In which we steer you through a selection of books published in Aotearoa and the world in 2022 that will make for thoughtful and timely gifts for family and friends when you’re panic buying this week. Tune in tomorrow for the children’s books list.
Memoir / personal essays
Memoir and personal essay collections have flourished in recent years: compelling insights into private and public lives are so good they drive like fiction.
Grand by Noelle McCarthy (Penguin, $35)
A sharp, sensitive and fearless memoir about the relationship with the self as filtered through the people and things that make us: mothers, the demon drink, place, desire, music, vampires. Give it to literally everyone. Read our review here.
How to be a Bad Muslim by Mohamed Hassan (Penguin, $35)
Spectacular writing in this book by (really fricken great) poet and journalist Mohamed Hassan. The collection tracks Hassan’s early life in Cairo, and then in Aotearoa, Hassan speaks to family, art, culture, media, racism, coming of age, Islamophobia, love, grief … they’re painful, funny, endlessly beautiful. Again, for everyone.
So far, for now by Dame Fiona Kidman (Penguin, $38)
Brilliant personal essays by one of our greatest authors. From to widowhood, to travel, to activism, to reading, this is a wide-ranging, thought-provoking collection. Give to everyone, but particularly for the armchair adventurer in your life.
International guest
Getting Lost by Annie Ernaux (Fitzcarraldo, $40) is the latest from this year’s winner of the Nobel Prize for literature: a blisteringly honest book about an affair. Wowsers. So good. If you don’t believe us read this rave review on The Guardian.
Fiction, crime / thriller
Is there anything better than the vicarious thrills of a tension-stacked page-turner? Crime and suspense match perfectly with sun and sand. Here are our top picks.
Slow Down, You’re Here by Brannavan Gnanalingam (Lawrence & Gibson, $25)
A gripping, domestic thriller set between a family home in Onehunga and an Airbnb on Waiheke, this book will have you on the edge of your deckchair. Read our review here.
Better the Blood by Michael Bennett (Simon & Schuster, $35)
“I wrote this book to entertain the hell out of the reader,” wrote Michael Bennett in his essay about this stonking great summer read. Go forth and purchase this un-put-downable, gift it, then demand it back so you can read it too.
The Doctor’s Wife by Fiona Sussman (Bateman, $38)
A woman’s body is found at the bottom of a cliff, and the investigation into why upends all manner of domestic harmony. This is the latest from a previous winner of the Ngaio Marsh awards for crime fiction, and would make a superb treat for any lover of crime stories.
International guest
Look at Christmas it’s hard to go past the latest Reacher novel. No Plan B by Lee Child with Andrew Child (Penguin, $37) is just-released, just in time. Or check out this ranking of all of them and take your pick.
Fiction, sci fi / fantasy
Marching through the tunnels and plains of the imagination, these books transport us right out of the shreds of Christmas wrapping paper and into other worlds.
The Dawnhounds by Sascha Stronach (Simon & Schuster, $35)
“The Dawnhounds is a homecoming for New Zealand fantasy,” wrote Tamsyn Muir in her review of this astonishing novel. This is a must-have for any fantasy reader: it’s rich, racy, fast and fabulous.
City of Souls by Melanie Harding-Shaw (Amazon, $35)
“Do you like enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, sexy winged people, and sexual tension like a raging conflagration? Then City of Souls by Mel Harding-Shaw will sweep you away,” writes Calanthe on SFF Romance Books. If you want to try before you buy, read an extract here.
Na Viro by Gina Cole (Huia, $35)
This is a family love story at heart, only set in the wilds of space exploration. Perfect for anyone into star-travel, sibling love, mother-daughter relationships and diving into Pasifikafuturism.
International guest
Babel by R. F. Kuang (Harper Collins, $35): set in an alternative Oxford of 1836, this is an ingenious exploration of how language can topple an empire.
Fiction, literary
There have been so many excellent novels published this year it was fricken hard to narrow them down, but here goes.
How to Loiter in a Turf War by Coco Solid (Penguin, $28)
From Natasha Lampard’s review: “Multi-genre, multifaceted, multitudinal, musical, a kaupapa both skux and scholarly, at times irreverent, all-the-time relevant, this is a potent, polyphonic work from a prolific polymath.” Novel of the year. Get it.
Tauhou by Kōtuku Titihuia Nuttall (THWUP, $30)
Beautiful writing, a highly original concept, this is a dream of a read for summer. Ideal for those who like quiet yet dazzling books that linger and beautify from the inside out.
Poor People With Money by Dominic Hoey (Penguin, $37)
Fast, mouthy, moving and original, Dominic Hoey is becoming a powerhouse of Aotearoa lit. Try before you buy with this extract.
The Axeman’s Carnival by Catherine Chidgey (THWUP, $35)
Tama the Magpie stars in this outrageously good rural drama that ramps up and up. A must-read from one of the country’s most acclaimed and generative writers.
International guests
Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan (Faber, $23) is small and perfectly formed. Set at Christmas time, it will chill like snow and warm like fire. It’s been in the bestsellers lists for months and deserves to stay into the new year. Also recommended: Booker Prize winner The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Shehan Karunatilaka (Sort of Books, $49).
Poetry
Shit, we’re also good at poetry. Here’s a handful of favourites from 2022, though make sure you browse that section good and proper because there is an abundance of riches there.
Sedition by Anahera Gildea (Taraheke, $30)
Smoking, searing, heart-aching/flaming. A masterful collection from a powerhouse of poetry. For anyone needing fuel to fight colonisation.
Meat Lovers by Rebecca Hawkes (AUP, $24.95)
A fleshy, award-winning collection that redefines the Aotearoa pastoral into something that sits beguilingly between the realms of faery and farming. Buy it for the cover alone – it’s sure to stretch the eyes once that wrapping is peeled back.
Echidna by essa may ranapiri (THWUP, $25)
“Can’t remember any other work of art that’s brought together Hatupatu, Lucifer and the lead singer of My Chemical Romance, can you?” says Hinemoana Baker. This luscious, visceral collection is a stand-out. Get in lovers of poetry, and lovers.
International guest
Your Emergency Contact Has Experienced An Emergency by Chen Chen (Bloodaxe Books) is the pandemic-adjacent poetry collection you need in your life. Chen is a breathtaking wordsmith who pulls us together despite ourselves, and also check out the divine cover.
Short stories
Tricky things, short stories: they reward attentive readers and to read a whole collection is to listen to the whole album; so often the joy is in the interconnections, the motifs and rhythms. Here are our top picks.
Kōhine by Colleen Marie Lenihan (Huia, $25)
A stand-out across bookish news platforms this year, Kōhine travels back and forth between Aotearoa and Japan, slipping across time and place, past and future. Luminous writing loaded with feeling.
Beats of the Pau’u by Maria Samuela (THWUP, $30)
“Beats of the Pa’u will continue to enrich the literary seascape, with storytelling that is layered and textured with rich colours of warmth, just like the Cook Islands and our people’s new homes in Porirua, Tokoroa and South Auckland,” writes Audrey Brown-Pereira.
Home Theatre by Anthony Lapwood (THWUP, $30)
A “beautifully crafted and empathetic debut collection.” said Sally Blundell over on the Landfall Online. What if a building could reveal the secrets of the lives lived within it? A moving, clever series of stories that will entertain and stir this summer.
Special mention to Te Kaihau | The Windeater by Keri Hulme (THWUP, $30) which was originally published in 1985 but was reprinted this year in the wake of Hulme’s passing. She was one of the most brilliant writers we’ve ever had, and this is the perfect gift for the reader in your life, particularly one wanting to get to know Hulme beyond the bone people.
Aotearoa history
We have so much to learn. With the school curriculum changing for the better we need to be catching up to the kids.
A History of New Zealand in 100 Objects by Jock Phillips (Penguin, $55)
Definitely a presenty kind of book: its tight, object-based structure means you can dip in and out, read it in pairs or family clusters, and discover what appeals to who and why. A pressie for families, visitors from overseas, your folks.
Te Motonui Epa by Rachel Buchanan (BWB, $49.99)
BWB Publishers are maestros of non-fiction publishing on Aotearoa histories. This book is one of their latest and it is an extraordinary work that tells the story of taonga (Te Motonui Epa, five intensely beautiful carved panels) that were stolen out of Aotearoa.
Fragments from a Contested Past: Remembrance, Denial and New Zealand History by Joanna Kidman, Vincent O’Malley, Liana MacDonald, Tom Roa, Keziah Wallis (BWB, $17.99)
The latest in BWB’s wildly successful Texts series (they pack a punch and can slip into a stocking), the contributors travel into our silences: the hard conversations, the suppressed memories. Powerful and timely.
International guest
Super-Infinite by Katherine Rundell (Faber, $40) is hands down one of the books of the year. Rundell spent 10 years writing this biography of olde worlde poet John Donne. And it is one of the most entertaining, lively, immersive biographies that you’ll ever have the pleasure of reading. The famed children’s author is clearly a genius.
Cookbooks
Who doesn’t love a book full of food at this very muggy time of year? Full of potential for after the trifle and the pav are done with.
The RNZ Cookbook edited by David Cohen and Kathy Paterson (MUP, $65)
Genuinely stunning: classic creamy paper, sketchy, classy illustrations and a wealth of recipes all arranged in cutely chrono order by RNZ show. Also has the double ribbon for marking mains and puddings. A lovely, nostalgic yet pragmatic gift.
Kai by Christall Lowe (Bateman, $60)
Food photographer Christall Lowe shares the food of her whānau and the pictures are so delicious you’ll have to stop your kids licking the pages. True story. Perfect gift for anyone who likes to cook and/or eat.
Ripe Recipes: Thought for Food by Angela Redfern (Beatnik, $60)
The fourth book in the Ripe series is just as simple yet bright and delicious as the last three, only this time there’s some timely thinking on how to be sustainable in the kitchen. Excellent for the conscious food grower/lover in your life.
International guest
Cook As You Are by Ruby Tandoh (Knopf, $45). Bloody love Ruby Tandoh. She fights for the dignity of the timid/time-poor/anxious home cook every day (see her excellent sorrynotsorry smudgey photos Instagram account), and her book is designed for people who want to make nice food but fucking don’t have the time or money to make it all fancy. Follow Ruby and you’ll get a plate of something delicious and do-able.
Quick fire rounds by subject:
Books about Aotearoa music
Two clear stand-outs this year: Needles & Plastic: Flying Nun Records 1981-1988 by Matthew Goody (AUP, $70); and Jumping Sundays by Nick Bollinger (AUP, $50). The former is large format with lots of fantastic photography; the latter celebrates Bollinger’s talent for evoking the past with his pen. Both essential for alt music/history fans.
Books about Aotearoa art
Toi Tu Toi Ora edited by Nigel Borrell (Penguin, $65) is based on the century-defining exhibition at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki in 2021-22 and contains over 200 artworks by 110 Māori artists. A treasure to have and to give. The survey of Robin White’s painting at Te Papa this year was a highlight of the visual arts diary and so is the book, Robin White: Something is Happening Here (Te Papa Press, $70) edited by Sarah Farrar, Jill Trevelyan and Nina Tonga.
Books about Aotearoa’s natural world
Robert Vennell’s lush, illustrated book Secrets of the Sea: The Story of New Zealand’s Native Sea Creatures (Harper Collins, $55) would be a fine addition to any home library this summer (see extract here); and for the bird-watcher, nature-writing enthusiast please buy them In Pursuit of Champions (Pūkorokoro Miranda Naturalists’ Trust in association with Sherlock & Co Publishing, $40), in which Shorebird Centre manager Keith Woodley gives a fascinating insight into this small but mighty shorebird protection organisation in Pukorokoro, on the Firth of Thames.
Books about menopause
“I’m going back to my GP, books in hand. I’m still angry. But I’m also deeply grateful to the women who saw the need for information in this vast empty space, and filled it,” wrote Catherine Woulfe in her thorough and fiery review of both This Changes Everything by Nikki Bezzant (Penguin, $37) and Don’t Sweat It by Nicky Pellegrino (Allen & Unwin, $36.99). Two great local books to help us deal with the fuckery of the menopause, and that peri one too.
Bold and beautiful books
If you’re looking to get something for your Instagrammy/Kinfolk/Linens mate then don’t walk past the exquisite Rooms by Jane Ussher (MUP, $85) or Grow – Wāhine Finding Connection Through Food by Sophie Merkens (Beatnik, $60), a gorgeous collections of photos and profiles of women across Aotearoa who have a particular relationship with growing, finding and making food.
Finally, our book of the year
Straight Up by Ruby Tui (Allen & Unwin, $37)
A moving, surprising autobiography by a brilliant rugby player and exceptional person. Great for both rugby fans and non-rugby fans alike. Read our review here.
PHEW. Good luck out there. Please be kind to the books, it’s not their fault you’re squishing all your shopping into one half-day on 24 December, it’s the system’s. Tune in tomorrow for the children’s book list. Now, where’s the mince pies and the mulled wine (with ice) at?
All of the above books can be purchased from Unity Books Wellington or Unity Books Auckland.