When Īhaka answers the loud knocking on the front door, the last person he expects is the Māori god of weather – Tāwhirimātea!

Tāwhirimātea needs Īhaka’s help. He has lost a small but very important cloud. It is needed for a weather event that very evening. Īhaka is pleased to help!

First they visit Tāwhirimātea’s brothers, asking if they have seen the missing cloud.

Tangaroa, god of oceans and all they contain says no.

Tāne, god of the forests tells them he hasn’t seen it.

Rūaumoko, god of earthquakes and volcanoes tells them the same.

Where could the little cloud be? Tāwhirimātea is beginning to get really worried and Īhaka suddenly knows just what to do. He is going to ask the wisest person he knows. His mum!

With a bright, colourful palette and a range of mediums within illustrations throughout the book, Īhaka and the Unexpected Visitor is a delight to read.

It’s not only a mystery to solve, but a great introduction to four important Māori gods.

I love the storyline of powerful gods being stumped with a problem, and main character Īhaka realising he knows someone just as wise and strong – his mum! Sure enough, she has the answer to their mystery.

A well deserving winner of the Storylines 2021 Joy Cowley Award and publication with Scholastic NZ. Also available in te reo – Ko Ihaka Me Te Manuwhiri I Puta Ohorere Mai

Author – Kirsty Wadsworth

Illustrator – Zak Waipara

(2022, Scholastic, Storylines Joy Cowley Award Winner, Māori gods, Atua, NZ, New Zealand, Aotearoa, Family, Mystery, Solution, Cloud, Tāwhirimātea, Tangaroa, Rūaumoko, Tāne Mahuta)