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The Singing Whakapapa
What is the truth of history, what are the facts - and how are we to know them?
This powerful novel is the story of John Flatt - missionary agriculturalist, witness to Waharoa’s war of the 1830s against the Arawa, to the murder of the young woman Tarore and to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi - and his great-great-grandson Hugh Grady, who more than a hundred and fifty years later tries to make sense of his own life by exploring all that has gone before. It is a story laced with passion, betrayal and revenge, at many levels, as greed overtakes good intentions and the cloak of history is pulled aside.
Above all, The Singing Whakapapa is a tale for our times - a compelling historical detective story in which the truth is stranger than only fiction, and in which the present becomes a backseat driver to the past. It is C.K. Stead’s best work of fiction for years.
This powerful novel is the story of John Flatt - missionary agriculturalist, witness to Waharoa’s war of the 1830s against the Arawa, to the murder of the young woman Tarore and to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi - and his great-great-grandson Hugh Grady, who more than a hundred and fifty years later tries to make sense of his own life by exploring all that has gone before. It is a story laced with passion, betrayal and revenge, at many levels, as greed overtakes good intentions and the cloak of history is pulled aside.
Above all, The Singing Whakapapa is a tale for our times - a compelling historical detective story in which the truth is stranger than only fiction, and in which the present becomes a backseat driver to the past. It is C.K. Stead’s best work of fiction for years.
298 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
2 people are currently reading
57 people want to read
About the author
C.K. Stead
68 books22 followersChristian Karlson Stead is a New Zealand writer whose works include novels, poetry, short stories, and literary criticism.
One of Karl Stead's novels, Smith's Dream, provided the basis for the film Sleeping Dogs, starring Sam Neill; this became the first New Zealand film released in the United States.
Mansfield: A Novel was a finalist for the 2005 Tasmania Pacific Fiction Prize and received commendation in the 2005 Commonwealth Writers Prize for the South East Asia and South Pacific region.
C. K. Stead was born in Auckland. For much of his career he was Professor of English at the University of Auckland, retiring in 1986 to write full-time. He received a CBE in 1985 and was admitted into the highest honour New Zealand can bestow, the Order of New Zealand in 2007.
One of Karl Stead's novels, Smith's Dream, provided the basis for the film Sleeping Dogs, starring Sam Neill; this became the first New Zealand film released in the United States.
Mansfield: A Novel was a finalist for the 2005 Tasmania Pacific Fiction Prize and received commendation in the 2005 Commonwealth Writers Prize for the South East Asia and South Pacific region.
C. K. Stead was born in Auckland. For much of his career he was Professor of English at the University of Auckland, retiring in 1986 to write full-time. He received a CBE in 1985 and was admitted into the highest honour New Zealand can bestow, the Order of New Zealand in 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 19, 2011
I really liked this novel. Not just because genealogy is a hobby of mine but also because of the way C.K. Stead lets you put together all the pieces of the puzzle at the same time as, and sometimes even before, his main character does.
I was familiar with bits and pieces of New Zealand history, probably even a little more than the average non-Kiwi, and really loved learning more about it through this novel; it is such an excellent mix of facts and fiction. I won’t spoil the story for those who haven’t read it yet, so I will be necessarily vague, but something else I very much liked is the way history repeated itself in the story.
I was familiar with bits and pieces of New Zealand history, probably even a little more than the average non-Kiwi, and really loved learning more about it through this novel; it is such an excellent mix of facts and fiction. I won’t spoil the story for those who haven’t read it yet, so I will be necessarily vague, but something else I very much liked is the way history repeated itself in the story.
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June 26, 2016I never understood why the author used the Maori word "whakapapa" in his title when the main character has no Maori ancestry
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May 25, 2016I found this book really hard to get into - and if I didn't have to read it for university AND give a seminar on it, I wouldn't have continued after the first page.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews