Episode 233

#233 - The Imaginary Lives of James Pōneke by Tina Makereti

On this episode we discuss our July 2023 book club pick The Imaginary Lives of James Poneke by Tina Makereti. A coming-of-age story of a Maori boy, armed with a British education and eager to see the world, who ventures to London to be a living exhibit for a British artist's exhibition. It's an epic tale written in the style of Victorian fiction, but told from the perspective of an indigenous youth growing up under colonization.

*Support the podcast by supporting our new Patreon*

Timecodes:

01:45 - Book jacket description

02:40 - First impressions and David Copperfield vibes

06:50 - Hemi's upbringing

08:42 - Theme of aligning yourself with white majority for survival and privileges

11:00 - Hemi’s adoption into a new Maori tribe

11:36 - Empire’s goal of erasing marginalized cultural identities

13:28 - Hemi agrees to become a living exhibit

16:09 - Being tainted by colonization education

17:45 - Hemi's first impression of Victorian England

18:50 - Victorian England’s class divisions

19:17 - The Angus family

21:42 - Hemi’s introduction to other living exhibits

22:40 - Representation matters

25:10 - Intro to Billy Neptune & Henrietta

27:47 - Hemi's sexuality awakening

30:12-31:30 Trigger of SA

31:33 - What is savage and what is civilized?

32:33 - Women's limited rights in Victorian London

35:00 - Hemi’s time as a sailor and camaraderie with non-white crewmen

39:25-40:15 Trigger of SA

40:20 - Life on the margins outside civilization’s watch

43:17- What is home?

47:22 - Ending

50:57 - Hemi meeting a Black doctor and learning about intersectionality

53:08 - Taika Waititi options book for adaptation

  • https://variety.com/2020/film/asia/taika-waititi-piki-films-indigenous-film-tv-colonization-1234691066/

Follow our hosts:

Follow us:

The Books & Boba August 2023 pick is Bitter Medicine by Mia Tsai

This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Read with Jenna Podcast!

In this podcast, TODAY’s Jenna Bush Hager brings you intimate, entertaining, and revealing conversations with her favorite writers. Hear from authors as they share their creative process, their love of books, and what inspires them to share their stories with the world. Join Jenna as she continues her mission to connect readers, create conversations and share her love of reading. Follow ‘Read with Jenna’ for new episodes every week.

Read with Jenna

About the Podcast

Show artwork for Books and Boba
Books and Boba
A book club podcast for books by Asian authors