1. Gangster’s Paradise by Jared Savage (HarperCollins)
Leaping back to the very top of the charts in this beachy-est of seasons is NZ Herald reporter Jared Savage’s latest tale of local mobsters. It follows Gangland, an exploration of how organised crime in New Zealand evolved in recent years, particularly around illegal drugs. His new book explores, in that fast-paced, breathless, newspaper style, how it has escalated – more drugs, more shootings, more corruption – driven by the arrival of “501″ deportees from Australia. Gangs have grown and new ones have sprung up, bringing a harder edge to the scene, he writes. “They have better connections with international drug syndicates, better criminal tradecraft and encrypted communications, and are more willing to use firearms to enforce their will.” Existing gangs have responded in kind, escalating their approach and making life harder for police, who have had to get more innovative and sophisticated to try to counter the threat.
2. Untouchable Girls by Jools & Lynda Topp (A&U)
The memoir of our beloved Topp Twins has remained close to the top of the bestsellers since it was released last October. As their interview with the Listener notes, when putting this together they “made a list of significant periods in their lives, then worked their way through it non-chronologically. Eventually, they had 31 chapters that recall how the Waikato farm girls ran away to the army, stayed on in Christchurch, and found a new home among the increasingly vociferous local lesbian community, turned their country music-honed voices into protest songs … then somehow, via the magic of television, abundant charisma and their array of characters, became beloved mainstream entertainers. Oh, and in chapter 23, cancer.” Also in the book is a topic largely uncanvassed: the sisters’ sometimes roller-coaster love lives during the decades.
3. Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton (Te Herenga Waka University Press)
Back in the top half of the top 10 is Eleanor Catton’s literary thriller, the highest-selling local novel for the past year, hands down. The story of a dastardly billionaire tech mogul doing bad things in the middle of the South Island, using a guerrilla gardening collective as cover, is many things. It is a genuine thriller, with deception and intrigue, chases by thugs and drones, and has an incendiary finale that – slight spoiler – veers towards horror. It’s a character study too, of several people, including the idealistic gardeners, a wannabe journalist, and our rich intruder, and contains within it a critique of left-wing politics and of New Zealanders, particularly our tendency to be complacent and even naive about corruption and bad actors.
4. The Abundant Kitchen by Niva & Yotam Kay (A&U)
In which the owners of the quarter-acre Pākaraka Permaculture Garden in the Coromandel share their recipes and know-how of “pickles, preserves, sourdough, kombucha, cured meats, yoghurt, vinegar and all kinds of ferments”. There’s also ginger beer and koji. There are 100 recipes, offering step-by-step instructions and clever tips and techniques, infused with Middle Eastern flavours.
5. Bookshop Dogs by Ruth Shaw (A&U)
The author of the bestselling The Bookseller at the End of the World, which was about life and retailing in her bookshops in Manapōuri, in the southwest of the South Island, turns her attention to the dogs that visit. These are the hounds of locals and those who are holidaying or just passing through. Among them is Hunza, the German shepherd that worked alongside Shaw when she was a youth worker helping troubled teenagers.
6. The Art of Winning by Dan Carter (Penguin)
Back in the top 10 is the former All Black No 10′s deep dive into leadership, strength and resilience.
“For me, a growth mindset is simply the idea that we believe we are capable of being better than we were yesterday, and that we strive to make that improvement each and every day, so that it becomes habit. It often seems to come naturally to us as children, but as we get older, we need a growth mindset just as much if we’re to constantly evolve and improve. If we’re at all serious about achieving our potential then it’s absolutely vital. But without our childhood innocence, that natural learning curve we’re all on as children, it can be more challenging. We have to approach it in a more conscious, concerted way. So, when I walked off the pitch with that thought, I want to be an All Black great, I needed to also ask myself: OK, so what does an All Black great do?”
7. Aroha by Hinemoa Elder (Penguin)
Hinemoa Elder’s primer to the wisdom of Māori proverbs was published four years ago and is still making its way into the top 10. A sample:
Ko te mauri,
he mea huna
ki te moana.
The life force is hidden in the sea.
Powerful aspects of life are hidden in plain sight.
This whakataukī stems from one of our famous ancestors from the north, Nukutawhiti. He cast his kura, his feathered cloak, into the Hokianga Harbour to calm the waters for safe passage. And this treasure remains there, out of sight, yet signifies the ancient presence of those who have gone before.
This saying has given me strength so many times. I have always found it comforting because it speaks to the hidden magic of life.
It reminds me of those things we feel intuitively but often ignore – we can choose to tune in to our gut instinct, for example, or wait until the messages become clearer and more obvious.
And it reminds me that we all have hidden powers inside us that we can too easily forget.
8. The Dressmaker and the Hidden Soldier by Doug Gold (A&U)
Back too in the top 10 is this perfect beach-read local thriller – it’s categorised as non-fiction, but it’s in the style of a novel – about the bold escape of a Kiwi prisoner of war, a Resistance heroine and a young Greek dressmaker, written by former radio mogul Doug Gold. “Peter braced himself. He gripped the side of the slatted timber door, took a deep breath and launched himself from the carriage. He leapt as far as he could, reminding himself to relax to cushion the impact when he hit the ground. But he stumbled as he landed, taking his weight first on his left foot and then twisting on to his right. As he turned, his right knee buckled, and he fell. A stabbing pain shot down his lower limb and he screamed in agony. Instinct then kicked in; he rolled away and pulled up several metres from the tracks. He saw Patrick rolling away, too. His friend had also made it. The piercing clatter of machine-gun fire and the screeching of brakes cut short any elation. The deep-throated growl of Dobermans, attack dogs kept on board to deter escapes or pursue those who tried, rose above the rat-a-tat of the Mauser machine guns and the rasping sound of metal on metal as the train wheels locked up. The German guards must have seen the first escapers jump and shouted orders to halt the train. By the time Peter and Patrick hit the ground, the train was slowing. But it was some distance away when it finally stopped and Peter lay still, hoping that his khaki uniform would blend in with the brown earth. Patrick lay a few metres away. The onslaught from the Mausers was incessant. Bullets whistled by and Peter dared not move. One ricocheted off a small boulder next to his left arm; he could almost feel the heat as it flew past. ‘Jesus Christ, that was close,’ he thought.”
9. Summer Favourites by Vanya Insull (A&U)
Summer is definitely here and Vanya Insull, aka VJ Cooks for those not on social media, is, most unsurprisingly, still in the bestsellers. Summer Favourites is the follow-up to 2022′s bestselling Everyday Favourites, a collection of her “tasty, easy and hearty” recipes. She’s back with 70 more, these being lighter dishes perfect for the barbecue or bach, including dinners, salads, baking, and desserts.
10. Whakawhetai: Gratitude by Hira Nathan (A&U)
Hira Nathan’s te reo Māori gratitude diary, released last May, is still selling heaps. Why is a gratitude diary so popular? Here’s the publisher’s blurb in part: “Kia ū ki te pai, kia whai hua ai. Hold on to what is good and good things will follow. An inspirational, bilingual gratitude journal, based on the Māori holistic approach to health, hauora. Discover the four dimensions of hauora: taha tinana (physical), taha hinengaro (mental), taha wairua (spiritual) and taha whānau (family). No matter how difficult life can seem, there is always something to feel grateful for. Taking note regularly of the positives – no matter how small – in each of these areas of your life can have a huge impact on your health and happiness.”
(Source: Nielsen Bookscan NZ – week ending January 6.)
