Tuai: A Traveller in Two Worlds

by Alison Jones, Kuni Kaa Jenkins

In early 1817 Tuai, a young Ngare Raumati chief from the Bay of Islands, set off for England. He was one of a number of Māori who, after encountering European explorers, traders and missionaries in New Zealand, seized opportunities to travel beyond their familiar shores to Australia, England and Europe in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. They sought new knowledge, useful goods and technologies, and a mutually benefi cial relationship with the people they knew as Pākehā.

On his epic journey Tuai would visit exotic foreign ports, mix with teeming crowds in the huge metropolis of London, and witness the marvels of industrialisation at the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire. With his lively travelling companion Tītere, he would attend fashionable gatherings and sit for his portrait. He shared his deep understanding of Māori language and culture. And his missionary friends did their best to convert him to Christianity. But on returning to his Māori world in 1819, Tuai found there were difficult choices to be made. His plan to integrate new European knowledge and relationships into his Ngare Raumati community was to be challenged by the rapidly shifting politics of the Bay of Islands.

With sympathy and insight, Alison Jones and Kuni Kaa Jenkins uncover the remarkable story of one of the first Māori travellers to Europe.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Travel

479 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2017

About the author

Academic and professor at The University of Auckland.

Reviews

[Mikaira]

Enjoyed this book a lot. The stories and perspectives shared on Tuai and a lot of other Ngate Raumati and Nothern Rangatira. Traveling to England and seeing the technology in comparison to their own. I do recommend this book if you want to get a idea of how things may have been.

[Giuliano]

Extremely well researched book. It was fascinating to read about Tuai and his companions, how they left their native shores to embark on a voyage of a lifetime. It's mind boggling to think they may have met Napoleon in St Helena as they made their way to England! The political situation of precolonial New Zealand (mainly the Bay of Islands region) is clearly detailed - almost too much I feel - and sometimes I was confused and struggled to distinguish which specific iwi or hapu was being talked about out.
It was interesting to read about the difficulties Tuai encountered as he attempted to win Pakeha recognition and tried to be considered 'one of them' but also how he navigated his being Maori and all it entailed.
All in all a great book about the first contact period. My appetite for this topic has been whetted and I'll be sure to read more on the topic.