Of the hundreds of children’s books featuring our national bird, here are some all-stars that will help children and adults alike get to know these fascinating creatures better. One of my very favourite books when I was little – I…
The first Annual (Gecko Press) was one of the highlights of the Christmas offer in 2016. So it was with shaky hands and much excitement we accepted an early copy of Annual 2 from co-editor Susan Paris for review. This…
Incredible poet and children’s fiction writer James Norcliffe reviews two books by Gecko Press, translated from the Swedish. Soda Pop is a Swedish classic, first published in Swedish in 1970, and took Norcliffe back to his days listening to The…
Mary Wadsworth, co-owner of the Dorothy Butler Children’s Bookshop in Auckland, reviews four recent non-fiction titles by international authors – Finding Gobi: The True Story of One Little Dog’s Big Journey, about an extreme athlete’s quest to find a dog…
Sarah Forster reviews two recent books, both by debut authors, which are tied together by adventure and its aftermath. Both books go deep inside the emotional experience of dramatic, unpredictable death. Into the White is a retelling for children of…
As part of our coverage of this year’s NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, we’ve asked the publishers of the YA finalists to explain why, and how, they published the books. Their responses are compelling and passionate, and…
Rachel Moore reviews three world-class Kiwi series for readers from around the age of seven: Miniwings by Sally Sutton, Flying Furballs by Donovan Bixley and The Dragon Defenders by James Russell. Make a note of these for any upcoming nieces’…
David Hill explains the pain required to gain in the wild world of book reviewing, and offers his reckons about how we could do it better – and why we should. I had an email a while back, disapproving of…
Earlier this month we published a short excerpt from Pieces of You, a major new YA novel from a debut Kiwi author. We asked Denis Wright, YA novelist and experienced high school English teacher to give us his verdict. Let…
Soon after the 2015 banning controversy in New Zealand, Into the River was purchased by US publisher Polis Books, and will be released in paperback in the US this month. We had YA writer and renowned American book critic Michael…