This is a solid book utterly packed with content and ideas. I tried to just dive in and was overwhelmed. Once I decided to take it a chapter at a time I actually got through it a lot quicker. Each chapter covers one aspect of tikanga Māori, starting with underlying principles and the important concept of tapu, then ceremonial kaupapa like the marae, pōwhiri and tangihanga, as well as compensation, peace-making, and gift-giving, and so forth, and finally how new tikanga can be developed from basic principles in order to deal with new situations like genetic engineering etc. The author acknowledges that tikanga varies from rohe to rohe, as well as over time (tikanga described from the observations of early colonisers is in some cases very different to that practiced now) and at the end of each chapter includes a "Perspectives" section with extended quotes from a variety of sources for extra context and nuance. ( )