Latest from Books

TVNZ’s Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver: ‘I enjoy chasing the bad guys’

TV reporter on her best & worst stories, guilt, coping & an extract from her first book.

NZ author Deborah Challinor: 'I don’t think I could write a boring woman. I like writing a bitch'

Deborah Challinor on selling millions of books and whether she'll ever publish a memoir.

Book of the day: Two Islands by Ian Kemish

War crimes explored in political thriller's deft blend of fact and fiction.

Ann Packer surveys the best new books for teens, including a retelling of Black Beauty

The nature of the beast is a common thread in Ann Packer's top picks.

Jacinda Ardern a finalist in this year’s Ockham book awards

The shortlist for this year's NZ book awards includes former PM's memoir.

Two taut thrillers pit women against sinister forces and strained relationships

Michele Hewitson reviews two new thriller books to keep readers turning the pages.

Charlotte Grimshaw’s latest novel recalls her excoriating 2021 memoir

This is a book soaked in therapeutic language, the language of damage, shame and recovery.

Nicholas Reid reviews three quite different new poetry collections

New collections from established and emerging local poets.

Book of the day: Crick: A Mind in Motion – from DNA to the Brain by Matthew Cobb

Entertaining, meticulous biography of the flawed scientist who discovered secret of life.

Book of the day: Party Boy by Breton Dukes

Dark-humoured novel explores splintering life of man tormented by his schoolboy antics.

Top 10 bestselling New Zealand books: February 14

There's a new number one on the list of local bestsellers.

Book of the day: Bird Deity by John Morrissey

A premise of alien worlds works best as a lyrical depiction of the human condition.

Book of the day: Against the Machine: On the Unmaking of Humanity by Paul Kingsnorth

An activist’s visionary new work urges a return to ancient thinking on people and place.

Our clothes reveal much about us, so what happens when fashion conformity turns toxic?

Dressing for identity is powerful, but fashion obsession can come at a cost.

Book of the day: Soft Serve by George Kemp

Debut Australian novel has tight focus but predictability and over-familiar ideas fail it.

Seed provides bountiful ground for Elisabeth Easther’s story of fertility struggles

Seed grapples with some big ideas but remains a light-hearted book.