Books

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Unity Books + Creative New Zealand

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Is there any statistical proof behind the stereotype that poets can't drive? A non-driving poet attempts to find out. 

Can poets drive? A sociocultural investigation

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A close read of three seven-lines poems by Zen teacher Richard von Sturmer.

How to read a poem: selections from Slender Volumes by Richard von Sturmer

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The Friday Poem: ‘Boyhood’ by Art Nahill

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Dolly-mania, new Murakami, and a brilliant local debut. 

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending November 22

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An interview with the acclaimed journalist ahead of his appearance in Aotearoa.

‘Everything is becoming a culture war’: Jon Ronson on conspiracies and cycleways

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The acclaimed crime novelist on the words that make her shudder, having seven books on the go at once and more.  

‘I’ll try any synonym under the sun’: Jacqueline Bublitz’s crimes against language

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What caused a whole French village to hallucinate?

The case of the cursed bread: An excerpt from Una Cruickshank’s The Chthonic Cycle

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The Friday Poem: ‘FREE TRAMPOLINE’ by Sophie van Waardenberg

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Featuring the Booker Prize winner for 2024, and further evidence of the impact of book festivals on sales. 

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending November 15

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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?'

The case for reading books about animals wearing clothes

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Novelist Carl Shuker on the books he’s loved from childhood to now, and the new release everybody should read.

‘Effortless-seeming genius’: Carl Shuker’s favourite reads and other stories

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Two authors of an extraordinary new book on the history of Māori art discuss how they approached it, and why.

Toi Te Mana: The landmark indigenous history of Māori art has arrived

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The Friday Poem: ‘COLD EROTICA’ by Loretta Riach

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A new le Carré, a book on how to get wild in Wellington, and a sumptuous local cookbook marks the start of the summer reads.

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending November 8

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

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

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

The ultimate holiday reads: An alphabetical guide

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The author and founder of Kiwi Christmas Books on unknowingly meeting a 'stone-cold genius', the book everyone should read and more.

‘No idea I was in the presence of genius’: Sonya Wilson on her life in books

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There's little to like about figures like American politician Vivek Ramaswamy, but there is a lot to learn.

A new novel imagines a New Zealand version of the conservative South Asian grifter

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The Friday Poem: ‘THE THING IS’ by Johanna Cosgrove

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The onward march of Intermezzo, a bundle of new releases, and Wild Robot.

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending November 1

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Madeleine Chapman reflects on the week that was.

The Weekend: What would you march for?

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'I don't know what the chant in the second half of this song means, but by golly it slaps hard and feels good!'

‘By golly it slaps’: Arthur Ahbez’s perfect weekend playlist

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A cat and mouse thriller that's worth putting your phone down for. 

Review: The Day of the Jackal is a riveting and ridiculous ride

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Treasury says the recession will be deeper and last longer than predicted.

Hold the roosters, no economic dawn yet

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Can a united front hold through to election time?

This week three parties stood together – can they withstand the storm to come?

They say everyone has a book in them – 

 – but how many of us actually get published? And how healthy is the industry that supports our novelists, poets and non-fiction writers? Two charts from Figure.NZ take a closer look.

For more data on the New Zealand publishing industry, check out 

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They say everyone has a book in them - even assorted Real Housewives - but how many of us actually get published? And how healthy is the industry that supports our novelists, poets and non-fiction writers? Two charts from Figure.NZ take a closer look. 

The Spinoff

BooksOctober 17, 2016

Chart of the Week: Is it time to write off book publishing?

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BooksOctober 17, 2016

Chart of the Week: Is it time to write off book publishing?

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