Review of: Respirator: A Poet Laureate Collection 2019–22 , David Eggleton (2023) Dunedin: Otago University Press, 192 pp., ISBN 978 1 99004 850 0 (hbk), NZ$35 Face to the Sky , Michele Leggott (2023) Auckland: Auckland University Press, 92 pp., ISBN 978 1 77671 103 1 (pbk), NZ$35
This article investigates Tuvalu’s innovative response to existential threats posed by climate change, focusing on its first digital nation initiative. Facing the loss of its physical territory due to rising sea levels, Tuvalu is pioneering a digital transformation that preserves its national identity, sovereignty and governance within virtual environments. An interdisciplinary approach is employed for this study, exploring the political, legal, technological and social dimensions of this initiative. It highlights how Tuvalu challenges traditional notions of statehood by redefining sovereignty in the digital age while engaging with international forums and advocating for climate justice. The article examines the intersection of survival narratives, migration, diaspora engagement and political agency, presenting Tuvalu as both a vulnerable state and an active norm entrepreneur. This research contributes to Pacific scholarship by demonstrating how small island developing states navigate climate precarity through technological innovation and political resilience, offering a model for other nations confronting similar challenges.
Review of: History of New Zealand and Its Inhabitants , Dom Felice Vaggioli (1896), John Crockett (Trans.) (2023) Dunedin: Otago University Press, 640 pp., ISBN 978 1 99004 862 3 (pbk), NZ$50
Pasifika people can be seen making impacts in sports across the world and in Aotearoa New Zealand. However, limited research shows sport from an Indigenous cultural lens, which reveals a more holistic appreciation for their role in sport and societal development. With a focus on rugby players, this report explores their contribution to the spaces and how they have not only excelled in their chosen sports but have also used their platforms to be role models to both mainstream society and Pacific communities. The authors believe that capturing their achievements within a broader cultural context will ensure that their legacies are better understood. As Pasifika researchers who are related to some of these athletes, we privilege and centre their achievements. This report is intended for use by both Pacific communities and sports governance administrators in formulating better sport initiatives for Pacific people.
Review of: Turncoat , Tīhema Baker (2023) Wellington: Lawrence and Gibson, 295 pp., ISBN 978 1 73859 030 8 (pbk), NZ$30
Review of: My Land, My Life: Dispossession at the Frontier of Desire , Siobhan Mcdonnell (2023) Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaiʻi Press, 264 pp., ISBN 978 0 82489 445 0 (hbk), US$68
Review of: Connecting the Kingdom: Sailing Vessels in the Early Hawaiian Monarchy, 1790–1840 , Peter R. Mills (2022) Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaiʻi Press, 296 pp., ISBN 978 0 82489 398 9 (pbk), US$27.99
Review of: Te Ata O Tū The Shadow of Tūmatauenga: The New Zealand Wars Collections of Te Papa , Matiu Baker, Katie Cooper, Michael Fitzgerald and Rebecca Rice (eds) (2024) Wellington: Te Papa Press, 480 pp., ISBN 978 0 99414 608 3 (hbk), NZ$70
Review of: Towards a Grammar of Race: In Aotearoa New Zealand , Arcia Tecun, Lana Lopesi and Anisha Sankar (eds) (2022) Wellington: Bridget Williams Books, 300 pp., ISBN 978 1 99004 663 6 (pbk), NZ$39.99 Te Pouhere Kōrero 10: Māori History, Māori People , Arini Loader and Nēpia Mahuika (eds) (2023) Wellington: Te Pouhere Kōrero, 132 pp., ISBN 977 1 17512 700 7 (pbk), NZ$29.99
Review of: Selling Britishness: Commodity Culture, the Dominions and Empire , Felicity Barnes (2022) Auckland: Auckland University Press, 264 pp., ISBN 978 1 86940 975 3 (pbk), NZ$49.99
Review of: The Cambridge History of the Pacific Ocean Volume 1: The Pacific Ocean to 1800 , Ryan Tucker Jones And Matt K. Matsuda (eds), Paul D’Arcy (General Ed.) (2023) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 851 pp., ISBN 987 1 10842 393 9 (hbk), £125 The Cambridge History of The Pacific Ocean Volume 2: The Pacific Ocean Since 1800 , Anne Perez Hattori and Jane Samson (eds), Paul D’Arcy (General Ed.) (2023) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 933 pp., ISBN 978 1 316 51040 7 (hbk), £125
Review of: Tatau: Samoan Tattoo, New Zealand Art, Global Culture , Sean Mallon, Nicholas Thomas and Peter Brunt, Photographs By Mark Adams (2023) Wellington: Te Papa Press, 308 pp., ISBN 978 1 99115 098 1 (hbk), NZ$75
Review of: A Clear Dawn: New Asian Voices from Aotearoa New Zealand , Paula Morris and Alison Wong (eds) (2021) Auckland: Auckland University Press, 352 pp., ISBN 978 1 86940 947 0 (pbk), NZ$49.99
Review of: Foreign Judges in the Pacific , Anna Dziedzic (2021) London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 233 pp., ISBN 978 1 50994 286 2 (hbk), £90
Review of: Migrant Ecologies: Environmental Histories of the Pacific World , James Beattie, Ryan Tucker Jones and Edward Dallam Melillo (eds) (2023) Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai’i Press, 316 pp., ISBN 978 0 82489 106 0 (hbk), US$68
Review of: Gardens of Gold: Place-Making in Papua New Guinea , Jamon Alex Halvaksz (2020) Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 242 pp., ISBN 978 0 29574 759 0 (pbk), US$35
Review of: Secret History: State Surveillance in New Zealand, 1900–1956 , Richard S. Hill and Steven Loveridge (2023) Auckland: Auckland University Press, 448 pp., ISBN 978 1 86940 985 2 (hbk), NZ$79.99
Review of: Linguistic Landscaping and the Pacific Region: Colonization, Indigenous Identities, and Critical Discourse Theory , Diane Elizabeth Johnson (2021) Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 149 pp., ISBN 978 1 79361 120 8 (pbk), US$39.99
Review of: Blood and Dirt: Prison Labour and the Making of New Zealand , Jared Davidson (2023) Wellington: Bridget Williams Books, 304 pp., ISBN 978 1 99103 340 6 (hbk), NZ$49.99
Review of: The Social Space of the Essay 2003–2023 , Ian Wedde (2024) Wellington: Te Herenga Waka University Press, 480 pp., ISBN 978 1 77692 121 8 (pbk), NZ$50
