The Ngati Wai author Paula Morris says her award-winning fictional book Rangatira is the result of eight years of extensive research into her tipuna's life-story.
Her historical novel has topped this year's fiction category at the New Zealand Post Book Awards.
The author says Rangatira was inspired by her ancestor, the Ngati Wai chief Paratene Te Manu, and his visit to England in 1863.
She says she found a short oral history that Te Manu had given in the 1890s, just before he died.
Paula Morris says it is extremely rewarding to be acknowledged for her writing and she feels Rangatira is a special book.
