The Waihorotiu Stream 'Queen Street River' used to run down the centre of Auckland's main road before it was first turned into a canal, and then later diverted into a sewer, where it now flows beneath Queen Street.

The Tales of the Waihorotiu tell the story of another Auckland, one that lives beside and underneath capital investment and economic growth. It captures the hardships and humour of people who are forced to navigate WINZ case managers, homelessness, violence and ill-health.

It is the story of what brings these communities together as much as what drives them apart.

The Tales of the Waihorotiu is Carin Smeaton's first collection of poetry.

"These poems are full of Ulysses-like cartographic wanderings through the byways of inner-city Auckland, creating purely localised, truly New Zealand fairytales.." — Vivienne Plumb