Books

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Unity Books + Creative New Zealand

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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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Fancy some paranormal activity with your pint? Here's where to go.

These are New Zealand’s most haunted pubs

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We asked a handful of New Zealand writers for some recommended Halloween reading. Here's what they said. 

Writers pick their favourite scary stories for the spooky season

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Now 48, Megan Dunn is still paying off the huge student loan she first took out when she was 17. This is her story.

My number one regret? My $100,000 student loan

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'This was a defining and transformative conflict in the nation’s history … It is the story of how we got to where we are today.'

Remembering the Waikato War, Te Riri ki Tainui

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A debut novel that's one part family drama, one part harrowing road trip, and one of the most honest portraits of Aotearoa you're likely to find.

‘Observations that hit like a truck’: Poorhara by Michelle Rahurahu, reviewed

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

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

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A stunning new graphic novel, dystopias, new non-fiction and more.

The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending October 25

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A new documentary series tells the story of a former Napier councillor accused of murder in Canada. 

In Cold Water is a must-see for true crime fans

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'It was pretty ugly, but when my life fell apart was actually when it all started.'

The rebuilding of Fazerdaze

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'Most regrettable purchase in the last year? A cricket bat at a charity auction – I was drunk and it seemed like a great idea at the time.'

The cost of being: A lawyer with two kids, a mortgage and a love of good meat

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And why one former MP says John Key would never have allowed this to happen.

How the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill played out

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Since taking part in growing kai from seed to harvest, my appreciation for every vegetable I eat has deepened.

Where does kai come from? Learning in the māra

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The climate and human rights crises are indelibly intertwined

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Spectators in the public gallery joined in.

House suspended as haka interrupts first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill

In which cartoonist Toby Morris draws a review of the best-selling Trump book, 

 by Matt Taibbi (Penguin, $40) is available at Unity Books.

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In which cartoonist Toby Morris draws a review of the best-selling Trump book, Insane Clown President.

The Spinoff

BooksMarch 23, 2017

Book of the Week: Toby Morris draws his review of Insane Clown President

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BooksMarch 23, 2017

Book of the Week: Toby Morris draws his review of Insane Clown President

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