From the inside front cover: "This is a Pacific adventure story - with a difference. When Sina and Mat sail away with their teacher to escape the volcanoes erupting near their home, they are also sailing back through time. To a time when islands were made - at the beginning of the world - a world that is on fire. This unusual and fascinating story will appeal as much to adults as to children. The story is simple but compelling. Is this how it all began?."
Keith Sinclair was one of the authors of our last book, "The Story of New Zealand". He has written another children's book called, "The Reefs of Fire." A little about Keith before we delve into his book.
Keith Sinclair (1922-1993) grew up in Point Chevalier, Auckland, the oldest of 10 children. After war service and studying, he eventually became a history professor at the University of Auckland and is remembered as one of New Zealand's best historians. He was also a poet. "The Ballad of Meola Creek" is a poem about his adventures on the Meola reef, which juts into the Waitematā Harbour. "The Reefs of Fire" is a storybook he wrote later, that turned his poem into prose for children.
The story tells of two young friends, Sina and Mat, who live near the sea with their mothers. They play together all the time and their days are filled with exploring, fishing and boating. One day, the islands erupt and they sail off with their teacher, Sir, to an island to escape and live. They come back to the town to find their mothers have evacuated and the town buried in ash. They find a boy called Peta who has a sack of food, but they lose their teacher. Eventually, the three children sail away again to an island and stay there. They dream of a mysterious boy who can pull the fire out of the sky with a net and fish three new islands out of the sea. They wake up to find everything is new, and they start a new life together on the island.
The book looks like a picture book but the text is long and the author recommends it for 8-12 year olds. The reading level is about this as well. It is beautifully written. There is lots of sailing language, so if your child likes sailing, this is a good book.
The illustrations by David Armitage are stunning, some of the best I've seen in a children's book. The colours are mesmerising. I've included three full-page spreads below. Some pages are full colour, others are black and white sketches. David illustrated "The Lighthouse Keeper's Lunch" which his wife Rhonda wrote in 1977.
I enjoyed the story, but I did find it odd. The children are running from multiple, unsurvivable volcanoes. They're sailing in a wooden boat, in boiling seas, near lava flows, and there is no mention of pyroclastic flows which would've killed them pretty soon after the first explosion. I'm reading this as an adult completely unconvinced. They seem unconcerned for their mother's and teacher's welfare when they go missing. I understand this book is somewhat mythical and what bothers me as an adult would probably go over a child's head. The ending where everything is made new after the fire and the children are the new beginning of a new race, failed to impart any lesson of significance. While the book is beautiful, the writing standard is high, and the story is enjoyable, it fails to leave an impression on me.
Content considerations: God's name is taken in vain once.
The book is rare, but there are copies available online. Book Express is an excellent New Zealand online secondhand retailer. Otherwise, check the link below.
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