If you're interested in heart-wrenching, complex stories about family, history, and memory, "Auē" is for you.

This incredible book paints a nuanced picture of the legacy of European colonization in Aotearoa/New Zealand, looking behind stereotypes of gang life and poverty. One of the main characters is a young Māori boy – and the author has done an amazing job writing from his perspective. With a nonlinear timeline and different narrators, Auē is hopeful, profound, and structurally intriguing. It's a debut novel from a Māori woman, so we recommend it for anyone interested in emerging Indigenous voices in literature. TW: harm to children, physical and sexual violence.