Book Review: Poorhara

Poorhara
by Michelle Rahurahu
Review by Claudia

Star and Erin have had it with their whaanau. They feel under-appreciated, over-scrutinised and trapped. So, they make a break for it and try to drive back to their whenua. This is a novel about familial tensions and the desperation caused by poverty, how to be yourself when so much is expected of who you will become. A knowing chuckle punctuates each tragic truth. Rahurahu’s style is funny, ironic and dark. The narrative stresses that it’s not so easy “getting help” in Aotearoa, and colonialism still has a lot to atone for. The characters are repeatedly pushed to their limits by their family or wider society, and then expected to contain themselves in the face of unfairness and injustice. Readers are in for a sad and funny ride.

Note: contains sexual assault and self-harm.