Witi Ihimaera will be spilling the beans on his unusual new book Whanau II at two Auckland libraries this month.

Whanau II is the follow-up to Ihimaera’s second novel Whanau, published in 1974. According to the publisher Reed,

Witi has completely revised his original novel, presenting the work from his perspective as a mature writer. This revised edition gains the mature Ihimaera’s stylistic refinements and political awareness yet retains all the aroha and anger that powered the 1974 novel … Ihimaera reveals the tensions between traditional and modern, rural and urban that lie within modern Maori society.

You can find out more tomorrow (Wednesday 2 June) at 12.30 on Level 2 in the Auckland (Central City) Public Library. The event is free.

If that’s not enough notice, pencil Wednesday 9 June into your diary and head over to Takapuna Public Library. This is an evening session from 7 till 9pm: tickets are $10, with refreshments served, to raise funds for the North Shore Libraries Foundation.