Donovan Bixley

Book List: Books to help Allergy Kids

Between six and eight percent of children in New Zealand live with allergies, according to Allergy New Zealand, with food allergies being the most common. We have asked Pearl Dsilva to put together a list of books that may help…

2018 End-of-Year Shopping List: Junior Fiction

Do you want to be sure you’re getting top-shelf books for your favourite people this Christmas – or on any gift-giving occasion? We are making it easy for you! Here is our selection of the very best New Zealand junior…

Book Reviews: Four Fancy NZ Picture Books

Early Childhood teacher Sara Croft reviews four New Zealand picture books. Two take us on the sea, and the other two feature a plethora of hilarious birds. There’s a Tui in our Teapot – he tūī kei rō tīpāta, by…

Donotello and Roofael in conversation

Two of New Zealand’s most celebrated, funny and prolific author-illustrators let us eavesdrop on a chat they had recently. Here are Ruth Paul and Donovan Bixley, sharing their thoughts about making money, embarrassing art, hard work and hats. They have…

Reviews: Two New Junior Fiction Titles

Sarah Forster reviews of two new junior fiction titles for kids pitched into that tricky junior / middle fiction reading divide. With child-friendly themes and page-turning storylines, both titles are easy to recommend. Dear Professor Whale, by Megumi Iwasa, Illustrations…

Book List: NZ Junior Fiction v The World

Author Sue Copsey explores the world of New Zealand Junior Fiction, discovering plenty of titles that are just as good as the internationals. Our bestseller lists for kids’ books can make frustrating reading if you’re a New Zealand children’s author….

Book Reviews: Books for the very young

Early concept boardbooks and picture books are essential as a way to both teach children language and begin their lifelong love of books. Early Childhood teacher Sara Croft reviews six recent titles, four of which are bilingual in te reo…

Books to Excite English Language Learners

If you’re a teacher, parent or other friendly person supporting children who are learning English, you’ll know it’s tricky to find good books for them, especially if they’re older than five or six. Today specialist teacher Frank Wilson initiates us…

THE SAMPLING: Dinosaur Trouble: The Runaway Coat

The Runaway Coat is Book 3 of the brand new hilarious junior fiction series from the creators of the bestselling Dinosaur Rescue. Mewburn and Bixley have teamed up to create a revolting, funny series for younger readers – prequels to the Dinosaur Rescue books.

Book Reviews: Three Junior Fiction Gems

Each of these three action-packed books has a great cast of characters, some daredevil heroes and is written for kids aged 7+. Sarah Forster found them to be page-turning fun. Lily Max: Sun, Surf, Sea, by Jane Bloomfield (Luncheon Sausage…