More children's books
The Girl Who Hated Books by Manjusha Pawagi, illustrated by Leanne Franson
This is a lovely story about a girl called Meena who hates reading and hates books. She doesn't know her name means "fish" in ancient Sanskrit because she never looks anything up.
One day she and her cat Max have an exciting but endearing adventure right in their own living room. They accidentally knock over a huge pile of the hated books thus unleashing all the animals inside them. There is a heartwarming happy ending to the tale.
The lively full-page colour illustrations by Leanne Franson are a perfect accompaniment to the story and work well whether you're reading the story aloud or your kids are reading it to themselves.
Pop in and buy a copy for only $4.00 and while you're here, check out our great selection of children's literature and visit the dedicated children's area in the shop.
Kiwi road, rail and air transport
From horse-drawn carts to steam engines and from aeroplanes to classic cars, this book presents a survey of New Zealand's transport history.
Matthew Wright provides us with loving portraits of 100 planes, lorries, cars, motorcycles and trains, including the iconic, the much-loved, the quirky and the plain mad. Each one is accompanied by a beautiful photograph.
There is even a wonderful image of the tiny Austin Seven 'Chummy' in the mid-1920s with an astounding 10 men crammed into (or onto) it.
Buy this book and treat yourself to a nostalgic journey through some of the magnificent machines that have played such a huge part in New Zealand's transport history.
Alun Leach-Jones
Essays by Jonathan Goodman and Rex Butler and an Interview with Alun Leach-Jones by Brett Ballard
The marvellous painter and sculptor Alun Leach-Jones was born in the UK but moved to Australia and is generally considered to be an Australian artist. This book contains not only a superb selection of his paintings and sculptures but also fascinating essays by New York critic Jonathan Goodman (Shadows, Essences and Distillations) and Brisbane critic Dr Rex Butler (Allegories of Feeling). There is an interview by curator and gallery manager Brett Ballard with Mr Leach-Jones which explores the artist's voice behind the paintings and sculpture.
This book showcases a significant collection of Leach-Jones' work and admirably highlights his brilliant use of colour in his paintings and the complexity in his bronze sculptures. Whether you are already a fan or you are not yet familiar with this artist, this lovely book is a must for all art lovers.
The Library: A World History
From ancient ruins to modern institutions, gilt and leather clad tomes to trusty paperbacks, the authors have visited eighty different libraries around the world. They weave literary history and architecture into a fascinating account of how our places of learning have changed over the years.
This would make a perfect gift for the devoted bibliophile or architecture enthusiast.
Attention motorcycle racing fans
John Britten: The Boy Who Did Do Better by Jennifer Beck
This is a biography of John Britten, a really great New Zealand hero. It covers his childhood and then moves on through his early forays into prototype motorcycles and his various failures and triumphs in design and engineering.
Working with a very small team in Christchurch, John Britten designed and built the Britten V-twin motorcycle, which was the fastest four-stroke bike in the world for a time. The feat of beating some of the biggest and best bike manufacturers in the world is a testament to his passion and brilliance.
If you are a Britten fan, then you can't do better than get a copy of the children's version of Britten's biography for your kids. It is a lovely true story of an ordinary boy who overcame real difficulties at school. Despite his report cards usually saying "could do better", he proved everyone wrong and went on to do much, much better; hence the title of this biography.
Britten's design and engineering genius have been an inspiration to many. His life and his extraordinary achievements have relevance and appeal far beyond just those who are interested in motorbikes. Read this book and marvel.
Footrot Flats
The series is written & illustrated by New Zealand cartoonist Murray Ball. His brilliant drawings are the perfect foil to the lively and humorous stories. It's hard not to love Wal and the Footrot Flats gang and there is a real treat in store for anyone not yet familiar with them.
The books deal with the daily exploits of the farmer Wal and his sheepdog "Dog" on the Footrot Flats farm. Lots of other animals have starring roles too - turkey, goat, goose, horse and Major the pig-dog to name a few. Wal's family, friends & neighbours contribute to the humorous portrayal of the farming life and their are plenty of others with cameo roles.
We have a huge selection of Footrot Flats books both in the shop and in our online catalogue. Lighten up your life with a little laughter and start collecting the entire set or brighten up someone else's life and buy them a copy as a present.
A Wild Moose Chase
Fiordland. New Zealand. Hunting. Moose. Modern-day odyssey. These may not sound very likely bedfellows (or book-fellows) but they form the basis of this story which recounts the remarkable adventures of Ken Tustin in his search for the New Zealand moose. They are all vital elements of the tale.
His quest took him many years and required a dedication and determination to find the elusive moose which had not been seen for decades and was considered by many to have died out. In fact, given how unsuitable the remote Fiordland environment is for moose, it would be almost a miracle if a few had somehow survived.
For anyone who loves hunting, likes a mystery, enjoys an adventure or just has an interest in wildlife and nature, this book is a fascinating read.
It is not only a heartwarming story, it is glimpse into a very different lifestyle to the one most of us live. Not only that, it will probably send you out to buy a pair of tramping boots and a map of Fiordland and to start planning your next holiday straight away.
Fabulous children's story
By Michael Dugan and illustrated by Brett Colquhoun
This is a really fabulous children's story / picture book published by Puffin.
As you can see, the illustrations are superb. They are simple black and white pen & ink pictures conveying a wealth of information and emotion with a few strokes. There are some really vile details which will appeal to children of all ages (although maybe not to very sensitive under-fives).
The story is a moral one where Billy gets his just desserts in the end but in between his second birthday and his final comeuppance, there are quite a few amusing adventures.
We hadn't noticed this book in our stock but today one of our very regular young customers called Alice brought it up to the counter to show us. (She was chuckling).
We really love it and thank Alice for showing it to us.
