Fantasy’s a funny word for the genre of imaginative worlds, considering how many of the places created are the last place anyone would ‘fantasise’ about living in. But naming conventions aside, it’s a beloved genre by many, including your team…
Carly Thomas reviews two non-fiction books for older kids that explore ideas of people and place, and a fun rhyming book for younger readers about some of New Zealand’s native animals. Antarctic Journeys by Philippa Werry (New Holland Publishers) When…
Lucy Black reviews five new picture books that explore ideas of people and place. Join Aroha, Flit, Polly, two boisterous boys and the girls in the kapa haka as they each in their own way show what it is to…
Current picture book publishing in New Zealand is a real mixed bag. There are stories that are just familiar songs in disguise matched with illustrations, stories inspired by real events that have captured the public interest and stories about our…
Writer Steph Matuku reviews two new books for teenagers. Tina Shaw’s manuscript for Ursa won the Storylines Tessa Duder Award for YA Manuscript, and A Place of Stone and Darkness is Chris Mousdale’s first full-length novel. Ursa, by Tina Shaw…
ECE teacher Sara Croft reviews three books for younger readers, two that use humour to engage young readers, and a third which is a gentle introduction to longer storytelling. Encyclopedia of Grannies, by Eric Veillé (Gecko Press) Eric Veillé has…
Jane Arthur reviews an enlightening new book celebrating eight New Zealand writers. Here We Are, Read Us: Women, Disability and Writing is a must-have for every school library and classroom, and there’s no excuses: the book is free! This little…
‘What’s very clear is that the author is writing what she knows, that this place is in her bones.’ Catherine Woulfe devours, reviews and raves about the Sāmoan teen romance trilogy, Telesā by Lani Wendt Young (OneTree House). On the…
Thalia Kehoe Rowden reviews three new mainly factual picture books: two historical stories told from the point of view of animals, and a work of fiction providing an introduction to visiting someone else’s marae. Bess the Brave War Horse, by…
In the wake of the horrific attacks against Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, many parents and teachers are looking for picture books with Muslim characters, to make sure Muslim New Zealanders can see themselves in our books, and so all New…