AUP New Poets 8
Writers; Lily Holloway, Tru Paraha, Modi Deng
Edited by Anna Jackson
Auckland University Press
Pub. 2021
November 23, 2021
Editor Anna Jackson, for the eighth book in the collection of AUP New Poets, has chosen three astonishing and unique authors, whose words have brought rich and deeper meaning into my life.
Lily Holloway, 22 years old, is a queer writer and postgraduate English student. The book starts off with her collection, “a child in that alcove”. Holloway brings moments from her daily life and expresses them to her readers. Her poetry is filled with excitement, with dread, with questions and with memories of people from her life. Read more
The Life and Times of Eddie McGrath
Brigid Feehan
OneTree House
Pub. 2021
November 23, 2021
The Life and Times of Eddie McGrath is a book about a young girl, unsurprisingly, called Eddie McGrath. She lives in Wellington and wins a national competition to give a speech at the Beehive.
Before I delve in further, I would like to point out a few key things. First, one thing I like about this book is that it could be set ten years in the past or ten years in the future, as a lot of the details about exactly where and when the book is set are extremely vague. Read more
Just End It
Donna Blaber
Light House
Pub. 2020
November 23, 2021
Just End It is a mysterious adventurous book based on a 12-year-old girl called Jessie who lives in the North Island of New Zealand. Jessie loves hanging out at the beach and is very interested in rocks. One normal day, while she is strolling across the beach, she comes across a very cool obsidian whale rock.
She picks it up and takes it home to her mum who is also very interested in rocks. Her Mum says to her that this is definitely obsidian, and it might have a very interesting story to tell. Read more
Wrens Under the Radar
Colleen Shipley
Pub. 2021
November 22, 2021
“Should I be enjoying myself when soldiers were still fighting for our freedom overseas?”
September of 1939. New Zealand joins the war against Germany, and many enlist to help in the battle. One such person includes Betty’s fiancé, Fred. Betty understands Fred wants to do his part for his country and she endeavours to do the same, however possible. Thus, she joins the Wrens, a female auxiliary unit that helps aboard ships. Not long after, she’s on route to a farmhouse in Blenheim, with her and seven other Wrens being whisked away for a top-secret mission. Read more
Truthmaker
Sequel to The Severed Land (Maurice Gee)
Tony Chapelle
Penguin Random House New Zealand
Pub. 2021
November 19, 2021
Truthmaker by Tony Chapelle is the new sequel to Maurice Gee’s The Severed Land. It is based on the characters of Maurice Gee’s story and picks up where it left off. The two main characters, Fliss and Minnie, are safe on one side of the wall which separates them from the abusive, wealthy and powerful Families, primarily the Morisettes. Both Fliss and Minnie are ex-slaves from the Families, put to work under horrible conditions because of their skin colour. But they have escaped that and are happily living on the other side of the wall. Read more
Cool Nukes
Des Hunt
Scholastic NZ
Pub. 2015
November 16, 2021
“As it was, the rider had just enough time to raise his hands for protection before the crash. From the sound of snapping and crumpling behind him, Max would later claim that the bike was a write-off. Whether the same was true for the rider, he didn’t know. Neither Max nor TC looked back to find out.”
Biker gangs, peculiar scientists and one dangerous arch-nemesis. This is what Maximilian Taylor has to deal with on a day-to-day basis. He lives in Hamilton, New Zealand and he takes great pride in figuring out how things work and conducting experiments. Read more
Coastwatcher
David Hill
Penguin Books NZ
Pub. 2021
November 16, 2021
David Hill’s Coastwatcher is an exciting book, based on the true stories of the real coastwatchers that operated during the Second World War. The cover, with its silhouette of a soldier’s head, draws you to this book and makes you curious to know what the story is about. The blurb on the back suggests danger and war and spies, and this is the kind of intrigue you can expect all the way through the book.
The main character, Frank, is a 19 year old radio operator. He is shipped out to an enemy occupied island within the Solomon Islands with two other soldiers, and becomes part of a major landing force, aiming to spy on the Japanese. Read more
Zeustian Logic
Sabrina Malcolm
Gecko Press
Pub. 2017
November 16, 2021
Imagine having a famous dad who loves climbing, but then finding out that he has been lost up a mountain. Imagine if it was also on the news about how he left behind a fellow climber. Zeustian Logic is a heart-warming book that Sabrina Malcolm has written well. This is her very first book!
Duncan has to know the truth about his father and the climbing disaster. So he sneaks out at midnight to see Mike, someone that his dad had climbed with and who was on the same expedition. Read more
Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues
H.S. Valley
Hardie Grant Books
Pub 2021
November 09, 2021
Published in 2021 and winner of the 2021 Ampersand Prize, H.S. Valley’s Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues is a tale of the nature of relationships, an exploration of the magic in our lives, and a comforting spark of life for LGBTQIA+ youth in New Zealand.
This novel follows the story of Tim Te Maro, a Year 13 student at Fox Glacier High School for the Magically Adept in New Zealand. Although magic has been present all of his life, as his mum and dad both wield it, Tim’s recent experiences at school have been anything but magical. Read more
The Memory Thief
Leonie Agnew
Penguin Books NZ
Pub. 2021
November 2, 2021
The Memory Thief is a magical book by Leonie Agnew about a girl named Stella and a troll, Seth.
This book is written from Seth’s perspective. The story begins at the garden where Seth has become trapped. Seth is on the wrong side of the gate and is stuck there but he doesn’t know how. Stella is looking for her cat and instead finds Seth. Seth accidentally steals memories from Stella and it hurts like something burning in his whole body. It’s only inside pain but this has never happened before. Read more
