The Free-Range Bookclub
Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
Category: Kiwi lit
Pet – Catherine Chidgey
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Pet is a psychological thriller, about 12-year-old Justine and her fascination with her glamorous new teacher Mrs Price. She, and many of her classmates, are determined to be the teacher’s pet, clambering to help or do after-school jobs and… Continue Reading “Pet – Catherine Chidgey”
Backwaters – Emma Ling Sidnam
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Backwaters addresses the consequences of feeling distant from your ethnic heritage. It starts with fourth generation New Zealander, Laura, being asked “but where are you from from?” New Zealand has been her family’s birth place and home for generations,… Continue Reading “Backwaters – Emma Ling Sidnam”
Bird Life – Anna Smaill
READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Suzy Set in Japan with memories of New Zealand, Bird Life is about Dinah, a young Kiwi woman who moves to Tokyo to escape grief only to gravitate towards a colleague who is also in the grip of loss. Both… Continue Reading “Bird Life – Anna Smaill”
Sorrow And Bliss – Meg Mason
READ FOR BOOKCLUBChosen by Jo Martha has an undiagnosed mental health issue, a loving husband who says she is fine and a family who fall outside of the norms. In this book Martha examines her upbringing and her failing marriage through the lens of… Continue Reading “Sorrow And Bliss – Meg Mason”
2023 – NZ Book Awards
What is the job of fiction? To entertain? To educate? To document? To insert the reader into an unexpected place or mindset so they can see the world through another lens? The authors on this year’s shortlist took their roles to the next level,… Continue Reading “2023 – NZ Book Awards”
Mrs Jewell and the Wreck of the General Grant – Cristina Sanders
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS In 1866 a ship bound for London from Melbourne crashed into the Auckland Islands and sunk, taking with it many lives and an undetermined amount of gold, direct from the goldfields of Australia. Fourteen men and one woman made… Continue Reading “Mrs Jewell and the Wreck of the General Grant – Cristina Sanders”
Kāwai: For Such A Time As This – Monty Soutar
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS In the opening pages a 19-year-old man walks onto his family Marae and asks the local koroua about his whanau’s history. The man’s answer is provided over the following 300-odd pages. He tells of Kaitanga, born 1734 into a… Continue Reading “Kāwai: For Such A Time As This – Monty Soutar”
Better The Blood – Michael Bennett
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS NZ Crime fiction. Detective Hana Westerman chases down a serial killer who is undertaking utu, avenging past atrocities against Māori. Offers insight into New Zealand’s often controversial justice system. ● At first I was surprised to hear a crime… Continue Reading “Better The Blood – Michael Bennett”
Down From Upland – Murdoch Stevens
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Set in Wellington, down from Upland Road in Kelburn, this book is a satirical tale about the complexities of growing up, when you’re a teenager and when you’re in your 40s. Axle has joined a new school. He is… Continue Reading “Down From Upland – Murdoch Stevens”
The Fish – Lloyd Jones
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS 2023 A baby is born to a young, single mother in a caravan park, suffering from an unnamed condition which earns him the name the Fish. The story of the Fish, and the family’s shame and secrets are narrated… Continue Reading “The Fish – Lloyd Jones”
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