Wardini Book Review: Nanny Rina’s Amazing Nets – Qiane Matata-Sipu, illustrated by Isobel Joy Te Aho-White (Penguin, $21)

Nanny Rina’s Amazing Nets written by Qiane Matata-Sipu and illustrated by Isobel Joy Te Aho-White.

REVIEW

Open this picture book, and you will find nine stars that connect us to our lives and the environment we inhabit.

This grounds the reader in a story of Matariki which follows up with a lovely illustration of Nanny Rina’s weaving room. There are tools and materials, a cosy dog in a basket, and family portraits on the wall. It’s a wintry day outside.

We soon meet Nanny’s mokopuna, Haeata te Kapua, who is excited that Matariki has nearly arrived and keen to talk about which net to make.

Nanny will choose, depending on which Matariki star shines the brightest, and that will determine what goes in the hautapu, the food offered to the Matariki stars.

The story is a wonderful journey through the meaning of each star and the nets that could be made to trap eels or fish or in which to store kūmara.

We learn how the steam from the feast carries the offering to the atua, and to those who have passed away.

I love that Nanny Rina is not an old, old woman. She is straight-backed and fit to work in her garden and engage with her grandchild. She wears Red Band gumboots and colourful clothes.

Haeata te Kapua is bursting with energy and enthusiasm to get out there and prepare, to get up really early and sit around the fire and honour the stars with her whānau, and Nanny Rina is the right person to guide her.

The illustrations in the picture book are alive with movement and colour in a palate of blue for the winter night skies and twinkling gold for the stars.

The day-to-day world of work and the universe behind the stars merge beautifully as Te Waka o Rangi collects the spirits to turn into stars.

This is the English translation of the original, Ngā Kupenga a Nanny Rina, and it sings with love, light and festivity.

It’s a wonderful addition to the canon of Matariki books to share with children, one that will bear repeated readings. There are visual and written instructions in the back on how to make a small net, making this a truly shareable, interactive tale.