Picture Books

Book Reviews: New Bilingual Picture Books

The bilingual Simmonds whānau has reviewed two new picture books. Read on to find out what Shirley, Tamihana (10) and Raukawa (9), think about them. You can also read a version of these reviews written in te reo Māori. The…

Ngā Arotakenga Pukapuka: Ngā Pukapuka Pikitia

He arotakenga pukapuka ēnei, mō ngā pukapuka pikitia hou nā Kurahau rāua ko Renee Chin. Nā Shirley Simmonds, ko Tamihana Simmonds (10 ōna tau), rātou ko Raukawa Simmonds (e 9 ōna tau) ngā arotakenga i tuhi. He aha ō mātou…

Book Reviews: New Children’s Titles in Te Reo

This month we have a new te reo Māori title reviewer, Mihi Henare (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Hine, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui), reviewing a new batch of te reo Māori books released during Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori in September. Whakarongo ki…

Book Reviews: New Picture Books from Aotearoa

Here’s the latest in exciting new picture books here in Aotearoa, reviewed by Nida Fiazi – including the debut picture book from The Sapling’s very own co-editor Thalia Kehoe Rowden. There’s tries to score, oceans to clean up, voices to find…

Book Awards: The Picture Book Finalists

As part of our coverage of this year’s NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, we’ve asked the publishers of the picture book finalists to explain why that story caught their imaginations and demanded to be told in published…

Book Reviews: New (mainly) factual picture books

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…

Picture Books with Muslim Representation

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…

Book Reviews: Te Reo & Trilingual Picture Books

Over Summer, my nephews and I read some recently published te reo Māori and bilingual children’s books. Nō Tauranga Moana rāua, Te Kaponga and Mangō-Ururoa are almost 10 and 7 years old respectively and te reo Māori is their first…

THE SAMPLING: The Lonely Little Tree

Here’s an extract from a new New Zealand Christmas picture book, The Lonely Little Tree by Moya Kirby and illustrated by Terri Rose Baynton (Scholastic).

International illustrated hardbacks

Hardcover non-fiction or poetry can be a great choice of gift for the special or hard-to-buy-for child in your life. Here are three gorgeous, recent international books, all themed around nature. I Am the Seed that Grew the Tree: A…