An exciting family adventure defying gender stereotypes, Thora Moffat


Night Race to Kawau
Tessa Duder
Penguin Books NZ
Pub. 2007

 

March 22, 2022

Night Race to Kawau is a story about trusting in yourself and others as well as learning to empathise and appreciate everyone.

Set in the early 1980’s this book is about the Starr family, Sam, Jane Jeremy, Mum and Dad as they sail the new and exciting night race on their boat the Arataki to Kawau Island.

When dad is out of action due to an unfortunate accident, Sam and her mother must work together to help their family. This timeless book is a realistic fiction that portrays difficulties in a time of crisis and adapting as well as learning to work together as a team and to trust each other.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

An emotional story about grief and support, Kyra Johnson


Don’t Think. Just Breathe 
First book in the TNT trilogy
Sarah Delany
Self-published
Pub. 2020 

 

March 22, 2022

Don’t Think. Just Breathe was Sarah Delany’s way of dealing with her grief. The great amount of loss she experienced in such a short time was put on paper, and the pages soon turned to a story. It is the first book in the TNT trilogy and an emotional journey of love, grief and finding the best in the two main characters, Tate and Tamsyn.  

 Tate has recently moved to the school Tamsyn goes to. He has ‘let someone down so badly that there’s no turning back’ and been deeply affected by it.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

Descriptive adventure with plot twists, Caleb Keenan


The Uprising: The Mapmakers in Cruxcia
Eirlys Hunter
Gecko Press
Pub. 2021

 

March 18, 2022

The Uprising: the Mapmakers in Cruxcia is a book by Eirlys Hunter about four kids: Sal, Joe, Francie and Humphrey, all siblings.

Sal is a 14-year-old girl, who is great at maths. Joe is a 12-year-old boy, who loves adventure.
Francie is Joe’s twin sister, a girl who never talks, but is amazing at drawing. Humphrey is a curious 6-year-old boy who loves food and adventures.

They are mapmakers travelling to the city of Cruxcia, in the hope of finding their missing father. There they find that the people of Cruxcia are rebelling against the newly employed governor, a ruthless man, and his employed men, the Custodians, sending innocents to jail without trial.  Read more

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A captivating collection of spooky stories, Charlotte Prebble


Ghost Bus – Tales from Wellington’s Dark Side
Anna Kirtlan
Pub. 2021

 

 

March 18. 2022

Ghost Bus – Tales from Wellington’s Dark Side, written by Anna Kirtlan, is a collection of paranormal short stories set in New Zealand’s capital, Wellington (Te Whanganui-A-Tara). From homesick aliens to rude ghosts, bloodthirsty statues to plotting cats, the short stories have a variety of scary, spooky, and sinister paranormal characters. Most often, the stories feature popular landmarks or places around Wellington. Each short story in Ghostbus generally focuses on a different sculpture or iconic place that is part of Wellington’s culture. The short stories also often deal with or incorporate day to day problems that Wellingtonians either face or cause, or even sometimes both.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

An epic and meaningful story, Ruby Bartlett


After the Tampa
Abbas Nazari
Allen&Unwin
Pub. 2021

 

March 17, 2022

Imagine being woken up by your mum and told to get ready to go – to leave behind the life you know to be free from violence and war.  Imagine travelling over 13,000 kilometers, not for a holiday but in terror and fear. Imagine surviving terrorists, corrupt police, starvation, and terrible living conditions with very few possessions and just a tiny glint of hope for a better life in a country you never knew existed.

It seems unimaginable and very scary, and for so many people around the world this is reality.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

A heart-warming reflection on privilege and making change, Mackenzie Johnston


Between Two Worlds
Emma Outteridge
Allen&Unwin
Pub. 2021

 

March 14, 2022

Emma Outteridge’s autobiography Between Two Worlds is a heart-warming tale of human beings’ capacity to care for one another. Outteridge tells the story of a girl who comes from a background of being raised on boats as she travels around New Zealand, and grows up to volunteer in Uganda where she establishes The Kiwi Scholarships.

‘An accident of birth’ is how Outteridge describes the circumstances that lead to her fortune in life. When confronted with events such as the Rwandan Genocide, she was thrown into an identity crisis of why she deserved the life she had.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

Thinking about the infinite possibilities of poetry, Natalya Newman

Actions & Travels
Anna Jackson
Auckland University Press
Pub. 2022

 

March 14, 2022

Actions & Travels, published in 2022, is an exploration into the infinite realm of poetry, examining everything from 1500 sonnets to 2020 tweets. Anna Jackson guides readers through the many facets of poetry and how it has evolved throughout history, looking into different times and translations to show how this form of literature has influenced and been influenced by society.

Jackson guides readers through the poems in this book and pulls them apart in fascinating ways. She asks questions, answers them, and also leaves some unanswered for readers to ponder.  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

A funny and suspenseful adventure, Zelie Houghton


Hine and the Tohunga Portal
Ataria Sharman
Huia
Pub. 2021

 

 

March 11, 2022

At the start of Ataria Sharman’s Hine and the Tohunga Portal we are introduced to Hine and her brother Hōhepa. Hine is a 12-year-old Māori girl who is very fashion oriented with her turquoise pants and bright purple backpack; she daydreams a lot and she is one of the more popular people in school. Hōhepa is eight and seems like he’s 15 by the way he talks, but sometimes he’s just your regular kid.

The patupaiarehe are Māori fairy people, and at a glance they look like normal people and in some way they are but they are actually Papatuanuku’s servants and the people that take care of nature.  Read more

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A creative adventure with intriguing characters, Hunter Davis

Trainsurfer
Kate S Richards
Green Room House
Pub. 2018

 

 

March 8, 2022

Trainsurfer by Kate S Richards is historical fiction set in South Africa. It follows the journey of young Jabu as his life takes an unexpected turn. It starts with Jabu experiencing a heart wrenching tragedy. His instinct is to run. To escape the pain and grief, his journey brings him to a train station where he meets some unsavoury characters, who invite him to join them on their adventures. Jabu will experience further grief, as his journey continues. Through segregation and racism, will Jabu achieve his happily ever after?  Read more

March, 2022 Tanya Prince Scroll down to see reviews submitted by YA readers:

A superb page-turning escapade, Nell Mace-David


The Uprising: The Mapmakers in Cruxcia
Eirlys Hunter
Gecko Press
Pub. 2021

 

March 8, 2022

For fans of playful adventure stories, the second installment in this spellbinding venture is sure to please.

In The Uprising: The Mapmakers in Cruxcia by Eirlys Hunter, Sal, Joe, Francie and Humphrey Santander are on a quest. Their famous mapmaker father is missing, and has been for quite a while, and they desperately want to find him. Their search has led them to Cruxcia, an eccentric valley full of wonders, where their father was last seen on a mapmaking expedition with one of his colleagues.  Read more

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