In which we steer you through a selection of children’s books published in Aotearoa and the world in 2022 which will make for thoughtful and timely gifts for smaller readers when you’re panic buying this week (see our shopping list for adult titles here). Good luck!
Earlier in the year we celebrated the resurgence of children’s books in Aotearoa and we’re delighted that the trend is still going strong: here are our recommendations from picture books up to young adult novels.
Picture books: fantasy
The Lighthouse Princess by Susan Wardell & Rose Northey (Puffin, $19.99, 3+)
A magical contemporary fairytale about a very independent young woman. With delightful illustrations from Northey this is a sure-fire hit on the big day.
The Grizzled Grist Does Not Exist by Juliette MacIver & Sarah Davis (Gecko, $30, 3+)
Another rambunctious, treacherous rhyming romp that will reward attentive eyes and entertain little ears. Bravo to MacIver who is leading the way with rhymes that really work.
Goose the Artist by Kimberly Andrews (Puffin, $19.99, 3+)
Andrews is a wondrous artist and this series takes kids into a world of talented animals and their attempts to pursue art and life. When Goose tries to create a masterpiece in time to enter a competition the pressures of a deadline almost prove too much (sound familiar?) … high tension = high reward.
International guest: Gotcha by Clotilde Perrin (Gecko, $41.99. 3+) is the latest from the French children’s author who can summon the joy of dark and scary things and present them in flap-books that are a delight for young and old. For the ones who might even love Halloween more than Christmas.
Picture books: kaupapa Māori
Atua: Māori Gods & Heroes by Gavin Bishop (Puffin, $40, all ages)
Winner of all the awards at the NZ Book Awards for Children & Young Adults this year and deservedly so. It is stunning with Bishop’s bold and expressive art work, powerful writing and sweeping, large format.
Taniwha by Robyn Kahukiwa (Puffin, $20)
Give the gift of this gorgeous classic from one of our most extraordinary artists. This is a new bilingual edition of a beloved favourite. We’re excited for all the kids yet to discover this story and Kahukiwa’s brilliance.
The Astromancer by Witi Ihimaera and Isobel Joy Te-Aho White (Puffin, $25)
One of our most celebrated writers, and most talented illustrators, put out this beautiful, lively Matariki story. With a gutsy heroine and high stakes this is a great one for the home library.
Picture books: educational for 2+
Tides Out: Tai Timu by Frances Plumpton & Stephanie Thatcher (Mary Egan, $20)
Beautifully illustrated, bilingual counting book. A lovely thing to take away on beach trips to use as a guide for identifying life on the seashore, too.
Koro by Gavin Bishop (Gecko, $18)
Available in te reo Māori or English, this book is the sweetest: a day out with koro. Part of a series about our closest relationships, they are simple but perfectly formed books for sharing with little ones this time of year.
One Weka Went Walking by Kate Preece and Pippa Ensor (Bateman, $24.99)
It’s impossible to avoid books about birds in Aotearoa children’s publishing but for good reason: our birds are weird and awesome. This book is spectacular among them – the weka explores Rēkohu/Chatham Islands and runs into feathered mates. The illustrations are painterly and lift this book above others of the ilk. It’s reminiscent (aesthetically) of Jackie Morris’ illustrations for Robert Macfarlane’s spells in The Lost Words.
Picture books: educational for 8+
Sylvia & The Birds by Sarah Laing & Joanne Emeney (MUP, $40)
A hybrid of biography and bird-care guide, there really isn’t anything else like this out there on the shelves. Laing’s iconic comic style brings the extraordinary story of lifelong injured-bird-carer Sylvia Durrant to life. A gift to the whole family.
Tiaki: a shout out to Aotearoa’s lesser-known creatures by Jean Donaldson (Potton & Burton, $29.99), for ages 8+
Lush! This book popped when we opened it due to the quality and vibrancy of Donaldson’s art and lovely paper stock. One of the coolest nature books we’ve seen this year and sure to be admired by the whole fam.
International guest: Inside the Body by Joelle Jolivet (Thames & Hudson, $55) is a truly magnificent exploration of the ins and outs of the human body with flaps for peeking and so much juicy information you’ll be going for hours on this one. Great for all ages and rainy days.
Poetry
There’s not a ton of poetry published for children but thanks to a passionate few we’ve got a real stand out this year in Roar, Squeak, Purr by Paula Green & Jenny Cooper (Penguin, $45). Animal poems! In large format and with lively illustrations this anthology feels like a classic in the making and a brilliant way to introduce poetry off the page to your family. Pick your faves, roar them, purr them, squeak them too.
Junior fiction
We’re giving this section to the Pipi & Pou series by Tim Tipene and illustrated by Isobel Te-Aho White (One Tree Press, $22). We started reading the latest in this series, Pipi & Pou and the Raging Mount to a four-and-a-half-year-old and got right to the end without stopping once. Te-Aho Whites pictures speckle the story in all the right places; chapters are short and snappy; and the shapeshifting cousins and their kuia Nana (the coolest) are a joy for everyone involved. And they’d slip nicely into a stocking.
Middle grade fiction
The Raven’s Song By Zana Fraillon and Bren MacDibble (Allen & Unwin, $16.99)
Terrific. Utterly brilliant. A page-turner and one with deeply felt explorations of the highs and lows of the human condition, like all the best MG books do. For all readers.
Masher by Fifi Colston (Puffin, $18.99)
What a legend Colston is. This latest is the tale of a dog-ghost-that-animates-a-hand-made-hand puppet resulting in carnage and chaos. Funny and action-packed and full of craft (sorry but we had to). It’s red and Christmassy and will be just the thing for that Boxing Day laze. Especially great for kids who like hands-on fun and games.
Amorangi and Millie’s Trip Through Time by Lauren Keenan (Huia, $26)
Mum is lost and to get her back siblings Amorangi and Millie have to travel back through their family tree … and on the way encounter events in Aotearoa’s history (invasion of Parihaka, Musket Wars, World War Two…). Entertaining and educational!
International guest: This year’s Yoto Carnegie Medal winner was October, October by Katya Balen. It is a stunning story about disruption and the healing powers of nature, hobbies and friends. Keep your tissues close. A lovely one for reading aloud together.
Annual #3 edited by Susan Paris and Kate De Goldi (Annual Ink, $45)
This anthology requires a category all of its own. There’s nothing else like it out there: packed with fiction, non-fiction, illustration, games, music, comics, essays, and more it’s the perfect book to keep on the kitchen table to dive into at will. Take it camping, to the beach, to the bach. Long live the Annual.
Young adult fiction
Indigo Moon by Eileen Merriman (Penguin, $22)
The first in a new series by surely one of the country’s most prolific writers. It’s a gripping sci-fi and we suspect that you’ll be wanting to borrow it as soon as your teenagers are done.
Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong (Hachette, $22)
The phenomenal Chloe Gong’s follow up to her hugely successful These Violent Delights (a Romeo & Juliet re-telling). These books are smart, savvy and hugely enjoyable. Another one you’ll be wanting to borrow.
Faraway Girl by Fleur Beale (Penguin, $24)
We’ll read anything by the legendary Beale. This latest is a spooky supernatural complete with time travel and it’s gripping and perfectly written like all of Beale’s books.
International guest: Jonathan Stroud. Get thee to a Stroud. His Lockwood & Co books (ingenious series about child ghost hunters) is now a Netflix series and his latest books, Scarlett & Browne are currently being made into a movie (starring Daphne from Bridgerton). The Notorious Scarlett & Browne came out this year and is the second instalment in a series that sees teenage outlaws travel across a dangerous landscape, evading capture and discovering just how powerful they are. Wrap us up the stack and we’ll see you on the other side.
And the Children’s Book of the year?
A tie between Atua by Gavin Bishop and Annual #3 ed. Susan Paris and Kate De Goldi. Bishop’s book is an Aotearoa classic. It is big, bold and transfixing. Annual #3 has something for everyone and is just the kind of book that can accompany a family through a long Summer holiday, one interesting thing at a time.
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. Have a wonderful summer accompanied by the sound of sustained silent reading.
All of the above books can be purchased from Unity Books Wellington or Unity Books Auckland.