Description
‘In this compelling first collection, Reihana Robinson offers a nuanced re-imagining of the Maori Rona legend through lyrical poems of love, transgression and sorrow that flesh out and challenge the archetypal notion of the woman in the moon.’
— Janelle Elyse Kihlstrom, editor of Melusine, or Woman in the 21st Century, an online journal of literature and art.
“I love the mythic, edgy vision of Reihana’s poems…”
— Joy Harjo, acclaimed Native American poet, musician & author
“Auē Rona e”. Rona cries out. In one swift move she is relocated to the moon. “Auē.” Who is there to hear her cries? This was from before the time of aeroplanes and space shuttles. It is a kind of forced migration but no refuge, just a never-ending misplacement and longing to be reunited with her two brats. She is rooted against her will. An endless struggle. An endless suffering. “Auē Rona e.”
The traditional story of Rona and the moon opens as she is collecting water for her children. A cloud covers the moon; she falls, spilling the water, and she curses. As punishment she is torn from earth and taken to the moon, still clutching her calabash and holding a ngaio tree. Aue? Rona. Oh Rona. Oh grief. Oh sorrow.
Read the review on Beattie’s Book Blog here.
