The Sunday Star Times has finally, finally got around to reviewing Sky Dancer, one of the key books of 2003. Reviewer Iain Sharp is positive, but concerned about the accuracy of Ihimaera’s ornithological research:

In one chapter a fantail manages to sever a Caspian tern's jugular with a single peck. From a symbolic point of view, this is stirring stuff - a triumph for the tangata whenua - since the fantail (piwakawaka) is said by some Maori to be Aotearoa's first inhabitant.

But an adult Caspian tern [pictured] stands about 50cm tall and weighs about 700 grams, whereas an adult fantail is about 16cm tall and weighs a mere eight grams. I believe in a fantail victory about as much as I believe Ihimaera (not a large man) could fell Jonah Lomu with one blow. But this is a very minor gripe to make about a 349-page book that's not only an entertaining yarn but full of sly sociopolitical resonances.