Aotearoa New Zealand

2021 ended on a sad note for the literary community in Aotearoa New Zealand, with the death of Keri Hulme on 27 December. The Kāi Tahu and Kāti Māmoe author was the first New Zealander to receive the Booker Prize, winning for her novel the bone people in 1985. Controversial, poetical, and confronting, Hulme’s novel remains one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most discussed works of fiction. Hulme also published several collections of poetry and short stories and was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Katherine Mansfield Memorial award (for a short story in 1975), the Māori Trust Fund prize in 1978, the New Zealand writing bursary in 1984, and the Chianti Ruffino Antico Fattore award in 1987. Helen Leahy, eulogising Hulme, described her as “a brilliant writer; a brave author and a creative spirit who inspired us to dream wildly; to create beyond possibilities; to think differently” (Waatea, 29 December). Huia Publishers founder Robyn Bargh acknowledged Hulme’s vital work as an inspiration and mentor to Māori writers (Waatea, 29 December), while for Hulme’s nephew, Mathew Salmons, Hulme has “always been a storyteller” with “stories to share” (Stuff, 28 December). Children’s author Betty Gilderdale, perhaps best known for her acclaimed picture book series The Little Yellow Digger, passed away at the age of 97. In 1999, Gilderdale won the New Zealand Children’s Literature Association’s Award for Services to Children’s Literature and from 2020 this award was renamed in her honour as Storylines Betty Gilderdale Award. The 2021 winner of this award was Sarah Forster for her years of service in promoting children’s and Young Adult reading. Gilderdale was also a ground-breaking scholar, with Sea Change: 145 Years of New Zealand Junior Fiction (1982) being the first comprehensive survey of New Zealand literature for children. Aotearoa New Zealand also farewelled author, journalist, and publisher Stephen Stratford, renowned for his sensitive editing of a diverse range of literature by authors such as Ranginui Walker, Vincent O’Sullivan, and Brian Turner. 1126213 JCL0010.1177/00219894221126213The Journal of Commonwealth LiteratureMoffat et al. research-article2022