Carrying the Past Forward

Looking to the past to better understand the present, three authors explore how colonisation and environmental change reverberate across generations binding the past, present and future.

Hana Buchanan’s (Ngāti Haumia ki Te Aro, Taranaki, Te Ātiawa) poetry collection, Kupu Whenua, weaves resilience, resistance and life on her heavily urbanised ancestral lands; the encroaching forces of empire echo through the characters in The Other Catherine by Lauren Keenan (Te Ātiawa ki Taranaki and Te Ātiawa o te Waka o Māui); and Terri Te Tau’s (Rangitāne, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa) The Valley of Unlikely Acquaintances spans 1800s to 2048 following three Māori wāhine scientists restoring their ancestral forest.

In conversation with Matariki Williams (Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Hauiti, Ngāti Whakaue, Taranaki, Te Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi) they discuss the connections between whakapapa, whenua and history, and the ways these relationships continue to shape the present.

Verb's official Festival Bookseller, Unity Books will be on-site bookselling, and the featured authors will be book signing after the event.

This event is part of the 2026 Verb Readers & Writers Festival. Please see verbwellington.nz for more information.

Festival Passes are a great way to save money and enjoy the full festival experience: just $80 for a 4-event pass. They are available until midday Thursday 24 September.

Many thanks to our generous funders, sponsors and members of Verb Community in supporting Verb Readers & Writers Festival 2026.