Hemi Rau was born in Pukekohe and was educated at Taihape Primary School, Helensville Primary School, Parakai Primary School, Pasadena Intermediate, Mt Albert Grammar and Long Bay College in Auckland. Rau continued his studies at Waikato University and graduated with a Bachelor of Social Science in 1985. Rau went to Hamilton Teachers’ College and graduated with a Diploma of Teaching in 1988. He is currently working part-time on a Masters of Management Studies at Waikato University. Rau has worked as a secondary teacher, career consultant and as a Public Servant.
Biographical sources
- Correspondence from Hemi Rau, 5 Feb. 1998.
Fiction
- "What would it have been like...?" Tu Tangata 1 (1981): 35.
- The speaker recalls in a dream his father’s tangi and sadly reflects on what his life might have been if his father was still alive.
Non-fiction
- "The Ngarimu V.C. Essays." Te Kaea: The Māori Magazine 2 (1980): 11-12.
- This winning essay in the Ngarimu V. C. and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarship Fund Boards’ 1979 essay competition focuses on contemporary Māori literature. Rau specifically discusses the work of Patricia Grace and Witi Ihimaera and the presentation of a Māori voice and perspective in New Zealand fiction.