'White Sunday' debut book release by Litea Fuata
"I wanted to write a story that focused on the experiences of Pasifika kids like me. Growing up, there weren’t any books about Pasifika children. Even on TV or in the movies, there weren’t any stories about kids who looked like me." - Litea Fuata
She's about to start work as a cook in a childcare centre and has worked in youth work, aged care and for Oz Harvest rescuing food for charities. Now Litea Fuata can add published author to her resume after her debut childrens book 'White Sunday' was released today (Wednesday 7th Sep 22).
Litea who was born in New Zealand and now lives in Meanjin, Brisbane with her partner and cat says that she's really proud of her first book 'White Sunday' and hopes that young Pasifika readers will walk away with a feeling of being seen and of joy after reading her book.
"White Sunday is such a special event for Samoan kids and I hope it makes Pasifika kids happy and excited to read about it. For non Pasifika readers, I hope they walk away with a feeling of joy and wanting to try sapasui and pineapple pies." says Litea
Litea's roots go back to Lufilufi in Upolu on her mothers side and Sala'iula in Savai'i, Samoa on her fathers side and she is part of a large Samoan family (11 siblings and at least 50 cousins). In 1986 her family moved from Wellington to Logan and lived and grew up in Woodsridge, Queensland.
Later, a friend Litea went to high school with who had been working as an editor with Bright Light Books (an arm of Hardie Grant) asked her if she'd like to write a children’s book about her experiences as a Samoan child growing up in Australia. Although Litea had not written anything before she gave it a go and was lucky enough to have her friend push for White Sunday to be published.
"I wanted to write a story that focused on the experiences of Pasifika kids like me. Growing up, there weren’t any books about Pasifika children. Even on TV or in the movies, there weren’t any stories about kids who looked like me. I saw the same thing for my nieces and nephews – while there was Lilo and Stitch and Moana there weren’t any books by Pasifika authors that spoke to their experiences." Litea explained
"White Sunday is about a little Samoan girl named Sina. While she's waiting for White Sunday to’ona’i she plays a game of hide and seek with her cousins and siblings. When she gets stuck up a tree and is scared to get down, Sina draws from her mana and encouragement from her aiga waiting at the bottom. The book's central themes are mana, resilience, aiga with a healthy dose of food. The story is based on my childhood and a time when I got stuck up a fence at school and the principal had to call my mum to get me down." she continued.
Illustrator Myo Yim who is based in Byron Bay has brought Sina and her family to life beautifully in the book and Litea says she took great care with the story and even included family pictures of Litea's in the background of the illustrations.
When Litea and her family first moved to Logan there wasn’t a large enough Samoan community to celebrate White Sunday. As more Samoans have emigrated to Logan, the community has grown and she has seen her younger sisters and nieces participate in the event.
"I think my favourite memory is seeing my eldest niece dressed in white with her ula lole around her neck and seeing how proud her parents and my Mum and Dad were of her." she says
Litea says it's important for Pasifika people to tell Pasifika stories because they matter and representation matters.
"We deserve to tell our stories like everyone else. It’s important to see yourself and your family in popular culture because that helps you remember where you’ve come from. It also reminds you that your experiences as a Pasifika kid matter and to see kids that look like you and have names like yours.'
There will be an official book launch for 'Whtie Sunday' in West End Brisbane on the 8th of October at 'Where the Wild Things Are' and you can buy/order a copy of the book from any bookstore. Litea has also ensured there are copies of the book available at the Logan City Council, Brisbane City Council and Moreton Bay Council libraries in South East Queensland.
You can also order the book online here
Litea's advice to up and coming writers: "Don’t be scared to tell your story. Remember your mana, remember that your story matters. Also, start writing, once it’s on paper the hardest part is done. Don’t give up, we need your stories."
Follow Litea on instagram here @liteafuatabooks
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