humans". As the story progressed, I found it more engaging as the author delved deeper into the inner lives of the characters and their emotions which fleshed out the book and made it less allegorical. As a person who is very online, I did find the author's sense of humor and jokes spot on though, to the point where it made me laugh out loud (for example, referring to the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil as the "T pose statue", a reference to glitchy video game avatars). By the end, I found myself really enjoying this book, and I'll whole-heartedly recommend it to others with the caveat that they've just got to power through the first 30 pages or so before the book starts to find its own voice and perspective.
f2m: The Boy Within

By Hazel Edwards and Ryan Kennedy

5 stars

This book is a really interesting insight into the lives of transmasculine young people. I had checked it out from our school library to check how it portrayed transgender characters as the book was published in 2010. I was pleasantly surprised with how the book presented the main character's inner world, his struggles, and the lack of devastatingly heart-breaking events which were all too common in media with LGBTQIA+ characters from 15+ years ago. Now that I've read it, I can give it my full-throated recommendation to transmasculine kids desperate for good representation. Bonus points in that it's from Australia, so there are some cultural similarities as well that kids could relate to.
The Three-Body Problem

By Cixin Liu

5 stars

This is the kind of sci-fi book I love! The science parts are rooted in real scientific concepts which make logical sense in the world of the book. I really enjoyed the non-Western approach to sci-fi by the author and and translator. It's another layer to the novel that adds more depth and nuance. By approaching the genre from a different lens from what I'm used to, I'm finding a lot of enjoyment in sci-fi again. I've already ordered the other two books in the trilogy from my local book store :)
A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces that Shaped Queer Women's Culture

By June Thomas

5 stars

I started reading this book in November which is why there aren't as many pages recorded. This book is really interesting and explains some of the stereotypes around why queer women are associated with softball among other things. It makes me want to visit some of these places myself for sure!

14 - 0 - 1

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Hastings Girls' High School, Ngā Rau Huia o Ākina

63,804 pages read and 5,661 team points

Team members

Anonymous Reader

GBHGHS

Trina

Ashlei

CaptainSpaghetti

Max

Moniqa

AnitaO

TaniaM

Jess C

Blossom

???L

pamangland

Taha

Moniqa

Somewhere Beyond the Sea

The House in the Cerulean Sea

Whale Rider

The Dawnhounds

Turn Coat

f2m: The Boy Within

The Three-Body Problem

A Place of Our Own: Six Spaces that Shaped Queer Women's Culture

Hastings Girls' High School, Ngā Rau Huia o Ākina

63,804 pages read and 5,661 team points

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