1. The Dressmaker and the Hidden Soldier by Doug Gold (A&U)
Holding on tightly to the No 1 spot is this thriller – it’s categorised as non-fiction, but written 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.”
2. Summer Favourites by Vanya Insull (A&U)
Vanya Insull, aka VJ Cooks for those not on social media, is holding firm at No 2. Summer Favourites is the follow-up to last year’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.
3. Rewi by Jade Kake & Jeremy Hansen (Massey University Press)
Beautifully designed hardback tribute to the late Māori architect Rewi Thompson, covering a range of his projects, from concepts to one-off dwellings, and including interviews with people who worked with him. It opens with this fragment of a mihimihi for Future Islands, the New Zealand exhibition at the 15th Venice Architecture Biennale, 2016:
We battle, strive and live to tame
this great fish that Māui caught.
Our youthfulness allows us to
be playful, energetic, lively,
enthusiastic, experimental,
and not overburdened by the
weight of our past.
Our architecture is about the
land, the sea and the sky . . .
sometimes submerged,
grounded, suspended,
but always in a continuous
process of negotiation,
experimentation, enthusiasm . . .
Kei roto i te āhuatanga o te ao
Mai i te mana me te tū rangatira
Mai i te aroha me te māhaki
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou,
tēnā koutou katoa.
4. The Art of Winning by Dan Carter (Penguin)
Boosted no doubt by the great games beaming in from France at all hours of the day and night, Dan Carter’s deep dive into leadership, strength and resilience remains in the top half of the charts.
“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: Okay, so what does an All Black great do?”
5. Our Land in Colour by Jock Phillips & Brendan Graham (HarperCollins)
Two hundred historical photographs colourised by an expert, with commentary from award-winning historian Jock Phillips in a beautiful 400-page hardback. It’s a fascinating insight into how we worked, ate, dressed and got around before we had cars and television and jet airplanes, and when most of us didn’t live in a few large cities.
6. Critters of Aotearoa by Nicola Toki & Lily Duval (Puffin)
This homage to 50 of the country’s most curious creatures was written by Forest & Bird chief executive Nicola Toki and illustrated by Lily Duval. These include the Antipodes Island parakeet, a green-headed variety that lives in the subantarctic in deep burrows and occasionally feeds on carrion, and the hagfish, which does the same, except with more face-smashing. Then there’s the blobfish, the Dog Vomit Slime Mould, the Giant Knobbled Weevil and the Horrid Stick Insect.
7. Adventures with Emilie by Victoria Bruce (Penguin)
In 2021, Victoria Bruce quit her corporate job and embarked on the 3000km Reinga-to-Bluff Te Araroa trail with her seven-year-old daughter, Emilie. They faced Covid lockdowns, the harsh elements of New Zealand’s backcountry and even a near-death experience.
“Sheltered valleys can turn into wind tunnels, and with nowhere to go, the wind rolls around, increasing in pressure and speed, packing a punch that will rip off branches, knock over dead trees and throw a 100-kilogram human off their feet.
“That’s why they say the only thing that will kill you in the New Zealand backcountry is the weather, and here I am, huddling with my little daughter, 1500 kilometres and 106 days into the longest walk of my life … Minutes stretch into eternity while I wait for our prostrate bodies to be exposed to the full wrath of this storm. These moments of claustrophobic terror feel eternal as I force myself to lie still and keep breathing, when all my body wants to do is fight free of this fabric tomb and run, screaming, to safety.
“Somehow, I’ve transcended from the turmoil of fear and panic to a quiet sense of calm. I’m not really losing my shit. I’m brave and strong. I am a warrior woman, wahine toa, with my little one sheltering safely by my side. The wind will eventually blow itself out over the eastern plains, dawn is just beyond the horizon, and once there’s enough light in the sky we’ll pack up and start walking again. Four hundred and sixty-six kilometres to go.”
8. Fungi of Aotearoa by Liv Sisson (Penguin)
Fungus enthusiast Liv Sisson’s guide to foraging our fields and forests for mushroom morsels is still a bestseller after four months in the charts. She makes them sound delicious: “Here are some of the most interesting fungi foods I’ve come across in Aotearoa. Slippery jack mushroom burgers, grilled over charcoal, with a dash of pine oil, served over a bed of creamy mushroom-stock polenta. Mushroom mince dumplings. A porcini mushroom chocolate mousse Yule log. Those first two dishes come from Max Gordy, and the third from Vicki Young – both are top Wellington chefs. When we think outside of the ‘mushrooms on toast’ box, we find that fungi offer us untapped foodie potential.”
9. Pearl in a Whirl by Catherine Robertson & Fifi Colston (Picture Puffin)
Back in the charts is the true story of one cat’s wild adventures during Cyclone Gabrielle, by bestselling novelist Robertson and writer, illustrator and Wearable Arts winner Colston. Money from each copy sold goes towards the recovery effort.
10. Aroha by Dr Hinemoa Elder (Penguin)
Hinemoa Elder’s primer to the wisdom of Māori proverbs was published three years ago and is still holding its own in the top 10.
“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.”
(Source: Nielsen Bookscan NZ – week ending September 30.)
