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Tania Roxborogh

タニア・ロクスボロウ

Tania Roxborogh

Pen Names: T.K. Roxborogh（Pen name used for some works）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1965-09-01 （Christchurch）
Nationality
New Zealand
Languages
English, Te reo Māori
Religion
Non-denominational Christian
Residence History
Christchurch → Te Puke → Palmerston North → Auckland → Dunedin → Lincoln, Canterbury

Career

Occupations
Teacher, Author
Active Years
1989-2025
Influenced By
William Shakespeare, Māori traditional knowledge, Langston Hughes
Nominations
Shortlisted for New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards (2010, Banquo's Son)

Education

Massey University
Unknown
Period: 1985-1988
Country: New Zealand
Preparation for teaching
Auckland Teachers' College
Education
Degree: Teaching qualification
Period: 1988
Year of Graduation: 1989
Country: New Zealand
University of Otago
Māori Studies
Degree: B.A.
Year of Graduation: 2015
Country: New Zealand
Māori knowledge

Awards

Margaret Mahy Book of the Year
2021
Work: Charlie Tangaroa and the Creature from the Sea
Category: Supreme Award
Organization: New Zealand Book Awards Trust
Result: Winner
Wright Family Foundation Esther Glen Award
2021
Work: Charlie Tangaroa and the Creature from the Sea
Category: Junior Fiction
Organization: NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults
Result: Winner
Book Awards for Children and Young Adults
2017
Work: Bastion Point
Category: Junior Fiction
Organization: New Zealand Book Awards Trust
Result: Winner
LIANZA Awards
2010
Work: Banquo's Son
Category: YA
Organization: LIANZA
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Charlie Tangaroa and the Creature from the Sea

2020 Junior Fiction

A children's adventure story reflecting Māori culture.

Te ao MāoriNatural world

Bastion Point

2017 Junior Fiction

Story about the Bastion Point occupation.

Māori rightsHistory

Banquo's Son

2009 Young Adult

Story based on Shakespeare's Macbeth.

ShakespeareRevenge

Bibliography

  • Performing with Purpose
  • Fifteen Minute Shakespeare
  • If I Could Tell You...
  • Three Funny Plays
  • Twenty Minute Shakespeare
  • Grit
  • Runaway
  • Compulsion
  • English Basics
  • Three Spooky Plays
  • More English Basics
  • Whispers
  • Limelight
  • The Essential Shakespeare Series: The Merchant of Venice
  • The Ring
  • Third Degree
  • Fat Like Me
  • The Essential Shakespeare Series: Macbeth
  • The Essential Shakespeare Series: The Tempest
  • No, It's Not Okay
  • Kids Behaving Bravely
  • Space Gum
  • Banquo's Son
  • Bloodlines
  • Birthright
  • Bastion Point
  • Getting Familiar with Unfamiliar NCEA English Level 1 Workbook
  • Getting Familiar with Unfamiliar NCEA English Level 2 Workbook
  • Serious Fun in English Book 1 Workbook
  • Getting Familiar with Unfamiliar NCEA English Level 3 Workbook
  • Charlie Tangaroa and the Creature from the Sea

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Biographical elementsReflection of te ao MāoriShakespeare adaptations
Recurring Motifs
DreamsImagery of the natural worldMāori whakataukī

Health

  • Third degree burns
    幼少期
    Physical and emotional scarring, subjected to medical experiment.
  • Obesity
    妊娠後-2003年
    Underwent gastric bypass surgery and became advocate for its benefits.

Legacy

Prominent New Zealand children's and YA author known for blending Māori culture with Shakespeare. Multiple award winner.

Quotes

  • Hold fast to dreams for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly...
    Source: Langston Hughes' poem 'Dreams' (1926)

Trivia

  • In 2002, sat the Bursary English exam on a challenge from her Year 13 class.
  • Awarded Dunedin College of Education's Children's Writer in Residence in 2006.
  • Pursuing PhD in Mātauranga Māori, focusing on decolonising Shakespeare teaching.