Authors: Kirsty Johnston & James Hollings. Reviewer: Greg Fleming.

‘…a brilliantly researched and compelling look at one of our most significant unsolved cases, one that also gives readers a fascinating peek into our cultural and legal history.’

November 2023 release

Editors: Mark Amery, Amber Clausner & Sophie Jerram. Reviewer: Graham Reid.

‘…this is a lively, readable, thought-provoking and occasionally funny account of the central and important subject matter: Art that doesn't just “raise questions” but frequently posits answers.’

October 2023 release

Editors: Chris Bickell, Vanessa Manhire & Nonnita Rees. Reviewer: John Smythe.

‘Given Robert never got round to writing the book about New Zealand and his life, Robert Lord Diaries fills the bill in ways that are sometimes tantalising, making this reader feel like a director or actor, seeking clarity and deeper truths in the subtext, and prompting further searches via the internet which Robert never got to experience. As such it is informative, evocative and curiously engaging.’

October 2023 release

Authors: Peter Janssen & Elizabeth Anderson. Publisher: White Cloud Books.

Essay: ‘More than just a story of growth and decline, the history of New Zealand’s small towns is also the story of social and political change, cultural interaction, and conflict, of immigration, farming, environmental disasters. More importantly, it is the story of high hopes and bitter disappointment. ’

October 2023 release

Author: Andrew Paul Wood. Photographer: Fiona Pardington. Designer: Megan van Staden. Publisher: Massey University Press.

‘The seeding practitioners Andrew writes of were smart-as-a-whip mediums, quacks, artful dodgers, ceremonial magicians and self-appointed visionaries who either blew in, set down roots or were busted in one way or another only to hurriedly translocate. My cover’s vocation is to remain in hushed conversation with this clutch of wild-card spirits.’

July 2023 release

Author: Denis Welch. Reviewer: David Herkt.

In We Need to Talk About Norman: New Zealand’s Lost Leader, Denis Welch focuses on the New Zealand Labour Party Prime Minister, Norman Kirk, who died in office in 1975. He ventures into this relatively recent history and finds new importance. In Welch’s version, Kirk is a gauge for our age.

June 2023 release

Author: Joan Skinner. Publisher: Massey University Press.

Warm, engaging and important, Labour of Love is a story of a woman at her work, holding together the complexity of living and the growth of skill and wisdom. It is a reflection on what it means to be a midwife and a story of the fundamental connections that are made where living begins.

August 2023 release

Author: Jared Davidson. Reviewer: David Veart.

This powerful book describes yet another hidden layer in the history of these islands, a place where imprisonment, labour, punishment, class and ethnicity all combine to create a narrative at odds with any imagined story of sturdy pioneers and well earned progress. Blood & Dirt: Prison Labour and the Making of New Zealand is recommended reading in a time where the urge to imprison and punish remains strong undeterred by the failure of the system to do anything but that.

August 2023 release

Author: Shaneel Lal. Reviewer: Demi Cox.

‘For me, there are not enough words to describe just how stunning One of Them really is.’

July 2023 release

Author: Andrew Paul Wood. Reviewer: Graham Reid.

Shadow Worlds: A history of the occult and esoteric in New Zealand is a fascinating, readable book – if complex, have pencil handy - which illuminates numerous subcultures and belief systems which often found sizeable audiences here.

July 2023 release

Extract from Tiny Statements: A Social History of Aotearoa New Zealand in Badges by Stephanie Gibson & Claire Regnault (Te Papa Press, $40.00

The award-winning authors of this small book Tiny Statements with a big heart delve into Te Papa’s collections of over 1600 badges to examine how New Zealanders have used badges.

April 2023

Author: Guyon Espiner. Reviewer: Michael Burgess.

Of all the books that will be published in New Zealand in 2023, it’s hard to imagine there will be many more important than The Drinking Game. It’s a gem; thought provoking, startling, persuasive and entertaining, exploring how the way we drink has been shaped by factors far beyond any individual's control.

February 2023 release