Claire Mabey

Books editor

Claire Mabey is a literary programmer and festival maker originally from Tauranga. She lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara with her partner Andrew and her son, Charlie.

Books about animals in clothes (and also not in clothes)

The case for reading books about animals wearing clothes

Winnie-the-Pooh's little T-shirt represents a moral 'grey area', according to the man in charge of Gloriavale's lengthy banned books list. 'What do we gain from it?'

By Claire Mabey | 14th November, 2024

What’s up with the curious resurrection of a beloved Wellington bookstore?

Vic Books closed down in January 2023, but its website and Twitter handle have risen from the dead. What's going on?

By Claire Mabey | 8th November, 2024

A location-based reading guide.

The ultimate holiday reads: An alphabetical guide

An A to Z of iconic books matched with iconic holiday locations.

By Claire Mabey | 7th November, 2024

The Changeover by Margaret Mahy turns 40 this year.

The Changeover by Margaret Mahy is still the greatest young adult novel ever

Books editor Claire Mabey sings the praises of Margaret Mahy’s 40-year-old supernatural thriller.

By Claire Mabey | 26th October, 2024

Maurice Gee. (Photo: Robert Cross)

‘You can’t kill Jimmy Jaspers!’: An interview with Maurice Gee

Remember the Wilberforces? Here's an interview with their creator.

By Claire Mabey | 19th October, 2024

Celebrities snapped with books.

Is celebrity book culture… good, actually?

Reese Witherspoon is co-writing a thriller. At first this annoyed books editor Claire Mabey, but then she did a full 180. Here's why.

By Claire Mabey | 12th October, 2024

Unity Books Auckland. Photo from when they won best bookshop in the whole world in 2020. Photo: Heart of the City

An ode to the indie bookshop

Bookshops are community spaces, sanctuaries and loneliness antidotes, and on Saturday, we celebrate them.

By Claire Mabey | 11th October, 2024

The book at the centre of the strange case of a rejected review.

The NZ journal that commissioned then spiked a critical review of its co-editor’s book

'I knew NZJH would be unlikely to publish my review but I couldn’t in good conscience have written anything else.'

By Claire Mabey | 3rd October, 2024

Emerald Fennell not reading Wuthering Heights. Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, named as stars of Fennell’s film adaptation.

Dear Emerald Fennell, please don’t Saltburnify Wuthering Heights

It’s been announced that Saltburn creator Emerald Fennell is set to write, direct and produce an adaptation of Wuthering Heights. We have concerns.

By Claire Mabey | 25th September, 2024

The half-a-million-dollar decision that still haunts the book industry

The half-a-million-dollar decision that still haunts the book industry

Narrative Muse was awarded $500,000 to boost sales of New Zealand books. It has reportedly had little, if any, impact. What went wrong?

By Claire Mabey | 23rd September, 2024