Feana Tu‘akoi

Tu‘akoi, Feana is a writer of fiction and non-fiction, with a background in educational publishing. 

Feana Tu‘akoi was born in Canterbury and raised in the North and South Islands. Tu‘akoi began by writing stories for adults, published predominantly in magazines. She then expanded into the children’s educational market, where her books were translated into various languages, from Samoan to Spanish. She achieves the perfect blend of education and enjoyment for children and adults alike.

Tu‘akoi has over 230 titles to her name and her work, ranging from poems to plays to articles, has appeared in anthologies, on radio and in most media forms. Her mid-grade novel, Lopini the Legend (Scholastic, 2023) won the Storylines Tom Fitzgibbon Award in 2022.

Lest We Forget (Scholastic, 2011), a hard cover picture book published in both English and te reo Māori, was listed as a 2012 Storylines Notable Picture Book.

Her What is a...? science series for children published by Scholastic in 2007 and also available in te reo Māori includes: What is a Bird? (Scholastic, 2007); What is a Reptile? (Scholastic, 2007); What is an Amphibian? (Scholastic, 2007); What is a Fish? (Scholastic, 2007); What is a Mammal? (Scholastic, 2007).

The series was a finalist for the 2008 LIANZA Elsie Locke award and was listed as a 2008 Storylines Notable Non-Fiction Series. What is a Fish? was a finalist in the 2008 NZ Post Book Awards for non-fiction books.

In a review of Freaky Fish (Penguin, 2008), Malcolm McEwen says 'this shows her to be a fiction writer to watch for.' (Storytime Books for Kids website, 5/03/08) The work was listed as a 2009 Storylines Notable Junior Fiction Book.

The Water Fight (Mallinson Rendell, illustrated by Christopher White) is about the unintended consequences of a water fight in the backyard.

Feana was Massey University Writer in Residence in 2022 and a judge for the NZ Children and Young Adults Book Awards in 2023.