Common Ground and Shared Stories: A Review of Hannah & Huia

Hot off the press – I finished Hannah & Huia over the long weekend and want to sing its praises IMMEDIATELY.

Hannah & Huia is by Charlotte Lobb, a New Zealand author – I’ve said it once, and I will say it again, please support New Zealand authors! Go out there and buy this book.

This is another of those “don’t judge a book by its cover situations” (huge apologies to the cover designer) but I don’t think the cover of this one makes you want to grab it and read it – so hopefully this review can help convince you instead? (I do get what they are trying to do with the moody cover but it isn’t something that would ordinarily grab my attention). I picked this book up after reading a rave review online myself.

Firstly, a brief synopsis from GoodReads:

“Hannah is in a mental health unit, in shock and rendered speechless following [personal tragedy] (I didn’t want to give it away – it annoys me when a synopsis does this!). She pays little attention to her institutional surroundings as events play and replay inside her head. There is no way out, no way back and no future she can possibly imagine, just an endless, unbearable present. Huia is also there, a long-term resident who lives entirely in her own inner world. Her mutterings, her sleeve-plucking, her foot tapping? Well, that’s just Huia. But who is she? What is her story and why does the mystery of the older women start to play on Hannah’s mind? Gradually drawn out of her won web of misery, Hannah learns to read Huia and Decides to follow the tiny clues back to the source and discover the truth of Huia. In the process, she uncovers the strange bonds that unite them and finds it might, after all, to be possible to save her own life – that families can and should heal. And that Huia may be her path to redemption. Two women, two literally unspeakable tragedies, two families, one powerful and unforgettable story. No one should ever be made to feel invisible. And you are never alone.”

Trigger warnings: this is set in a mental health unit. There are a number of hard topics in this book so please look these up: Suicide. Sexual abuse (basically you name it, it’s in there).

Things I loved about this book:

Relatable protagonist, Hannah: I loved the slow reveal of this character and her story. Maybe I shouldn’t say that I relate to a character in a mental health unit but she is a young mother who has experienced tragedy.

Mention of places familiar to me: I grew up in Ngāruawāhia and Hamilton and there is something quite cool about reading the names of your towns, the street names etc. in books.

Spoiler alert… (don’t read this paragraph if you hate spoilers) This book touches upon the often-heartbreaking issue of babies being taken from young mothers. Partially set in a fictional home for young mothers in Raglan (and yes, I did check whether such a place existed), the story brings to light the practice sometimes referred to as the “baby scoop.” During this period, young mothers were often sent away to these homes to give birth, after which their babies were adopted out in closed adoptions, frequently without the mothers' consent.

Reflecting on this, I am struck by the profound privilege associated with the time and place of your own birth. As someone who had my first child as an unmarried teenager, I find it fascinating—and sobering—to consider that, had I been born just twenty years earlier, I might have been sent to one of these homes. The contrast between my experience and the experiences of those young mothers highlights the huge shift in societal attitudes as well as the impact of historical context on individual lives. I would love to write a book about this one day …

The writing: beautiful, and engaging, and very readable.

The use of Te Reo: more of this please!

Ultimately, this book is about recognising the shared humanity in those who, at first glance, may seem different from us. By taking the time to truly understand and connect with others, we often discover common ground. This book celebrates the bonds that unite us rather than the differences that divide us, highlighting the profound beauty in our shared experiences and connections. Go out and buy this one, because life is too short to read bad books.

P.S Here is the link: https://aotearoabooks.co.nz/hannah-and-huia/