Dame Fiona Kidman on why she wants books to be loved
Dame Fiona Kidman
Following the Read NZ Te Pou Muramura Pānui, Dame Fiona Kidman talks more about giving books to young people
Dame Fiona Kidman may describe herself as a ‘producer of books,’ but anyone with even a passing interest in New Zealand literature knows that is a marked understatement. Her novels, short stories and poetry collections have earned her every local literary award going and, for 24 years, she has been a Dame Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
But Kidman’s contributions go well beyond simply ‘producing books.’ Her stories frequently show us what life is like for those who, for whatever reason, are on the margins of so-called polite society and this keen interest in social justice extends into every area of her life.
Indeed, it’s because of her efforts that many parents, caregivers and teachers can give thanks that school visits by authors and/or illustrators continue to keep so many young ones interested in books and reading. We can also thank her for inspiring literacy programmes in prisons, reaching some of our most marginalised people.
Despite evidence pointing to a fall in our children’s literacy abilities and fewer of them reading for pleasure, tamariki do continue to read in high numbers. According to the 2021 National Reading Survey, Read New Zealand (formerly the NZ Book Council) found 94 per cent of 10 – 17 years old read at least one book in the 12 months before the survey. While that fell from 97 per cent in 2018, it’s still an impressive figure given that they’re now reading in a digital age of distractions.
In the early 1970s, Kidman was instrumental in setting up the Writers in Schools programme that continues to this day. There is no doubt those visits have enlivened reading for many and more than a fair few young people were probably inspired to write because, as the saying goes, to be it, you’ve got to see it.
Kidman talked about this at the Read NZ Te Pou Muramura Pānui (formerly the Book Council Lecture) which gives one of Aotearoa’s leading writers a chance to talk about an aspect of literature close to their heart. The Pānui was titled The heart of the matter and touched on the ways in which writers and readers are interdependent, how she became a reader and then a writer – it was a conscious decision made some 60 years ago – and how Read NZ has evolved, morphed and changed through the years.
Speaking with Kidman days before she gave the Pānui, I wanted to know whether she thinks we contradict ourselves when we tell young people that reading is a pleasurable and enjoyable pastime then, when they struggle or are reluctant to do so, we fret and worry and rebuke them for not doing so and can place them in reading programmes that can be the very anthesis of fun.
Tara Black illustrated Dame Fiona Kidman’s Read NZ Te Pou Muramura Pānui. Image: Courtesy Read NZ Te Pou Muramura.
After all, in the early part of her career – in her late teens and early twenties – Kidman was at the coalface of encouraging people, especially children, to read. The first job she recalls truly enjoying was a librarian in Rotorua: “Surrounded every moment of every working day by thousands of books, I had never been happier.”
She met her husband, the last Ian Kidman, in the library – the couple was married for 57 years until his death in 2017 – and shifted with him to Rotorua Boys’ High School where he taught and she became the school librarian.
“I had the task of refurbishing an entire library – enabled by generous grants from a wealthy school board. I was not only in charge of a library, but also overseeing large-scale book purchasing, plus organising events to engage teenage boys in projects that would interest them in reading,” she said in the Pānui.
“Two published writers in the English department, one a novelist, helped develop these programmes. I had a great time – it was only six years since I had left school myself, and I was busy imagining what I might have enjoyed when I was still in the classroom. Book displays of hobbies, student choices, activities; we did all of those.
“I left when I was expecting my first child because, as the principal said, it wouldn’t do to have me wandering around pregnant in a boys’ school, especially as my husband was teaching there. I suppose Ian was evidence of unbridled lust in the bedroom. I’ve never quite worked that out, but I do know it was suggested I spend the following months knitting booties…” (Instead, Dame Fiona wrote a play and, from 1963, when her eldest child was born, decided to commit her life to writing.)
Whereas some writers would most certainly jump in with a strident opinion about the issue of whether we’ve turned learning to read into a moral issue, Kidman is far too circumspect and considered for that. Although several of her family are teachers, at 82 years of age she thinks that while there are indeed some great programmes available, she doesn't have enough direct contact with them now to be able to comment on their efficacy.
Tara Black. Image: Courtesy Read NZ Te Pou Muramura.
However, it does sadden her to think that future generations may grow up not knowing the pleasure that can be had from ‘losing oneself in a book.’
“As a primary producer of books, I want them to be loved. I guess the pleasure of something like taking a book and lying under a tree is at risk of being lost yet it is such a pleasure to be able to indulge oneself like this.’
Kidman says the book, as a physical object, is a thing of beauty and she still gives young people in her life books as gifts: “There is something special about opening the pages of a book and the young people I give books to always seem to look happy about it.”
Nevertheless, experience working with schools and prisons of reading programmes has left her with a pragmaticism grounded in reality: “For some kids, taking a book home is an alien concept – especially if you’re living in a car or a tent.
“What I will say is programmes need funding and it is a responsibility of education providers to ensure they are properly funded. It should not be left up to volunteer contributors to ensure their continuation.”
She continues, saying that the application of effective school reading programmes in bound to be uneven and that a system like our current education system, with an emphasis on continual assessment and reporting, makes it difficult for teachers to find the time to devote to nurturing a love of books and reading.
“I imagine difficult choices have to be made.”
To read Dame Fiona Kidman’s Pānui, go to https://www.read-nz.org/advocacy/nzbc-lecture/
