Books and Beyond: Cook Islands Language Week 2018

This week, Books and Beyond celebrated Cook Islands Language Week, with Louisa hosting a panel of librarians. They talked treasured books, what their culture and the Cooks Islands language means to them. 

Listen to this episode on the Auckland Libraries SoundCloud and read on for the books mentioned in the show.

Treasured books from our Pacific collection:

• Soldiers from the Pacific: the story of Pacific Island soldiers in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War One by Howard Weddell.
  
  This book includes stories about the over 500 men from the Cook Islands who bravely volunteered to serve New Zealand. Among them were the great grandfathers of Angelique Tuaputa and Mati Ngari.

• Patterns of the past: tattoo revival in the Cook Islands by Therese Mangos & John Utanga, with photography by Kirsty Griffin.
  
  Mati Ngari shared how this book helped her research into what her own traditional tātatau would look like, one that reflects her family and cultural heritage.   

Treasures from the Basement:

Two treasures from the Central City Library basement were brought to you this week by Melissa Manapouri.

• Discoverers of the Cook Islands and the names they gave by Alphons M.J. Kloosterman:
  
  The fifteen islands that make up the Cook Islands, are spread across a vast area of the Pacific Ocean. This book is a geographic and historical account on each island, bringing together Cook Islands legends and traditional history of discovery, with the much later first contact with Europeans. It  is one of a series of publications from the 1970s by the Cook Islands Library and Museum.

• Paraku Tita:
  
  A children’s book about raking leaves brought back fond childhood memories from the Cook Islands for the hosts. 

Other books mentioned:

• Mātini: the story of Cyclone Martin Manihiki, Cook Islands, 1 November 1997 by Rachel Michele Teana Reeves.
• Cook Islands cook book by Taiora Matenga-Smith.
• Tooru reo/Your Language by Kauraka Kauraka from Manakonako = Reflections.

Auckland Libraries' new radio show Books and Beyond explores the world of books with guest authors, recommended reads, gems from the Central City Library basement and… beyond.


Catch us on Planet FM104.6, Sundays at 9.35 pm. Recent shows can be listened to as podcasts via the Auckland Libraries SoundCloud.