The Free-Range Bookclub
Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
Category: Kiwi lit
Blindsight – Maurice Gee
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jo The lives of Alice Ferry, a retired Wellington scientist, and her brother Gordon take divergent paths. ◉ “Gee gradually unravels this story building the tension effortlessly as we learn about the siblings’ history, start to understand the nature… Continue Reading “Blindsight – Maurice Gee”
Into The River – Ted Dawe
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Sonya An East Coast Maori boy wins a scholarship to an Auckland College where his ancestral beliefs collide with his private school education. ◉ “I had no idea that Into The River was a banned book when I chose… Continue Reading “Into The River – Ted Dawe”
2017 NZ Book Awards
Three of the shortlisted fiction books could take out the Ockham’s top prize in 2017. (Wish there’d been time to read shortlisters from the other categories too, but alas.) With literary giants like Stead and Marshall at the helm of this section and powerhouse Chidgey snapping at their… Continue Reading “2017 NZ Book Awards”
The Wish Child – Catherine Chidgey
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Two children watch as their parents become immersed in the puzzling mechanisms of power in 1939 Germany. ◉ “Personally, I love human stories set during the war. But sometimes you feel like you’re reading the same stuff over and… Continue Reading “The Wish Child – Catherine Chidgey”
Love As A Stranger – Owen Marshall
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Middle-aged strangers Sarah and Hartley meet by chance in an Auckland graveyard and arrange to have coffee. Sarah’s husband is undergoing cancer treatment. They begin an affair which soon turns into an obsession. ◉ “I loved this book from… Continue Reading “Love As A Stranger – Owen Marshall”
Billy Bird – Emma Neale
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Liam and Iris have a son called Billy, who is as clever and interactive as any other child of his age. However due to a tragedy in the family, Billy turns into a bird. He believes this completely. As… Continue Reading “Billy Bird – Emma Neale”
As The Earth Turns Silver – Alison Wong
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Jo The story and struggles of settler families in early 20th-Century New Zealand. Yung and Shun are immigrants from China. They become greengrocers in Wellington and know they must adapt to their adopted home. Englishwoman Katherine McKechnie struggles to… Continue Reading “As The Earth Turns Silver – Alison Wong”
Book Book – Fiona Farrell
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Sonya As war is waged in the Middle East, a woman in New Zealand has her nose in a book – part fiction, part autobiography, Farrell documents her life’s history with reading ➤ “I really enjoyed Fiona Farrell’s writing… Continue Reading “Book Book – Fiona Farrell”
The Story Of A New Zealand River – Jane Mander
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Rachel Englishwoman Alice Roland and her children join her colonial husband to live in isolation in Pukekaroro, a settlement on a New Zealand river abutting a native kauri forest. The biggest cause of her uneasiness was that she had… Continue Reading “The Story Of A New Zealand River – Jane Mander”
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