Josh Morgan

2024 NZCYA Russell Clark Illustration Finalists

The Sapling is excited to continue its tradition of sharing drafts, sketches and process work from the NZCYA illustration award finalists. Thanks to the Book Awards Trust for the book descriptions, the publishers for organising the images and the artists for generously…

2024 NZCYA Picture Book Award Finalists

The picture book finalist pukapuka are as varied as they are colourful. Linda Jane Keegan takes the shortlisted books to a few classes at Tākaka Primary School and asks the tamariki what they think. See our comments on the complete…

Reviews: Five Picture Books

Annelies Judson brings us another batch of reviews of some of the latest picture books to hit the shelves. Lucy and the Dark, written by Melinda Szymanik and illustrated by Vasanti Unka I’m front-footing this review because it deserves to…

Book List: Books that feature play

In the last couple of months, we have seen the effects of COVID-19 wreak havoc worldwide. The mental health of both children and adults has been badly affected as we learn to cope with ‘the new normal’. One positive thing…

A Treasury of Taonga: He Paki Taonga i a Māui

He Paki Taonga i a Māui and its English companion, Māui’s Taonga Tales, are the first children’s books of their kind. With children aged 7-12 in mind, they bring to life taonga from Te Papa museum using kōrero o nehera…

He takoha nui, He Paki Taonga i a Māui!

Kāhore anō kia kitea tētahi pukapuka pēnei i te ao. He kohinga kōrero hei whakaoreore i ngā ngākau o ngā tamariki mai i ngā tau e 7 ki te 12. Mā te pukapuka nei ka ora tonu ngā taonga nō…

The winners of the 2019 Book Awards are …

Fresh off the ceremony at Te Papa Tongarewa, the results are in and your New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults winners are… The Margaret Mahy Book of the Year and the Picture Book Award The Bomb Written…

Book List: Ethnic Representation in Picture Books

There are more ethnicities in New Zealand than countries in the world. So why is it so difficult to find New Zealand picture books that represent this diversity? Nida Fiazi searches out some exceptional New Zealand and international picture books…

Book Awards: the illustration finalists

As part of our ongoing finalist coverage of this year’s New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, we have some glorious snippets to look at from the five Russell Clark Award for Illustration finalists! There are covers, decadent…

Book Awards: The Picture Book Finalists

As part of our coverage of this year’s NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, we’ve asked the publishers of the picture book finalists to explain why that story caught their imaginations and demanded to be told in published…