Novel, Fiction, Indigenous, Maori, family, supernatural, Relationships, Gender Issues, Has a movie/show 

A timeless story of the courage of one Maori girl who stood against the tide of tradition and enabled her tribe to reconnect with their ancestral life force.
Eight-year-old Kahu craves her great-grandfather's love and attention, but he is focused on his duties as chief of the Maori in Whangara, New Zealand--a tribe that claims descent from the legendary 'whale rider.' In every generation since the whale rider, a male has inherited the title of chief, but not there is no male heir--there's only Kahu. She should be next in line for the title, but her great-grandfather is blinded by tradition and sees no use for a girl.

Kahu will not be ignored, and in her struggle she has a unique ally: the whale rider himself, from whom she has inherited the ability to communicate with whales. Once that sacred gift is revealed, Kahu may be able to re-establish her people's ancestral connections, earn her great-grandfather's attention--and lead her tribe to a bold new future.