Small Holes in the Silence Collected Works By Hone Tuwhare

A poem is

a ripple of words

on water wind-huffed

Hone Tuwhare believed that poetry is to be spoken; it is an art that lives not only on the page but also in the voice, breath and very being of the writer and the reader.  A natural and charistmatic performer himself, he inspried audiences in every corner of the country from primary and secondary schools to universities, factories, art galleries and prisons, and as he travelled he encouraged others to write, express themselves, create and celebrate. A ‘people’s poet’, he was loved by New Zealanders from all walks of life.


Small Holes in the Silence showcases the finest examples of Hone’s poetry, from his early triumph in No Ordinary Sun (one of the most reprinted collections in New Zealand) right up to his final works, published when he was in his eighties. The book also includes a handful of previously unpublished works.


Although Hone wrote in English his poems had a Māori rythym and theme, so it is fitting that a number of them have been translated into Māori by his friends Patu Hohepa, Selwyn Muru and Waihoroi Shortland. Each translation stands proudly by the original.


In July 2010 the Hone Tuwhare Charitable Trust was established ‘To inspire people through the preservation, promotion and celebration of Hone’s legacy’. Hone’s son Rob Tuwhare worked with his father’s supporters and public figures to set up the registered charitable trust. The trust is currently raising funds to purchase and restore Hone Tuwhare’s crib at Kaka Point, South Otago, for use as a writers’ residence. This residence will be the first to be established in the home of a Maori writer.  - See www.honetuwhare.org.nz for more information.


‘No history of New Zealand literature, arts and culture will ever be able to be written without having in it the name of Hone Tuwhare. He is the greatest of all Maori poets and he is also one of the greatest New Zealand poets, an exemplar of the poetic arts in Aotearoa to both cultures. Accordingly, it is most fitting that his house at Kaka Point be conserved so that young generations of poets, artists and writers can gain inspiration and the opportunity to aspire to Hone Tuwhare’s example.’- Witi Ihimaera


Born in 1922 in Kaikohe, Hone Tuwhare was a boilermaker, political activist, husband, father and poet. He won two Montana New Zealand Book Awards, was made Te Mata Poet Laureate in 1999, and held two honorary doctorates in literature. In 2003 he was named as an Arts Foundation of New Zealand Icon Artist. Tuwhare was still writing at the time of his death in his eighty-sixth year in 2008.


Small Holes in the Silence
Godwit - $44.99