Author(s): Shirley Corlett

New Zealand titles - children

In the late nineteenth century, James Collier and his artist father travel to the famous Pink and White Terraces in New Zealand's volcanic lakes region. While his father paints, James explores the village of Te Wairoa and meets Will, a young Maori man who has returned home to attend a tangi. All is not well in Te Wairoa - illness has struck the community and strange things are happening in the water on Lake Tarawera. Then, out on the lake, James, his father and Will witness the eerie sight of a Maori war canoe. Is it really a waka wairua - a spirit canoe? Meanwhile beneath sombre Mount Tarawera, volcanic forces gather. the year is 1886, and the name Tarawera is about to become famous throughout the land. "Haere mai, e Tai, kei te wera to ao" (Come and see, the world is going to be burnt)