All about books in Aotearoa – all in te reo Māori.  Katoa mō ngā pukapuka i Aotearoa – katoa i te reo Māori.

The Coalition for Books and Kete Books were excited to welcome author, teacher, translator and EveryDay Māori creator Hēmi Kelly (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tahu-Ngāti Whaoa) to Kete Books as guest editor for Te Wiki o te Reo Māori. Throughout the week all Kete reviews and articles ran in te reo Māori.

For the full list of articles, check out our reading list. 

We were also delighted to work with Te Uru Karaka Newton Central School. Students in Te Uru Karaka Newton Central’s Māori Language Immersion Unit/Rumaki Reo read some of the new and awesome books recently released for children in te reo Māori ... and gave us their thoughts!

Guest Editor – Hēmi Kelly

Hēmi Kelly is a Māori language teacher, translator, author, composer and resource creator. The Director of Māori language consultancy Tautika Ltd, Hēmi is also the creator of Everyday Māori which is all about bringing te reo Māori to the tip of your tongue, no matter where you are on your language learning journey or in the world. 

The author of A Māori Word a Day and A Māori Phrase a Day, Hēmi is also the translator of a number of books in te reo Māori including Ngā Whakamāoritanga by Brian Friel, Te Ruānuku (the Māori language translation of The Alchemist) by Paulo Coelho, and Sleeps Standing: A Story of the Battle of Orakau by Witi Ihimaera. 

Hēmi co-hosts the popular Everyday Māori podcast and shares regular reo Māori content from the Everyday Māori Facebook, Instagram and TikTok channels.

Thanks to Huriana Kopeke-Te Aho  (Tūhoe, Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tahu, Rongowhaata, Te āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Kahungunu, Fale'ula) and Allen & Unwin New Zealand for illustrations adapted from Whakawhetai Gratitude by Hira Nathan.