The poetic visions of Mettle echo through past and present lives, memories are recorded and futures imagined. Te Whiu draws on stories from her childhood and a lifetime of listening and learning about her whakapapa (Maori lineage). This exceptional collection resounds with strength, a mettle that ripples not just through Te Whiu’s own life but that of her ancestral family. Her moving, graceful poems are a lens through which to look ‘ now’ straight in the face, without shame or fear, and to acknowledge that while trauma is transmitted generationally, so too are the gifts of resilience and fortitude.
