Interviews

The Margaret Mahy Questionnaire: Rhys Darby

Holy moly! We’ve got a Mahy Questionnaire from none other than the creator of Buttons McGinty, Rhys Darby! Of course, you may recognise him from the fact that he’s, well, world-famous in New Zealand AND beyond, but a whole lot…

Revitalising The Boy with Two Shadows – Sarah Greig

It’s no secret that we’re big Margaret Mahy fans around these parts. Between our Mahy questionnaire, and being, well, living and breathing humans who love children’s books and live in Aotearoa, it’s kind of a foregone conclusion. An exciting Mahy-related…

Mahy Questionnaire: Ruth Paul

Here’s a fresh instalment of your favourite Margaret Mahy Questionnaire, featuring award-winning author-illustrator Ruth Paul! Her most recent picture book, the third in the Little Hector series, Little Hector Meets Mini Maui, is out now! Without further ado, here’s Ruth…

Finishing the furballs: Donovan Bixley

Donovan Bixley lets the cat out of the bag as he completes his Flying Furballs series. Why did you choose war and spies as the basis for your middle-grade series? Most of my books start from doodling things I love…

Talking to the Team Behind Egg & Spoon

It’s October and boy do we have a treat for you! This month, Gecko Press is releasing an absolutely delectable Aotearoa title that will have your mouth watering and tastebuds tingling! Egg & Spoon, by chef and author Alexandra Tylee,…

Co-interview: James Norcliffe & Bernard Beckett

James Norcliffe and Bernard Beckett are both—among other things—heavy hitters in the chapter book space, telling stories that are thought-provoking, engaging and eminently compelling to read. So with both these chaps releasing new junior fiction titles this September, we thought…

A trio of recent books to help anxious kids

Stories and books can be highly effective tools in helping children identify and manage tricky emotions. Sarah Forster and Nida Fiazi interview author-illustrators Laura Shallcrass, Kieran E. Scott, and Emma Pascoe on the topic of their latest releases: anxiety. Read…

The translation of The Whale Rider

In the year 1995, Te Kaieke Tohorā was published—the Māori translation of the book The Whale Rider. We all know that Witi Ihimaera wrote the original, but Sir Tīmoti Kāretu is the man behind the translation. For a long time,…

Patapatai: Te Whakamāori o Te Kaieke Tohorā

I te tau 1995, i whakaputahia Te Kaieke Tohorā, he whakamāori o te pukapuka The Whale Rider tēnei. Nā Witi Ihimaera i tuhi te pukapuka tūturu, ehara, ā, nā Tā Tīmoti Kāretu i whakamāori. Heoi anō, kāore i taea i…

Shilo Kino and The Porangi Boy

Cassie (J.C.) Hart (Kāi Tahu) met Shilo Kino (Ngāpuhi, Tainui) in July of 2018 as part of the Te Papa Tupu programme. They were gathered at their first mentorship hui with Huia and the Maori Literature Trust. Six nervous writers,…