Oku Moe Moea: The dream which is bigger than I am

by Shona Hammond Boys

This powerful book offers vital close reading for all who believe that art is not a luxury but a human necessity. Through the eyes of a gifted boy growing up in isolation it raises the question of how to rise above the limited vision of marginalization of arts in today's societies. Victory believes that the great God of Science and the great God of Art are out of heavenly alignment and we are following the wrong God home. He understands his creativity is essential and that he can live in harmony with the environment and develop peaceful relationships. For Victory, the natural universe is friendly and art is life. In our fast moving and rapidly changing world many young people are struggling with the questions and thoughts Victory asks. As he hides his art to protect it, we glimpse the anguish of youth coping with infrastructure violence against their talents. This simple story challenges everyone concerned with our survival as the creative species on an endangered planet to reconsider the place of art in our future. It is a new parable and legend to be shared by young people, teachers and parents.

102 pages, Paperback

First published December 4, 2014

Reviews

[Bookrapt (Est. 1983) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of Victory, an only child, the only survivor from ten pregnancies, who lives with his mother, a sad quiet woman, and his bushman father, in a small New Zealand community.

Victory is a quiet child with few strong friends. He turns to art as his outlet, and the reader learns of the increasing importance of time spent drawing and observing nature over several years. He comes to love the natural world and develops a very mature outlook on life.

While these themes are inherently interesting, the style of writing is often didactic – in Oku Moe Moea (The dream which is bigger than I am) the author explains or expounds rather than slowly divulging the concepts through conversation or action. Victory's ideas on peace and the environment in particular are told to the reader.

The accompanying book, Art I Am, contains Patterns of Creativity, patterns at A4 size for colouring in. Colouring in has become a popular pastime in recent years for adults as well as children, and these intricate patterns are for the more mature hand with well-developed fine motor skills.

Shona Hammond Boys is to be commended for this 'novel', an attempt to stimulate awareness of the value of art as an outlet for youngsters and in particular for troubled young folk. The book is also a vehicle for drawing attention to the existence of Children's Art Houses. She must hope that this concept and the practice will continue to expand and that funding will be found to ensure their survival.

Reviewed by Chris Wright (Bookrapt).

[Saskia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it ... ok - I just got the sense that the author was using the characters in the book as a vehicle for her own personal narrative. The character never came to life as his own entity, just as a puppet of the author pushing an agenda on the 'importance of art'. I didn't feel anything in the book and, although it included some great pieces of maoritanga, it didn't immerse me culturally either.

[Jeanna Rodgers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, tragic, thought provoking, sad, and lots more!