The Laughterhouse, by Paul Cleave (Penguin, RRP $38): Christchurch-born author Paul Cleave has turned out another cracking read in the latest book in the private investigator Theodore Tate series. Tate is an ex-cop now working as a private investigator who…
Tag: Penguin
Humour, heartbreak of war
An Awfully Big Adventure: NZ WWI veterans tell their stories, by Jane Tolerton (Penguin, RRP $45): Journalist Jane Tolerton helped set up the World War I Oral History Archive back in 1987, and using those interviews, she has compiled a…
Understanding postnatal depression
Mothers Cry Too Dr Sara Weeks (Penguin, RRP $35) Subtitled “recognising and coping with postnatal depression”, this is a handy guide for all new mothers and their families. It discusses the whole range of conditions from the fairly innocuous three…
Well-tuned mix of Kiwi songs
On Song: Stories Behind New Zealand’s Pop Classics, by Simon Sweetman (Penguin, RRP $65): Every song has a story to tell and New Zealand’s pop classics are full of great stories. Freelance music writer and Stuff blogger Simon Sweetman had…
Birthright, by T K Roxborogh (Penguin, RRP $35): Birthright is the third book in the Banquo’s Son trilogy. Fleance, the son in question, is now king of Scotland. He is married and his wife, Rachael, is pregnant with an heir.…
Korean War veterans’ voices
The War That Never Ended: NZ Veterans Remember Korea, as told to Pip Desmond (Penguin, RRP $45): It’s been called the forgotten war, but for the New Zealanders who served in the Korean War during the 1950s, and their families,…
Man of Destiny: Bishop’s church-building prowess
Destiny: The Life and Times of a Self-Made Apostle, by Peter Lineham (Penguin, RRP $38): With his taste for sharp suits and powerful motorcycles, Bishop Brian Tamaki has an interestingly polarising effect on the average Kiwi. Let me make it…
Perfect mix of drama and warmth
22 Britannia Road, by Amanda Hodgkinson (Fig Tree/Penguin, RRP $40): This story starts, as so many do, with a young couple meeting and falling in love. However, in 1937 Poland no love story could be straight forward. As war approaches,…
Perfect book for interested Kiwis
New Zealand New Millennium: A Decade in Pictures (Penguin, RRP $50): New Zealand New Millennium is a timely, comprehensive and ultimately moving portrait of our nation in images, from 2000 to 2010: news, politics, natural disasters, sports, arts/culture, celebrity, lifestyle,…
On the shelves for NZ Book Month
It’s New Zealand Book month so it should come as no surprise that there are plenty of Kiwi books lurking on the shelves in bookshops around the country. I’ve been running reviews of books by New Zealand authors on our…