Bookclubbers without boundaries in Nelson, New Zealand
READ FOR BOOKCLUB Chosen by Sonya Driving To Treblinka is a memoir by New Zealand journalist Diana Wichtel. In it she seeks to redeem the past, a past in which she did not truly know her father Ben, nor his sufferings trying to evade… Continue Reading “Driving To Treblinka – Diana Wichtel”
Internationality, borders and sentimentality over the comforts of home have been under the microscope lately with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. When disaster strikes it’s in one’s nature to analyse what home really means, what it comprises and the emotions it stirs up.… Continue Reading “2020 NZ Book Awards”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Auē is about the struggles to escape a life of violence, told through the experiences of brothers Taukiri, 17 and Arama, 8. Tauriki decides to undertake a quest to locate his birth mother. Responsible for Ārama, he entrusts the… Continue Reading “Auē – Becky Manawatu”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS A suicidal man visits his family in California before deciding his fate. ✚ “My previous experience of David Vann was of the book Goat Mountain, which both freaked me out and captivated me. I wanted to recommend it to… Continue Reading “Halibut On The Moon – David Vann”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS A surgeon is investigated after the death of a patient. ✚ “I have to preface this by saying it’s been at least six months since I read A Mistake. I bought it after reading numerous positive reviews. I remember the… Continue Reading “A Mistake – Carl Shuker”
The past few years have been an interesting time globally as opinions around nationalism and free-speech have become hot topics. Yet, is it new? Or is history simply repeating itself in a more raw, no-holds-barred medium? Perhaps we can look back on history and… Continue Reading “2019 NZ Book Awards”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Peter Collie reassesses past events in the wake of his wife’s death only to discover new secrets. ⚑ “Family matters are at the fore of Peter Collie’s life. Upon his wife’s death Peter learns of secrets kept about his… Continue Reading “The New Ships – Kate Duignan”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS Christel has two small children, a stressful job in reality television, an activist lifestyle, a Holocaust survivor father, and now her protest milk bottle sculpture has come to life, appearing in various spots around Auckland like a giant golem.… Continue Reading “The Sound of Breaking Glass – Kirsten Warner”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS A moving multigenerational family saga about the legacy of the Holocaust and the burden of secrets never shared ⚑ “I was all in for I would say three-quarters of this novel but then as the characters we focused on… Continue Reading “All This By Chance – Vincent O’Sullivan”
READ FOR NZ BOOK AWARDS A profound and unsettling novel about humanity and dignity and the ease with which we’re able to justify brutality. ⚑ “It’s like Lloyd Jones got in my head and seeing my worst fears was then inspired to write the… Continue Reading “The Cage – Lloyd Jones”
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