Mandy Hager and Helen Vivienne Fletcher are both Wellington-based writers of YA and other things. Sarah Forster was excited to read Fletcher’s second YA publication, alongside a long-awaited sequel to The Nature of Ash from Hager. Underwater, by Helen Vivienne…
Illustrator and live-drawer Tara Black had a Skype date with Chris Riddell in advance of his appearance in New Zealand for the Auckland Writers’ Festival. They discussed his time as the British children’s laureate, his political cartooning, his inspiration for…
YA dystopian fiction had a massive run a few years back and then everyone got dystopian-ed out. Not me. I love teens saving dismal worlds from horrible dictators and ridiculous laws. It’s all so relevant in today’s uncertain world. And…
Today we’re delighted to introduce Graci Goldhart, a Young Adult writer, diplomat, and one of the founders of #LoveAtFirstChapter, Editor Thalia: Kia ora Graci! After reading your website, I don’t know whether to begin with dogs, coffee, diplomacy, Korean folklore…
1918: Broken Poppies is the fifth and final book in Scholastic NZ’s ‘Kiwis at War’ series, which commemorates New Zealand’s involvement in the First World War. Author Des Hunt based this book on the experiences of two of his uncles who fought in WWI.
Fleur Beale has written over 50 books for children and teens. Her latest novel is Lyla. Here, she lets us in on the amount of time and work that goes into writing, and explains the importance of the editing process…
In 2007, when I first encountered Brian Falkner, he was at the top of the national request list for the Writers in Schools programme, which I ran at the NZ Book Council. He wrote books about sports, about soft drink…
One summer, so many new books. Briar Lawry reviews three fiction books which serve as a reflection of the state of the broader New Zealand middle reader and young adult fiction world. Catch Me When You Fall is a contemporary…
Eileen Merriman’s and Ella West’s latest books were on the bookshop shelves as we headed to the beach this summer. Catch Me When You Fall is for older teens, and is about 17-year-old Alex in Christchurch who is fighting leukaemia…
Weather. We can’t avoid it. And right now, after six weeks of glorious warm weather that we never complained about, no siree Bob no complaining here, Tāwhirimātea has woken and is wreaking havoc. Let’s see what we all know about…