Ngāreta Gabel (Te Paatu, Ngāti Kahu) has been writing stories in Māori for her daughter Tekiteora since she was a preschooler. Tekiteora, Kei Hea ō Hū? went on to win LIANZA's Te Kura Pounamu Award in 2003. The book was later translated into the English version titled Oh Hogwash, Sweet Pea! which became a finalist in the Picturebook Category of the New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards in 2004.
Raised in Kawakawa, Northland, Ngāreta now lives in Kaikohe. Her interest in writing stemmed from her passion for encouraging reading, and promoting te reo Māori for children.
Biographical sources
- http://www.huia.co.nz/huia-bookshop/authors/author/95 28 October 2016
Children's literature
- Oh Hogwash, Sweet Pea! Wellington, N.Z.: Huia, 2003