Design is a huge part of what makes good books even better. Design is not just about looking pretty; it’s about guiding the reader’s eye, drawing attention to key features, making text readable, digestible, and accessible. Good design is almost…
Editor Linda Jane Keegan took the picture book finalists to Tākaka Primary School to get the opinions from some of the junior classes. They were very receptive and engaged, and loved sharing their thoughts on the books (and anything else…
Three new picture books reviewed by Linda Jane Keegan cover fitting in, farts, and science. The illustrations in each are wonderful and totally different from one another, and they will have you searching, laughing (or eye-rolling, depending on your tastes),…
It’s time for a fresh batch of picture books reviews! Rachel Moore takes us through five new fantastic titles from Aotearoa that feature a child in a hurry, the most heartwarming friendship between a boy and a goose, a wildlife…
How many books have you read about Muslims since the Christchurch mosque shootings? How many have you read in your lifetime? In this instalment of The Reckoning, Sapling editor Nida Fiazi argues for more books with Muslim representation, and offers…
As a general rule, March is a delightful time in the book industry, New Zealand. New releases are winging their way through the doors, writers’ festivals abound, and local and international awards are cracking their knuckles and revving their engines….
I tēnei putanga whakanui i te Wiki o Te Reo Māori kua kōrero ki ētehi tamariki nō Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o te Tonga o Hokianga, kia rongo he pēhea ō rātou whakaaro mō ētehi tānga reo Māori ina tata…
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…
Helping children deal with obstacles and setbacks is a core part of parenting and teaching. Today education lecturer and writer Frank Wilson suggests some picture books that can help model these skills – while also being fantastic reads. If you…
Alexandra Saunders admires Linda Jane Keegan’s debut picture book Things in the Sea are Touching Me, for many many reasons. The bright, crisp, clean illustrations by Minky Stapleton, the two mums, the rhyme scheme – find out what else! Things…