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Bugs
'They call me Bugs. As in Bunny. Yeah I know.' Meet smart, sarcastic, sixteen and stuck in a small town without a driver's license. Bugs has been best mates with Jez forever, they've always been Jez and Bugs, Bugs and Jez. That is until Stone Cold, the new girl, arrives in town. Year 12 was already going to be a challenge without adding spoilt, bitchy Stone Cold to the mix. Why would anyone want to be mates with her? But things are never as they seem on the surface - not the picture perfect postcard views of Taupo, not the drama queen antics of Stone Cold, not the quiet brooding of Jez. Not even Bugs. Now as the future closes in, each will struggle with expectation; either trying to live up to them, or trying to live them down.
250 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2013
5 people are currently reading
207 people want to read
About the author
Whiti Hereaka
8 books82 followersWhiti Hereaka is an award-winning novelist and playwright of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue, Tuhourangi, Ngāti Tumatawera, Tainui and Pākehā descent, based in Wellington, New Zealand.
She teaches Creative Writing at Massey University.
She is the author of four novels: The Graphologist’s Apprentice, and the award-winning YA novels Bugs, Legacy, and her retelling of Kurangaituku.
Legacy won the New Zealand Children’s and Young Adult Book Award for YA fiction in 2019 and Kurangaituku was awarded the 2022 Jann Medlicott Acorn Award for fiction, Ockham New Zealand Book Awards and was long listed for the Dublin Literary Award, 2023.
She was also co-editor of Pūrākau
She teaches Creative Writing at Massey University.
She is the author of four novels: The Graphologist’s Apprentice, and the award-winning YA novels Bugs, Legacy, and her retelling of Kurangaituku.
Legacy won the New Zealand Children’s and Young Adult Book Award for YA fiction in 2019 and Kurangaituku was awarded the 2022 Jann Medlicott Acorn Award for fiction, Ockham New Zealand Book Awards and was long listed for the Dublin Literary Award, 2023.
She was also co-editor of Pūrākau
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
January 31, 2014
I'm very unsure of what to make of this book. It was certainly readable, and unpredictable, and thought provoking. But it was somewhat stereotypical, and also really crass and vulgar in places - a sentence I never thought I would hear myself saying.
Bugs is set in Taupo, New Zealand. A small town, beautiful landscape, lots of tourists. Bugs' single mother Nikki works in hospitality - long hours, low pay. There's no mention or contact with a father, but Nikki's family is close by, a hard working Maori family of farm workers. Nikki knows Bugs is smart, and she has high expectations of her. Bugs herself knows she is smart, but she's an angry, disillusioned teenager. Angry at how unfair life is for her long time friend Jez, with his disinterested mother and abusive boyfriend. Angry at what she sees as a dumbed down curriculum at school, and low expectations of Maori students.
Into the tight knit friendship of Jez and Bugs comes a new girl at school, Stone Cold. Well off, with attitude and drama, Stone Cold throws a rock into the small town pond, and the ripples spread outwards, affecting Bugs' decisions, judgements and world view.
Bugs is not always a sympathetic character. She carries a lot of judgements about the people around her, and like all teenagers makes a number of poor decisions. But the other characters are somewhat stereotypical. Jez, loyal but conflicted with his Once Wee Warriors background; kiwi battler Nikki, who got herself pregnant, couldn't go on to better things but is straight and true and determined Bugs will do better; poor-little-rich-girl Stone Cold, turning to alcohol because her parents give her everything materially and little emotionally. I felt the characterisation let the book down a little bit.
The other concern is the language. The NZ Censor's office has just ruled that Ted Dawe's award winning book Into the River receive a R14 rating. How on earth can it be shelved, displayed or policed in a library? Even if the language and sexual content in the book are realistic, it will be hard to promote the book and use it in schools, or with the type of kids who would see their lives reflected in the story. Which is the situation that this novel will now be in, too. The language in Bugs is full of F and C words, and a lot of sexual imagery spoken of in pretty vulgar teenage expressions. Teachers and librarians are going to have to be very aware of who they recommend the book to. With it's bland white cover with bunnies on, it looks innocuous enough, and a gentle reader may be quite taken aback, and may not read on. Which is a pity, because the book tells a particularly Nz coming of age story, about friendship, expectation and looking below the surface, themes relevant to most young adults.
One more little thing...we have so few books with central Maori characters in them for teens and children. But the ones that do are either historical, or featuring characters from hard scrabble families. I look at Education Minister Hekia Parata, who appears to be comfortable in both Te Ao Maori and an establishment pakeha system and wonder if we could have some books featuring middle class Maori protagonists too please?
Bugs is set in Taupo, New Zealand. A small town, beautiful landscape, lots of tourists. Bugs' single mother Nikki works in hospitality - long hours, low pay. There's no mention or contact with a father, but Nikki's family is close by, a hard working Maori family of farm workers. Nikki knows Bugs is smart, and she has high expectations of her. Bugs herself knows she is smart, but she's an angry, disillusioned teenager. Angry at how unfair life is for her long time friend Jez, with his disinterested mother and abusive boyfriend. Angry at what she sees as a dumbed down curriculum at school, and low expectations of Maori students.
Into the tight knit friendship of Jez and Bugs comes a new girl at school, Stone Cold. Well off, with attitude and drama, Stone Cold throws a rock into the small town pond, and the ripples spread outwards, affecting Bugs' decisions, judgements and world view.
Bugs is not always a sympathetic character. She carries a lot of judgements about the people around her, and like all teenagers makes a number of poor decisions. But the other characters are somewhat stereotypical. Jez, loyal but conflicted with his Once Wee Warriors background; kiwi battler Nikki, who got herself pregnant, couldn't go on to better things but is straight and true and determined Bugs will do better; poor-little-rich-girl Stone Cold, turning to alcohol because her parents give her everything materially and little emotionally. I felt the characterisation let the book down a little bit.
The other concern is the language. The NZ Censor's office has just ruled that Ted Dawe's award winning book Into the River receive a R14 rating. How on earth can it be shelved, displayed or policed in a library? Even if the language and sexual content in the book are realistic, it will be hard to promote the book and use it in schools, or with the type of kids who would see their lives reflected in the story. Which is the situation that this novel will now be in, too. The language in Bugs is full of F and C words, and a lot of sexual imagery spoken of in pretty vulgar teenage expressions. Teachers and librarians are going to have to be very aware of who they recommend the book to. With it's bland white cover with bunnies on, it looks innocuous enough, and a gentle reader may be quite taken aback, and may not read on. Which is a pity, because the book tells a particularly Nz coming of age story, about friendship, expectation and looking below the surface, themes relevant to most young adults.
One more little thing...we have so few books with central Maori characters in them for teens and children. But the ones that do are either historical, or featuring characters from hard scrabble families. I look at Education Minister Hekia Parata, who appears to be comfortable in both Te Ao Maori and an establishment pakeha system and wonder if we could have some books featuring middle class Maori protagonists too please?
June 1, 2021
Rating: 3.5 stars
I am all for supporting local authors (and for me that just means ones in the same country as me), but the thing about NZ authors is they tend to write NZ fiction. Almost exclusively. Yes, there are obvious exceptions, but when you look at the most famous, or the highest praised, they are pretty much always this same brand of small town vibe with commentaries on poverty, race, culture, and indigenous peoples. And these are all really important things to talk about, and they should most certainly continue to be published, but I just find that whenever I want to support a NZ author, I'm reading the same thing. That's great for someone who loves this type of literary fiction, but for me whose nerdy scifi fantasy loving heart needs books to satisfy that craving, I am more often than not having to look outside my home country to find them.
That's basically what happened with Bugs. It was well written, entertaining, had an important message to get across. In other words, Kiwi fiction through and through. Good, great even, but not my personal taste, nor what I reach for 99% of the time.
I am all for supporting local authors (and for me that just means ones in the same country as me), but the thing about NZ authors is they tend to write NZ fiction. Almost exclusively. Yes, there are obvious exceptions, but when you look at the most famous, or the highest praised, they are pretty much always this same brand of small town vibe with commentaries on poverty, race, culture, and indigenous peoples. And these are all really important things to talk about, and they should most certainly continue to be published, but I just find that whenever I want to support a NZ author, I'm reading the same thing. That's great for someone who loves this type of literary fiction, but for me whose nerdy scifi fantasy loving heart needs books to satisfy that craving, I am more often than not having to look outside my home country to find them.
That's basically what happened with Bugs. It was well written, entertaining, had an important message to get across. In other words, Kiwi fiction through and through. Good, great even, but not my personal taste, nor what I reach for 99% of the time.
November 20, 2020
MĀORI GAL TEEN PROTAGONIST? YES PLEASE. This book has done a really stunning job of capturing the way teens talk to each other in a realistic way. I've never read a portrayal as accurate, teens - espesh gen z have such a dark sense of humour, say ignorant shit and are learning SO MUCH and often are saying the wrong thing. Usually these things get censored out of books but not here - I will say there is the R word ableist slur, and a lot of TW: selfharm jokes which I always find alarming to read however it is also accurate to how teens talk. I'm officially obsessed with Whiti Hereaka and will forever read all the work by her I can get my hands on
December 31, 2014
Bugs – Whiti Hereaka
Young Adult, NZ fiction. Five stars.
I think Bugs may well be one of the most believable, angry, perverse, defensive and clever adolescent characters I have read, in quite some time. She’d be bloody hard to have around, but you’d have to admire how staunch she is, not that she’d care. And don’t bother trying to pull the wool over her eyes. She’s already decided what she thinks of you, and most likely you’re not going to get a Christmas card any time soon.
Bugs, and her mate Jez, live in picture perfect Taupō. But, as Bugs points out, it’s not really perfect:
‘I’m walking home from work. Mum likes to make out like I’ve earned her trust back, but I reckon it’s because she’s working late and Uncle can’t be arsed. So I get to walk home unsupervised – big whoop – like I’m some seven-year-old. But it’s the only chunk of freedom I’ve been allowed these holidays, so I’ll take it. And it’s kind of nice to wander home; it’s warm in the afternoon but not too hot yet. It’s that funny time in spring when the world seems confused: daffodils and snap frosts, lambs born too early dying in the cold. That time when you can sit at the lakefront in just a t-shirt and look at the mountains still frozen with snow and think it’s like a postcard – but then the mountains remind you that they’re real: the wind changes and their cold breath chills you.’
And a lot of this is what the book is about – the conflict of expectation and reality, rich and poor, poor and poorer, youth and age, surface and depth, good and bad, absolute and relative, what-I-see and what-you-see. The setting of volcanically active Taupō, with its volcanoes angry below a cracked surface of boiling mud pools and geysers, is a brilliant metaphor for adolescence and adds to the feeling that something is going to blow at any time. Lake Taupō was formed by a volcanic explosion, and Ruapēhu is still actively rumbling.
Bugs, like any teenager, is a bundle of conflicts. She’s clever enough to question the adults around her, and to examine the school system, actually every system, and find it very much wanting. But she’s also quick to judge, and decide what others believe and think. That adolescent ‘don’t judge me, but I’ll judge you.’ She’s angry. A lot. But she’s also vulnerable. Jez is her best mate and has been for ever, and now Stone Cold, the new rich chick in town, is trying to get in on the act. Bugs trusts no-one, but she especially doesn’t trust Stone Cold, who seems to have everything and value nothing.
Bugs resents the way the school tries to ‘motivate’ Māori youth:
I was barely older than that kid, that time the teachers rounded up all us kids – actually rounded us up – no shit, it was like the teachers were header dogs…Anyway, there’s all us kids – OK Māori kids – rounded up for a seminar on Māori ‘achievement’. What it really was – a bunch of loser seniors saying how hard they’d worked to pass. Just pass. And then they hit us over the head with statistics about how most of us would fail; most of us would amount to sweet F.A. And it was supposed to be motivating.
Bugs is determined to do things her way. But that doesn’t mean she always manages to. She gets sucked into the vortex of bad decision making, lots of times. For the right reasons and the wrong reasons. And she’ll try to prove to you why she’s right, even when she knows she’s skating on thin ice. And don’t try to predict the outcome, because she’ll write her own script, thanks very much.
Congratulations, too, to Huia Publishing, who have made this book a pleasure to hold and read in hard copy. The spine feels strong and flexible, the pages are a good quality paper, and space is given between chapters to reflect – not that you want to pause, because the plot is compelling and drives you on. I think that the white and black of the cover, with its shot of red are superb. But I especially like the back, with the voice of Bugs already defined and strong:
‘They call me Bugs. As in Bunny.
Yeah, I know.’
Without wanting to labour it, that all of the words except ‘I know’ are written in red (on white) with I know written in black, we already have a flavour of the character to come – who are ‘they’? The emphasis on I know – at once linking the reader (we know it’s dumb) and separating the reader (she doesn't know what I think) – ‘knowing’ is such a tenuous concept in this book.
There is so much to say about this book, but you’d be better off reading it. Be prepared to be challenged and to be richer for the experience.
I don’t think that my Year 11 son’s English teacher will use this as a text – although she should, and I could be judging unfairly, but its language and blatant sex talk may challenge their boundaries. No actual sex, though, for those who are worried.
This is a vastly superior coming of age novel to any I have read in a long time. It is well deserving of a short listing for this year’s NZ Post Children’s Book Awards…I just wish they would properly sort their categories – because I would recommend (not censor – an important discrimination) this book for 14yrs+.
Young Adult, NZ fiction. Five stars.
I think Bugs may well be one of the most believable, angry, perverse, defensive and clever adolescent characters I have read, in quite some time. She’d be bloody hard to have around, but you’d have to admire how staunch she is, not that she’d care. And don’t bother trying to pull the wool over her eyes. She’s already decided what she thinks of you, and most likely you’re not going to get a Christmas card any time soon.
Bugs, and her mate Jez, live in picture perfect Taupō. But, as Bugs points out, it’s not really perfect:
‘I’m walking home from work. Mum likes to make out like I’ve earned her trust back, but I reckon it’s because she’s working late and Uncle can’t be arsed. So I get to walk home unsupervised – big whoop – like I’m some seven-year-old. But it’s the only chunk of freedom I’ve been allowed these holidays, so I’ll take it. And it’s kind of nice to wander home; it’s warm in the afternoon but not too hot yet. It’s that funny time in spring when the world seems confused: daffodils and snap frosts, lambs born too early dying in the cold. That time when you can sit at the lakefront in just a t-shirt and look at the mountains still frozen with snow and think it’s like a postcard – but then the mountains remind you that they’re real: the wind changes and their cold breath chills you.’
And a lot of this is what the book is about – the conflict of expectation and reality, rich and poor, poor and poorer, youth and age, surface and depth, good and bad, absolute and relative, what-I-see and what-you-see. The setting of volcanically active Taupō, with its volcanoes angry below a cracked surface of boiling mud pools and geysers, is a brilliant metaphor for adolescence and adds to the feeling that something is going to blow at any time. Lake Taupō was formed by a volcanic explosion, and Ruapēhu is still actively rumbling.
Bugs, like any teenager, is a bundle of conflicts. She’s clever enough to question the adults around her, and to examine the school system, actually every system, and find it very much wanting. But she’s also quick to judge, and decide what others believe and think. That adolescent ‘don’t judge me, but I’ll judge you.’ She’s angry. A lot. But she’s also vulnerable. Jez is her best mate and has been for ever, and now Stone Cold, the new rich chick in town, is trying to get in on the act. Bugs trusts no-one, but she especially doesn’t trust Stone Cold, who seems to have everything and value nothing.
Bugs resents the way the school tries to ‘motivate’ Māori youth:
I was barely older than that kid, that time the teachers rounded up all us kids – actually rounded us up – no shit, it was like the teachers were header dogs…Anyway, there’s all us kids – OK Māori kids – rounded up for a seminar on Māori ‘achievement’. What it really was – a bunch of loser seniors saying how hard they’d worked to pass. Just pass. And then they hit us over the head with statistics about how most of us would fail; most of us would amount to sweet F.A. And it was supposed to be motivating.
Bugs is determined to do things her way. But that doesn’t mean she always manages to. She gets sucked into the vortex of bad decision making, lots of times. For the right reasons and the wrong reasons. And she’ll try to prove to you why she’s right, even when she knows she’s skating on thin ice. And don’t try to predict the outcome, because she’ll write her own script, thanks very much.
Congratulations, too, to Huia Publishing, who have made this book a pleasure to hold and read in hard copy. The spine feels strong and flexible, the pages are a good quality paper, and space is given between chapters to reflect – not that you want to pause, because the plot is compelling and drives you on. I think that the white and black of the cover, with its shot of red are superb. But I especially like the back, with the voice of Bugs already defined and strong:
‘They call me Bugs. As in Bunny.
Yeah, I know.’
Without wanting to labour it, that all of the words except ‘I know’ are written in red (on white) with I know written in black, we already have a flavour of the character to come – who are ‘they’? The emphasis on I know – at once linking the reader (we know it’s dumb) and separating the reader (she doesn't know what I think) – ‘knowing’ is such a tenuous concept in this book.
There is so much to say about this book, but you’d be better off reading it. Be prepared to be challenged and to be richer for the experience.
I don’t think that my Year 11 son’s English teacher will use this as a text – although she should, and I could be judging unfairly, but its language and blatant sex talk may challenge their boundaries. No actual sex, though, for those who are worried.
This is a vastly superior coming of age novel to any I have read in a long time. It is well deserving of a short listing for this year’s NZ Post Children’s Book Awards…I just wish they would properly sort their categories – because I would recommend (not censor – an important discrimination) this book for 14yrs+.
June 2, 2014
Realistic teen fiction, well written, well judged, from a writer who has obviously really listened to teenage conversation. It isn't stilted in any way and although it is full of language which will make some people cringe I felt that it was expertly judged. I think it sits in the senior section of the library but it has such a great tone and the main characters are so relatable that it will have appeal to lots of kids. A quiet story about what it is like to be making decisions as your school life comes to an end, the friendships, family expectations and the pressure that can seem ever present as the future looms before you. Highly recommended.
August 19, 2017
A coming of age story centred around a Māori teen with a lot of honesty, grit and growth. I liked how this book took an unfiltered approach to a teen's reflection on society's assumptions.
Bugs realistically dives into the friendships, family relationships and perceptions of the future from the perspectives of three teens with divergent lives.
*Will link to Anjulie's book review later on for a Māori perspective on representation that resonates with them.
CW Notes: Some characters experience racism and domestic violence. Also, CW for internalised ableism and unchallenged homophobia.
Bugs realistically dives into the friendships, family relationships and perceptions of the future from the perspectives of three teens with divergent lives.
*Will link to Anjulie's book review later on for a Māori perspective on representation that resonates with them.
CW Notes: Some characters experience racism and domestic violence. Also, CW for internalised ableism and unchallenged homophobia.
May 31, 2014
This is a superb story for adults of any age. Whiti Hereaka has delivered an authentic teenage NZ voice in Bugs which will resonate with teenagers across the country and around the world. This novel pulls no punches. The language is in your face and the innuendo will make those old enough to be Bug's parent cringe but for 16-18 year olds, they will feel like Bugs is talking directly to them. Read it! I certainly hope Bugs wins best Young Adult category in August.
May 5, 2014
You can't hate on Bugs, even if you wanted to. A beautiful story of frustrated younghood filled with bittersweet and hilarious moments. The characters are what make this book such a joy to read. Real, tangible, and ever memorable.
July 29, 2015
This book was just so real and honest.
June 19, 2022
Ughhh so boring
February 19, 2022
Brilliant. Truly unique voice.
February 12, 2021
The first of my read-around-the-Pacific, from NZ, a delightful but not romanticised story of 3 teenage kids, 2 Maori, in a smallish town in NZ. I think Taupo, although it was never named. Bugs (from Bunny, as she is always sniffing) is a clever girl, daughter of a single mother, trying to get it right and mostly succeeding. Her extended family is involved, and when she gets into trouble, her punishment is to work as a cleaner in the hotel where her mother has worked her way up to being the housekeeper in 'black and white'. Her best mate Jez, has a very violent stepfather and an ineffectual mother. Even though he has great talent as an artist, he sees no way he can make anything of this, and leaves school early to get a job and away from home. Bugs tries to help hm see a wider horizon, and give him somewhere to run too, but it is too big a job for a 15yo. And then there is Fox, the new arrival. Her family has money, and she distributes largesse (phones, alcohol, she has a car) that is unbelievable to both the other kids and their parents. But her parents are distant, and we learn why she has been shifted from school to school. I found her unlikeable even though she was in a difficult place...manipulative, blind to the issues for others, trying to break Bugs existing loyalties.
I'd like to read more of hers.
I'd like to read more of hers.
May 11, 2014
A finalist in this year's senior section of the New Zealand Post Children's book awards, this book is well worth a read. Definitely senior fiction: if it was a movie it would have at least an M rating although nothing that happens is out of place in the context of the story and the hard lives these teens lead.
Set in Taupo, it follows part of a school year for two old friends, the narrator Bugs and her friend-forever Jez, Jez and Bugs have known each other their whole lives and Bugs can't see a time when he will not be there, dependable and staunch. Both of them live with their solo mums. Bugs has a mother who is hardworking and focussed on making a better life for them both. Jez's mum gets by with a succession of boyfriends, each as hopeless as the last. Into this mix comes new girl Charmaine, the girl who seems to have it all: two parents, a flash house and all the consumer items she could wish for.
Bugs is an engaging narrator, a girl with intelligence and an analytical eye for the world around her. Contemporary New Zealand comes in for a knock at times as Bugs goes through life but the events in the novel lead her to new conclusions and directions. It's a tough read at times but a rewarding one.
Set in Taupo, it follows part of a school year for two old friends, the narrator Bugs and her friend-forever Jez, Jez and Bugs have known each other their whole lives and Bugs can't see a time when he will not be there, dependable and staunch. Both of them live with their solo mums. Bugs has a mother who is hardworking and focussed on making a better life for them both. Jez's mum gets by with a succession of boyfriends, each as hopeless as the last. Into this mix comes new girl Charmaine, the girl who seems to have it all: two parents, a flash house and all the consumer items she could wish for.
Bugs is an engaging narrator, a girl with intelligence and an analytical eye for the world around her. Contemporary New Zealand comes in for a knock at times as Bugs goes through life but the events in the novel lead her to new conclusions and directions. It's a tough read at times but a rewarding one.
October 27, 2014
Finally. A New Zealand coming-of-age story that really rings true. Told with great humour and empathy, and understands that we really never know what other people's lives are like - even those of our closest friends and family. I loved it. Even though I got funny looks when I was reading the parts set in the school classroom - the depictions of the teachers made me snort. So accurate and so funny!
November 30, 2014
I can see why this novel was a finalist in this year's Children's book awards. I really liked Bugs. She has lots of challenges to face as she makes decisions about her future and the kind of person she wants to be. This novel is gritty and realistic. It does include plenty of bad language, but is a great read for senior students.
October 20, 2019
This is a masterpiece of first-person narration. Bugs, Jez and Stone Cold are some of the greatest characters in NZ Young Adult fiction. Hereaka is loyal to her characters and doesn't hold back. Their world is what it is. I feel that I know these people and that I can see Taupo through Bugs' eyes.
April 9, 2022
Bugs tells the story of the developing friendship between three teens from a small-town New Zealand: Bugs, Jez, and Stone Cold. Bugs struggles with the weight of expectations that comes from being a daughter, friend, student, and just from being Māori. Her angry and judgmental demeanor only speaks to the hardships of her life. Bugs is what can be seen as the stereotypical teen who seems to think she knows all; however, as the story progresses, Bugs begins to lose that delusional and see the world for what it is. With her sharp tongue and no-filter characteristics, Bugs exemplifies what it is to be a teen. The novel explores themes of family, friendship, and the expected exploration of identity.
Personally, this wasn't a novel which I could really dive into and enjoy. Hereaka's use of graphic descriptions and constant implementation of crass words can be a bit off-putting to someone not usually exposed to this. I felt that Hereaka's diction is not very fitting for YA. However, I have to give credit to such an original and raw character. Bugs' honestly and blatant nature was refreshing and truly portrayed the characteristics of a frustrated teen. It follows a moving story and development of character. Still, the writing is not something I personally found enjoyable. I'm sure this novel can still be enjoyed by many but be warned of the blunt (but realistic) descriptions in the book!
Personally, this wasn't a novel which I could really dive into and enjoy. Hereaka's use of graphic descriptions and constant implementation of crass words can be a bit off-putting to someone not usually exposed to this. I felt that Hereaka's diction is not very fitting for YA. However, I have to give credit to such an original and raw character. Bugs' honestly and blatant nature was refreshing and truly portrayed the characteristics of a frustrated teen. It follows a moving story and development of character. Still, the writing is not something I personally found enjoyable. I'm sure this novel can still be enjoyed by many but be warned of the blunt (but realistic) descriptions in the book!
May 28, 2024
Bugs is a 16 year old Māori girl. Her best friend is Jez. It’s always been the two of them. Bugs and Jez, Jez and Bugs. Now Stone Cold has started at their school and has taken an interest in Jez. What unravels is varying social commentaries on friendships, class and race.
This book was rough for me to start with, yes I eat meat, but hearing about animals being murdered is something I struggle with, which occurs to rabbits in this book. What started unfolding became a book I struggled to put down. The expectations of success and failure because of who you were born into the family of, something I struggle to appreciate as different from my white and privileged family I was born into. If you can handle a first person written story from a 16 year old, get onto this book as quick as you can!
4.5⭐️
This book was rough for me to start with, yes I eat meat, but hearing about animals being murdered is something I struggle with, which occurs to rabbits in this book. What started unfolding became a book I struggled to put down. The expectations of success and failure because of who you were born into the family of, something I struggle to appreciate as different from my white and privileged family I was born into. If you can handle a first person written story from a 16 year old, get onto this book as quick as you can!
4.5⭐️
June 11, 2025
"It's what I expect for me."
I'm gonna be honest, I HATED this book for most of it. I didn't like the characters or the plot or just anything about it really, but by the end, it had begun to grow on me.
I don't think the point of this book is to have loveable characters, it's more to challenge your idea of what people are like in real life. This is a story of a girl who has been given a terrible hand in life, and who constantly faces challenges from everyone around her, but is still so strong.
She is weird and mean and caring and focused on her future and so so strong.
So was this my favourite book? No. But I did end up enjoying far more than I thought I would.
I'm gonna be honest, I HATED this book for most of it. I didn't like the characters or the plot or just anything about it really, but by the end, it had begun to grow on me.
I don't think the point of this book is to have loveable characters, it's more to challenge your idea of what people are like in real life. This is a story of a girl who has been given a terrible hand in life, and who constantly faces challenges from everyone around her, but is still so strong.
She is weird and mean and caring and focused on her future and so so strong.
So was this my favourite book? No. But I did end up enjoying far more than I thought I would.
February 22, 2022
An utterly brilliant book. This is what YA, especially NZ YA, should aspire to.
I wish I'd read this when I was 16 or 17 - the protagonist's intelligent inner musings about being a teenager, but then saying and doing impulsive, foot-in-mouth things, are so perfect.
I wish I'd read this when I was 16 or 17 - the protagonist's intelligent inner musings about being a teenager, but then saying and doing impulsive, foot-in-mouth things, are so perfect.
August 1, 2023
It's alright. It was entertaining enough that I didn't get hopelessly bored, but not much happens. I think the main appeal is that it's relatable, but I personally didn't connect with any of the characters very much so I didn't get much out of it.
January 6, 2021
So nostalgic and smart and captures the voice of a clever, naive, frustrated teenager so beautifully
March 10, 2022
Fresh, new voice. This story was pretty well perfect. Life choices, picking your path, the important moments.
Read
August 16, 2022
Trigger & Content Warnings
Racism
Queermisia
Internalised ableism
Domestic violence
Racism
Queermisia
Internalised ableism
Domestic violence
January 2, 2024
I really enjoyed reading this through Bugs’ eyes. It was readable and familiar but still challenging and tragic. I feel like I need closure!!
May 21, 2024
why did the end make me cry this is literally just a book for school
May 20, 2025
Good read, good writing. Not a build to a climax, but a look into teen life. Made me think about growing up Maori, the disadvantage by birth.
October 4, 2025
I actually was enjoying it which was unexpected and then the ending was absolutely horrible.
January 1, 2017
This story follows teenage decisions and consequences as well as questioning what makes a supportive family. I love the interactions with the extended family at the farm, especially Uncle. "You're my niece. She's my sister...Other people ask each other 'how are you' and don't really care about the answer, eh? We care, Bugs. You think about that." (171) It follows three teens from very different backgrounds. I guess it shows that everyone can have problems and friends can be found in the unlikeliest places.
The following were key quotes as they each point to three significant developments revealing some mischievous incidents: "Jez opens his arms like he's saying, Just do it..." (76) "I didn't want to be a princess, Bugs." (182) "...if you're not welcome day after day, why would you stay?" (203)
Despite all the hurt, there's a lot of humour entwined in dark times, actually from the first page. "I tried to change my name to Rāpeti" (1) which appeals to the kiwi audience who will remember the song 'Oma Rāpeti'.
There's even advice for teachers: "They're not making history or inspiring a generation; they're more in Oscar speech territory - where no one cares what you have to say..." (129)
I kind of struggled with one thing...I constantly felt like Bugs ought to have been a boy, my bad.
The following were key quotes as they each point to three significant developments revealing some mischievous incidents: "Jez opens his arms like he's saying, Just do it..." (76) "I didn't want to be a princess, Bugs." (182) "...if you're not welcome day after day, why would you stay?" (203)
Despite all the hurt, there's a lot of humour entwined in dark times, actually from the first page. "I tried to change my name to Rāpeti" (1) which appeals to the kiwi audience who will remember the song 'Oma Rāpeti'.
There's even advice for teachers: "They're not making history or inspiring a generation; they're more in Oscar speech territory - where no one cares what you have to say..." (129)
I kind of struggled with one thing...I constantly felt like Bugs ought to have been a boy, my bad.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2014
There are many things to love about this book - the characters and language are so realistic and although there is no great drama, it flows nicely and is hard to put down as the relationships between the characters hook you in. I liked the contrast between Jez's understated but defiant attitude towards his family and Stone Cold's overly dramatic, ignorant, manipulative personality with the fragility beneath. The way the author portrays the resilient, caring attitude of Bugs' Mum and her determination to have Bugs have a different life and the subtle shifting undercurrents of Jez and Bugs' relationship as it moves from friendship to potentially something more is excellent.
Stone Cold's attitude towards and growing dependence on alcohol is carefully portrayed, but Jez and Bugs have a pretty casual, ambivalent attitude towards drugs - this is my only reservation about the novel (although acquiring the drugs is seen as dodgy and illegal). Lastly, I personally like the cover, but I don't think it is that appealing for teenagers. I can't think of one book that has a Maori girl on the front, and this would have been a perfect opportunity.
Stone Cold's attitude towards and growing dependence on alcohol is carefully portrayed, but Jez and Bugs have a pretty casual, ambivalent attitude towards drugs - this is my only reservation about the novel (although acquiring the drugs is seen as dodgy and illegal). Lastly, I personally like the cover, but I don't think it is that appealing for teenagers. I can't think of one book that has a Maori girl on the front, and this would have been a perfect opportunity.
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