Sacha Cotter

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…

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 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…

Picture Books for Resilience and Persistence

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…

Best Picture Books for New New Zealanders

Hearing the wonderful news that six more towns are going to be Refugee Resettlement centres, we got thinking about what books might provide the best and friendliest introduction to a new life in Aotearoa New Zealand. Here’s our starting list…

Book Reviews: Te Reo & Trilingual Picture Books

Over Summer, my nephews and I read some recently published te reo Māori and bilingual children’s books. Nō Tauranga Moana rāua, Te Kaponga and Mangō-Ururoa are almost 10 and 7 years old respectively and te reo Māori is their first…

2018 End-of-Year Shopping List: NZ Picture Books

Do you want to be sure you’re getting top-shelf books for your favourite people this Christmas – or on any gift-giving occasion? We are making it easy for you! Here is our selection of the very best New Zealand picture…

Picture Book Design, the Unsung Hero

Our editor, Jane Arthur, looks into what goes into designing a picture book, and talks with the illustrator and designer of the new release from Huia Publishers, The Bomb|Te Pohū, written by Sacha Cotter. Usually, the cover of a picture…