Cry of the Taniwha

JUNIOR FICTION FINALIST

Cry of the Taniwha
Des Hunt
HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN 978-1-86950-731-2 pb RRP $18.99
Target age 9+

Matt Logan is reluctant to spend the school holidays in Rotorua with his grandmother and new step-grandfather. While there he meets Juzza, who lives over the back fence and wants to join a local gang. When the boys unearth a handcuffed skeleton, together they are thrown into a deadly search for treasure when the local gang boss decides to exploit their find for himself.

Des Hunt lives at Matarangi on the Coromandel Peninsula. He aims to foster young peoples’ natural interest in the science of their surroundings by visiting schools and libraries where he runs workshops and presentations. Des is particularly interested in encouraging ways of using technologies such as digital electronics and DNA chemistry to assist the conservation of New Zealand’s endangered species.