Poorhara by Michelle Rahurahu

Erin has ditched school to help her aunty clean houses, in between looking after all the moko. Her cousin Star is home for the first time in years, struggling to reconcile the weight of family expectations, whakapapa and his reality at university.

Together, the cousins escape in a Daihatsu without a warrant and a dog Star's father has foisted upon them, hoping to return to the whenua where it all began.

The title for this debut novel by Michelle Rahurahu (Ngāti Rahurahu, Ngāti Thu-Ngāti Whaoa) riffs off the loan word, pōhara, meaning poverty. The premise has the potential to be heavy, and it is. Rahurahu explores generational trauma, the impacts of colonisation, identity, death, physical and mental health and so much more as the cousins journey together. 

The book is being marketed as a tragicomedy and it is. Rahurahu uses dark humour to make it a read that is both deeply uncomfortable and enjoyable. Her characters are crafted with depth and spark. They're real - balancing the light with the dark, the hard times with the golden.

This is a distinctly New Zealand story, not only for its setting and themes, but the multiple languages used within. Rahurahu switches between Māori, English and her first language, sign language. There's also Erin's texts, which highlight she has n0 r3sp3ct 4 da 3nglysh l@ngu@g3, and plenty of slang.

For me, the sign of a truly great book is when you sit down to read, only to find that after what felt like mere minutes, hours have passed. Rahurahu's pacing, writing, plot and prose combined perfectly to make this a book where I was deeply torn - wanting to keep reading while wanting to stop, purely to be able to spend more time with it. Compelling and profound, Poorhara swept me up with humour and heart. This is an impressive debut that will sit with me for a long time. 

Reviewer: Rebekah Lyell

Te Herenga Waka University Press