Australian author Inda Ahmad Zahri finds a moment between writing, illustrating, being a doctor, campaigning for social justice and parenting to answer some questions about what inspires her diverse work and just where she finds the time. Nida Fiazi (NF):…
In the first of an occasional series on the people ‘behind the scenes’ of the Aotearoa children’s lit scene, Jane Arthur speaks with Joy Sellen. Joy is the administrator of the NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults and…
Bee Trudgeon attended the ‘Disability Literati’ session at Verb Wellington, to learn more about how children and young people are portrayed in literature and a perceived historical tendency for disabled children to be treated as ‘life lessons, plucky objects of…
Denika Mead recently researched and presented a seminar on the emergence of the ‘new adult’ age category for fiction as part of her studies for the Whitireia Graduate Diploma in Publishing. Here, she asks and explains ‘What is new adult…
Patrick Ness, the revered author of the Chaos Walking trilogy, visited New Zealand last week for events at Verb Wellington and Auckland Writers Festival. Sarah Forster watched his Wellington events and spent thirty minutes having him sign her sizable collection…
Librarian Jess Starr brings us highlights and insights from He Puāwaitanga—Growing Communities, Developing Knowledge and Building Confidence, the School Library Association’s 2024 conference. My tickets were booked, my cardigan was packed. I’d been practising my shushing all week and was…
Illustrator Rebecca ter Borg recently collaborated on her first picture book, The Witch of Maketu, with Anika Moa. She shares a day in her life as a creative with blurred boundaries between work and life… I work from home in…
The Storylines Notable Books for 2024 were announced this morning. Test your knowledge of all books notable here! Questions Answers Storylines Notable Books for 2024 Non-Fiction Dear Moko: Māori wisdom for our young ones, Dr Hinemoa Elder, Miriama Grace-Smith (PenguinRandom…
Nicola Daly is what you’d call a children’s book buff. Officially a sociolinguist and senior lecturer at University of Waikato, she has committed her academic career to children’s literature and language learning. Her latest research looks at how Indigenous voices…
Drawing from the philosophical thoughts of children, letting illustration shape words and the life, hard work and love of an illustrator; Nelson-based illustrator Sabrina Malcolm reflects on meeting three international illustrators at their masterclass. This past September, the windows of…