Teine Sāmoa

by Dahlia Malaeulu

Teine ​Sāmoa means Sāmoan girl. It’s a label that carries with it an unspoken duty to obey, serve and respect your family and Sāmoan culture. But who can be teine Sāmoa? When should you be teine Sāmoa? And how can you be teine Sāmoa outside of Sāmoa?

Lani is an afakasi, and is unsure of her Sāmoan heritage and what being Sāmoan even means. But one thing she knows for sure is that she’s afraid of Vai and the ‘Real Sāmoans’. Masina, the free-spirited daughter of a Church Minister, is bound by parental expectations and struggling to fulfill the destiny set by her parents. Teuila is the good Islander girl and proud teine Sāmoa who realises she doesn’t want to be a ‘switcher’ anymore.

How will these junior high school students learn to be, understand and fulfill their obligations as Teine Sāmoa, living in New Zealand?

Teine Sāmoa is a journey of cultural identity and discovery for four junior high school students, their families, their teachers and, most importantly, anyone who has ever faced the challenges of being a teine Sāmoa.

Now includes study questions for students and The Teine Sāmoa Project – A space created for teine Sāmoa to share their real life stories. Stories that reflect us and help others understand us, so that together, we can better support our tamaiti to succeed as proud teine and tama Sāmoa.

Dahlia Malaeulu is a New Zealand-born Sāmoan who is a passionate educator at heart. She is the author of the ‘Mila’s My Gagana’ series, and wants to enable tamaiti to confidently and proudly succeed as Pasifika. Dahlia is working towards creating accessible quality Pasifika stories and resources that reflect Pasifika values, languages, cultures and – most importantly – our tamaiti.

156 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 24, 2020

Reviews

[Wendy Bamber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of listening to the author present her own journey as a Teine Sāmoa and I particularly love the voices at the end of the book featuring some local real life Teine Sāmoa. The story itself is easy to read and gives us an insight into the world of the eldest child of an islander family living in the pālagi world of New Zealand. Suitable for year 6+ I think but really important reading for all teachers of multicultural schools too.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The voices of our Samoan girls and women are strong here. This is a unique mix of fiction, teacher's notes and the real stories of a group of Samoan woman from Year 8 girls to teachers and professors with years of education experience. It should be essential reading in school libraries.

[Suzesmum · Rating 4 out of 5]

93📱🇼🇸SAMOA/NEW ZEALAND 🇳🇿This is an interesting and important book and it ticked a lot of boxes for me. Written during NZ’s week-long national Covid19 shutdown in 2020, the first part is a story of a young teine Sāmoan (Samoan girl) struggling to fit in to society in New Zealand. As I read my way through the Pacific, this theme of Pasifika peoples fitting in to palagi NZ was strong, whether they be from Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelauor Tuvalu. The tension between looking for a better life and holding on to one’s culture and identity is hard. The second part of the book was born from the author’s Teine Sāmoa Project, and is a rich collection of personal stories of students and teachers. As she writes herself: “I know that it is only through telling our own stories that we can be seen and heard.” Powerful stuff💪🏼#🌏📚#readingworldtour2021 #readtheworld2 #worldliterature #readingworldliterature #reading #readingwomenchallenge #readersofinstagram #readmorebooks #bookstagram #booklover #book #booknerd #bibliophile #travel #travelogue #fiction #nonfiction #nonfictionreads #travelbooks #ayearofreadingaroundtheworld #samoa #newzealand #pasifika #teinesamoa

[Philippa Mulqueen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a teacher in Auckland I found this a great read and recommended the school library get two copies because I know so many of the students will relate to both the fiction dimension and the stories 14 Samoan girls and women told of their experience. It deserves a wide readership among palagi teachers too.

[readswithrosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Teine Sāmoa means Sāmoan girl. It’s a label that carries with it an unspoken duty to obey, serve and respect your family and Sāmoan culture. But who can be a teine Sāmoa? When should you be a teine Sāmoa? And how can you be a teine Sāmoa outside of Sāmoa?’

Teine Sāmoa was first released as an Ebook in May 2020 coinciding with Sāmoan Language Week. The short stories in Teine Sāmoa revolve around four Junior High School students: Lani, the half-caste Sāmoan who is trying to develop an understanding of her Sāmoan side; Teuila - a proud Sāmoan who doesn’t feel that she is being valued and represented within her school; Masina, the Church Minister’s daughter who is struggling with parental expectations; and Vai - who moved from Sāmoa to NZ for a better future, whom they call ‘a real Sāmoan’. Interwoven within the stories of these four teine Sāmoa, are the stories of their parents, families, and teachers. How will these students learn, understand, and fulfill their obligations as teine Sāmoa living in New Zealand?

#RecommendedRead 🇼🇸🇳🇿

[Vaosa Tulaga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Teine Sãmoa was an emotionally powerful story of searching for, and finding, cultural understanding and identity.