How well do you know classic New Zealand children’s novels? Do you think you could recognise them from their first sentences? Have a go! Answers are at the bottom of the page. 1. ‘When, suddenly, on an ordinary Wednesday, it…
Jackie McMillan is the Children’s Collection Specialist at Dunedin Public Library. She set up a book discussion group especially for adults to discuss themes in Children’s Books about 18 months ago, and here she talks about the group and those…
As part of our coverage of this year’s NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, we asked the five shortlisted authors of the Esther Glen Award for Junior Fiction to explain the story behind their story. Here’s how, and…
New Zealand’s school librarians are passionate, engaged professionals who know how to get students of all ages and reading levels into reading. This, by Adrienne Browne of Te Wharekura o Ruatoki – the longest-running bi-lingual school in New Zealand –…
I’ve long maintained that our Young Adult authors are world class. But I’ve frequently heard that teens have a touch of what our adults apparently have – cultural cringe; an assumption that NZ means boring, ordinary. We need to read…
Kat and Eru are new in town and trying to find their way. Not easy when her mum’s in a relationship with his mum, and he’s not your usual sort of guy: Māori with the palest skin and blond dreads and – strangest of all – no ears. More moon than boy …
Pūtangitangi Walks is a rhythmic new picture book from Stephanie Thatcher, author of last year’s The Other Brother, among other great picture books for young readers. Keep your hands and brain busy with glue, tape and scissors – and have…
Every two weeks we compile, for your browsing pleasure, cool children’s book happenings (and peripherally related news) from around Aotearoa, the world and the internet. Book news from Aotearoa If you’re wondering how to get through another week of school…
One of the lessons of childhood is that not everything has a happy ending. Or a tidy ending. Or an ending that can be understood … Here’s Giselle Clarkson celebrating the inexplicable pull of ambiguity, and those books that invite…
The editor of The Spinoff Review of Books and author of The Man Who Ate Lincoln Road, Steve Braunias reports on what his ten-year-old daughter has been reading lately. Books are like stars shining down on little kids. They lit…