Home > Categories > Books > Fiction > Sky Dancer review

Feisty young Skylark O'Shea is on holiday with her mother at a town on the coast. Soon it becomes clear that in Tuapa all is not as it seems. Strange things begin to happen.
What is the threat facing the town and the birds of the forest? Where do the charismatic old Maori women Hoki and Bella fit in?
Skylark becomes embroiled in an extraordinary journey. Soon she is testing her wits, her life and the fate of all she loves in a race of breathtaking dimension...
Witi Ihimaera's Sky Dancer cleverly combines a roller-coaster adventure ride with new ways of exploring Maori myth. The result is a storytelling triumph.
Family Word Finder
The Troy Game 4: Druid's Sword
Under Heaven
Prizzi's family
Daisy the Doughnut Fairy
Pip Bartlett's Guide to Magical Creatures
Wade Hanna 3 - Rogue Asset
WeirDo #6: Crazy Weird!
Kiwis at War 1917: Machines of War
The Dinky Donkey
The Chronicles of Aden Weaver - 2 - The Sasori Empire
MATARIKI Around the World: A Cluster of Stars, a Cluster of Stories
A Walk A Day - Revised 2023 GuideProduct reviews...
Members are welcome to post a review. You will need to log in to post yours.
The Whale Rider is one of my favourite novels, so I was very interested in reading this latest story by Witi Ihimaera. It even has quite a few general similarities: young girl as 'chosen' main character, Maori mythology, small town tale of an ancient prophecy involving animals. I loved the details about forest mythology, and the scenario of a history and battle between the land birds and sea birds, manu whenua and manu moana.
The characters in the book are interesting though perhaps not always captivating, and this may be why I found the book hard to get involved in at times. It was quite a long story, though still enjoyable. I did sometimes find myself losing interest in the dialogue, but it was well worth continuing for the imagery of the epic and thrilling final sky battle.
Random listing from 'Books'...
New Zealand is blessed with many extraordinary wild places. Most are only a short distance from towns or tourist centers and give us the chance to experience the best of New Zealand's unique plants, rare birds and wildlife. This book is for the tourist or holidaymaker with an hour or three to spare, who likes to take short walks into the magic of wilderness.
This new and updated edition of Wild Walks covers the ... more...
All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.
"A man who is 'of sound mind' is one who keeps the inner madman under lock and key."
Paul Valery (1871 - 1945)