The finalists for the 2024 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults have been announced, with the full list available here. The winners will be announced at Pipitea Marae in Wellington on Wednesday 14 August, but in the meantime, Kete asked seven finalists to tell us about the Aotearoa New Zealand children's book that inspired them most when they set out to write their finalist book.

A M Dixon Finalist in the Young Adult Fiction Award for NEW DAWNING (One Tree House)

Margaret Mahy’s Summery Saturday Morning. Margaret was still alive when I first moved to Governors Bay and while I didn’t know her, I’d often pass her walking on the foreshore track. It was magic to be able to read a book to my children which was so obviously set in the place where they lived. My book, New Dawning, is also set in the local area, with many familiar landmarks featuring in the work, and I think it is essential for young people to be able to see their own geography in the books they read. 

Katharine J Adams Finalist in the Young Adult Fiction Award for TONIGHT, I BURN (Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand)

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong, published a little bit before I wrote the first draft of Tonight, I Burn. Watching a Kiwi author illuminate the YA fantasy world with such gorgeous, lush prose wrapped around a dark story was a huge lightbulb moment for me. I love pretty words, dark worlds, and morally grey characters. These Violent Delights is inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and I loved the idea of writing around the stories that first pulled me into reading. Beauty and The Beast, The Secret Garden, and Hades and Persephone are all woven through Tonight, I Burn’s pages.

Moira Wairama Finalist in the Wright Family Foundation Te Kura Pounamu Award for NANI JO ME NGĀ MOKOPUNA POROHÍANGA, illustrated by Margaret Tolland (Baggage Books)

Originally published 40 years ago, Te Tuna Watakirihi me Nga Tamariki o te Tiriti o Toa/ Watercress Tuna and the Children of Champion Street by Patricia Grace and Robyn Kahukiwa is still one of my favorite children's picture books. Their example of combining a strong  storyline with inspiring art work to tell  a uniquely Aotearoa story inspired me to write my own picture books.  I’m always aware the success of my books is  ue equally to the skill of those  who illustrate my stories and was delighted that artist Margaret Tolland, who illustrated our book Nani Jo me Ngā Mokopuna Porohīanga, used models who were  tamariki from Porirua East School which is not far from Champion Street! Miharo! Ngā mihi maha ki a Patricia rāua ko Robyn, ko tā kōrua pukapuka he whakaihi  māku.

Rob Foote Finalist in the Russell Clark Award for Illustration for SAMPLES FROM THE LAB (Creativity Unleashed)

When we first landed in New Zealand, the very first place we stayed had David Elliot’s "Snark" prominently displayed on the coffee table. It felt like a sign! The artwork left me spellbound; its whimsical and surreal charm was utterly captivating. David’s distinctive and beautiful creations inspire me to keep pursuing my own artistic journey.

Raymond McGrath Finalist in the Wright Family Foundation Esther Glen Junior Fiction award for DOUBLEDIPPERS! (Scholastic New Zealand)

One of my most favourite NZ picture books that is a constant source of inspiration is Ruth Paul's I Am Jellyfish.  It is one of those books where the beautiful words, meaningful themes and gorgeous illustrations all align magically to create a narrative experience for children that only a picture book can.  I love it! 

Eileen Merriman Finalist in the Young Adult Fiction Award for CATCH A FALLING STAR (Penguin Random House NZ)

My favourite NZ YA book will be always be Under the Mountain by Maurice Gee - the mind-reading twins, the disgusting slug-like Wilberforces and the dark world beneath Rangitoto - I read it so many times, and now my 10-year-old loves it too - great fuel for an over-active imagination!  

Melinda Szymanik Finalist in the Picture Book Award for LUCY AND THE DARK, illustrated by Vasanti Unka (Penguin Random House NZ) Finalist in the Wright Family Foundation Te Kura Pounamu Award for HE TĀRŪ KAHIKA, illustrated by Isobel Joy Te Aho-White (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tahu), translated by Pānia Papa (Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Ngāti Mahuta) (Scholastic New Zealand)

There is an Aotearoa New Zealand picture book that is a source of everlasting inspiration for me when I am writing my own picture books. It contains a story that is the perfect demonstration of the magic words are capable of,  and defies any analysis of how the 'trick' is achieved because the magic is real. It is Margaret Mahy's A Lion in the Meadow and for me it stands at the peak (along with several other iconic titles) of what is possible in children's writing and of the writing magic I strive for every time I start work on a story. I will always be aiming for that goal.