RARGH! Whether you like your creatures loud and scary with mouths full of pointy teeth, or small and magic and flittering around your head—or somewhere in-between—the kids-lit canon of Aotearoa has plenty to offer. But how’s your existing knowledge?
1. What are the names of the two taniwha featured in a Pōneke pūrākau retold by Ben Ngaia?
A. Ngake and Kaharore
B. Ngake and Whātaitai
C. Ngake and Pito-one
D. Ngake and Waimapihi
2. What kind of creature ‘does not exist’ in Juliette MacIver and Sarah Davis’ recent picture book?
A. The Grizzled Grist
B. The Whizzled Whist
C. The Phizzled Phist
D. The Twizzled Twist
3. What sort of creatures do Flynn and Paddy defend in the series by James Russell?
A. Phoenixes
B. Griffins
C. Demons
D. Dragons
4. Who owns a sinister bloodcat in Maurice Gee’s Halfmen of O trilogy?
A. Otis Claw
B. Jimmy Jaspers
C. Odo Cling
D. Wise One
5. Which NZ comic artist joined forces with Peter Hillary to hunt for the fantastical in Four Yaks and a Yeti?
A. Ant Sang
B. Kay O’Neill
C. Mat Tait
D. Michel Mulipola
6. Complete the Barbara Else title: Harsu and the…
A. Weremink
B. Wereferret
C. Werestoat
D. Werepossum
7. What sort of creatures are the ‘Miniwings’ in Sally Sutton’s junior fiction series?
A. Fairies
B. Flying horses
C. Cherubs
D. Tiny dragons
8. Where in Aotearoa does Jake find a perfect sealskin in Rachael King’s selkie story?
A. Red Rocks in Wellington
B. Moeraki Boulders in Otago
C. Lion Rock in Auckland
D. Cathedral Cove in the Coromandel
9. Which Margaret Mahy novel features an evil monster in control of the future called The Nennog?
A. The Haunting
B. Kaitangata Twitch
C. The Catalogue of the Universe
D. Maddigan’s Fantasia
10. What’s the stinky name of the main character in Kurahau’s The Smelly Giant?
A. Armpit
B. Toe Jam
C. Snot Head
D. Poo Bum
Answers
1. B
2. A
3. D
4. C
5. A
6. C
7. B
8. A
9. D
10. B