Helpful Score: 1
An Epic Historical NOVEL, February 18, 2003
Reviewer: Pam Hanna "wind star" (Thoreau, New Mexico United States)
...
The story starts in 1839 and spans more than 50 years. It concerns an English sea captain of his times (who nevertheless learned the Maori language), and his sons by his English wife, his Irish mistress and the Maori love of his life.
What bothers me about *Maori* is that it's called an "epic historical fantasy." This is a misnomer since the fantastic elements in it are a matter of historical record. After his epilogue, the author states that,
"Although real and fictional personages mix freely in this tale, the sighting of the death canoe by two separate parties of travelers and the entombment and subsequent rescue and death of the 104-year-old Maori, Tohunga [a shaman] known as Tuhoto, are a matter of historical record."
As is the eruption in 1886 of the volcano Tarawera and the burying of the "eighth wonder of the world", the pink and white limestone terraces that drew sight-seers from all over the 19th century world.
Alan Dean Foster is known primarily as a science fiction writer, so his publishers probably assumed it had to be "historical fantasy." It's an historical novel. Period. I'm amazed that it has received no other Amazon reviews because it's quite simply the best historical novel I've ever read.
Reviewer: Pam Hanna "wind star" (Thoreau, New Mexico United States)
...
The story starts in 1839 and spans more than 50 years. It concerns an English sea captain of his times (who nevertheless learned the Maori language), and his sons by his English wife, his Irish mistress and the Maori love of his life.
What bothers me about *Maori* is that it's called an "epic historical fantasy." This is a misnomer since the fantastic elements in it are a matter of historical record. After his epilogue, the author states that,
"Although real and fictional personages mix freely in this tale, the sighting of the death canoe by two separate parties of travelers and the entombment and subsequent rescue and death of the 104-year-old Maori, Tohunga [a shaman] known as Tuhoto, are a matter of historical record."
As is the eruption in 1886 of the volcano Tarawera and the burying of the "eighth wonder of the world", the pink and white limestone terraces that drew sight-seers from all over the 19th century world.
Alan Dean Foster is known primarily as a science fiction writer, so his publishers probably assumed it had to be "historical fantasy." It's an historical novel. Period. I'm amazed that it has received no other Amazon reviews because it's quite simply the best historical novel I've ever read.
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