Gavin Bishop's latest book is a monster-sized tome about Aotearoa's mythical taniwha. Take a look inside: www.thesapling.co.nz/the-sampling...

Kiwi Christmas Books is a fabulous charity making sure thousands of children have a book to open on Christmas morning. We spoke with founder Sonya Wilson about the initiative: www.thesapling.co.nz/kiwi-christm...

'… what is becoming an adult if it isn’t working out to use your little piece of power, for the good of others, or yourself' @forster81.bsky.social reviews the new YA novel from @elizabethknoxnz.bsky.social: www.thesapling.co.nz/review-kings...

'King, like Violet, is rocking out' Lucy Black reviews @rachaelking70.bsky.social's new Violet and the Velvets adventure: www.thesapling.co.nz/review-a-sop... @allenandunwinnz.bsky.social

This Saturday is Bookshop Day! Here's what your local children's bookstore has planned: www.thesapling.co.nz/bookshop-day...

Fishy business! Reviews for a guide to fishing from Al Brown, and books on coastal creatures and fish from Donovan Bixley and Gillian and Daryl Torckler: www.thesapling.co.nz/fishy-busine...

'If illustration were a sport, then, in my opinion, children’s books are the ultramarathon!' Illustrator Hope McConnell on a day in her working life: www.thesapling.co.nz/a-day-in-the...

Here's short story to start your weekend, 'The Olive Twig' from Sonya McArthur's Tales of Curiosity: www.thesapling.co.nz/the-sampling...

Ruby Jones on her collaboration with @jacindaardern.bsky.social: www.thesapling.co.nz/comic-ruby-j...

Ko te pukapuka whakamutunga o Te Wiki o te Reo Māori ko Hineraukatauri me Te Ara Pūoro. www.thesapling.co.nz/te-whakataui...

Congratulations Vida Kelly (A LOT OF SILLY), Sophie Hooper and Te Kani Price (THE DREAM FACTORY) on your joint win this evening!

The PANZ Book Design Awards are announced tonight! We asked the finalists for the children's category to quiz each other on their work shorturl.at/l6iGo

Mō te Rāpare nei, te rā tuawhā o Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, e whakanui ana mātou i tētahi rangatira nui whakaharahara: pānuihia tēnei Whakatauira nō Te Whaea o te Motu: Whina Cooper me Te Hīkoi Roa mō Te Manatika. shorturl.at/YjzQ1

Ko He Taonga Te Toka te pukapuka mō te Rāapa o Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori. Nā Sacha Cotter rāua ko Josh Morgan (Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, Rongowhakaata) tēnei taonga i hanga—koinei tētahi kōrero ātaahua e tūhura ana i te mahamaha, i te mōhio. shorturl.at/xSYjh

He aha te pukapuka mō te Rātū o Te Wiki o te Reo Māori? How Many Times?/Me Hia Rawa Ngā Wā?, nā Tim Tīpene rāua ko Nicoletta Benella! Ko pukapuka reorua tēnei, heoi anō, e whai take ana tēnei mō ngā ākonga reo. He ngahau te karere o te pukapuka mō ngā mātua–(whakarongo ki tō māmā!) shorturl.at/pOhYE

Hei whakanui i Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, ka tukua e rima ngā Whakatauira nā ētahi pukapuka pikitia mīharo.

'When you step into a New Zealand forest, the world changes. The light shifts, the air is damp with earth ... You feel small, but also connected to something that has been here far longer than you.' Ned Barraud on his stunning new book: shorturl.at/Fih5H

'… there is a stripping away of the support systems that build blossoming literacy landscapes which form the backbone of any good education' Samantha Mongtomerie examines NZ's literacy crisis: www.thesapling.co.nz/keeping-the-...

www.thesapling.co.nz/keeping-the-... Hear hear!

Cult of safety – Elizabeth Heritage reviews a new YA novel from Helen Vivienne Fletcher: www.thesapling.co.nz/review-the-r...

This was such a fun kōrero and Josh Morgan continues to be a top tier human and artist.

Congratulations ANNE-MARIE JONES! You're the winner of our NZCYA prize pack. Thanks so much to everyone who entered, and to the New Zealand Book Awards Trust for the wonderful prize!

'... the words and the pictures and the joy of reading them out loud' Briar Lawry spoke with Josh Morgan about picture books, his work and the Mallinson Rendel Illustrators Award: www.thesapling.co.nz/interview-jo...

David Hill on writing about Whina Cooper, te reo Māori and the vision and endurance of the eminent New Zealanders he has written about: www.thesapling.co.nz/interview-da...

If you're doing research in NZ about children's books, a friendly reminder that the Susan Price scholarship ($2500) closes end of Oct dnwfriends.nzl.org/index.php/ho...

Happy National Poetry Day! We're sharing the wonderful winning poems from The Poets XYZ's poetry for children competition: www.thesapling.co.nz/the-winners-...

We're running a competition! To enter the draw to win a complete set of all the NZCYA winning books and a rare-as-hen's-teeth 2025 NZCYA tote bag please subscribe to our newsletter by the end of Thursday 28 August, by entering your details at this link: eepurl.com/ibMEE9

Illustrator Pippa Keel Situ takes us through a day in her working life, from rising late to other 'insufferable traits' like running marathons. And the joy of illustrating picture books: www.thesapling.co.nz/a-day-in-the...

@babybookdel.bsky.social tells us about the path to publication for her brand new picture book, Turkey Hurly-Burly: www.thesapling.co.nz

Some great audience questions from children yesterday: - What are you scared of? - Is that your real hair colour? - Can you sign this book? [not my book]

The children's literature community are normally a polite bunch, so heckling the Hon. Paul Goldsmith was out of character. Here's a blow-by-blow account of all the winners & vibes from last night's NZCYA awards: shorturl.at/jFR5s

By popular demand, we present the junior fiction finalists for the #NZCYA awards interviewing each other on their books & writing lives www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-j... #BooksAlive @macdibble.bsky.social @exocomics.com @cravenjaney.bsky.social @rachaelking70.bsky.social @clairemabey.bsky.social

One day until the winners of the NZ Book Awards for Children and Young Adults are announced! We'll be live blogging from the ceremony, join us from 6.30pm, Wednesday: www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-a...

Five of the 29 finalists in the NZ Book Awards for Children & Young Adults are self-published. Claudia Palmer spoke with those creators for tips on self-publishing: www.thesapling.co.nz/five-authors...

My son B & I had a LOT more to say about these books than there was room for in this article – I’m grateful to @mandyh.bsky.social & Mary-Anne Scott for these novels and the conversations they sparked

@stephm1.bsky.social what a fab review! Neville and Alex worked out a daily page goal to reach the deadline... but Alex soon sped beyond it & was exhorting his father to catch up .... His excitement convinced Serena and Zoe to read it too, and soon ‘there was a lot of discussion at the dinner table

We asked parents to read the young adult finalists in the NZCYA awards alongside their teens and tweens. Here are their reviews: www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-y... @mandyh.bsky.social @stephm1.bsky.social

Arihia Latham takes the reo Māori finalists in the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults to kura, and shares what the kids think: www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-t...

Elissa Brent Weissman is a best-selling American writer based in Christchurch. Her new middle grade book looks at what life might be like as the child of an influencer. Lucy Black reviews the novel: www.thesapling.co.nz/review-so-ov...

'It is no coincidence that declining literacy rates have coincided with sustained under-investment, devaluing and neglect of school libraries in Aotearoa' This week is Aotearoa School Library Week, but many schools around the country lack access to libraries: shorturl.at/MnLth

My son has had the support of a RTLit teacher. It was so valuable for him. He’s now working with support from within the school, but I know this is causing pressure on the school too. If they are short staffed, he misses out on his lession as the teacher goes to cover.

'The reckless and foolhardy decision to disestablish the Resource Teachers of Literacy (RTLit) by the current government will bring about a day of reckoning in the education system.' Belinda Whyte on the government's decision to disestablish RT Lits: shorturl.at/i3VEy

'There was an infectious, buzzing energy in the air from the moment I arrived...' @beebrhyte.bsky.social visited Books Alive in Palmerston North: shorturl.at/0uMuA

PANZ is trying to continue the Wihitreia Publishing programme in 2026 and is looking for a space in Wgtn in which to deliver it. They need a space large enough for 20pax seated at tables, Mon - Fri 8.30am - 5pm. If you know of such a space, email [email protected] and we'll pass it on.

One hundred and nine Resource Teachers of Literacy currently work to support children struggling with reading and writing – but the Government has disestablished their positions. RT Lit Belinda Whyte shares the impact of that decision in today's Reckoning: shorturl.at/9MeLJ

We asked the children's specialist librarians at Wellington City Libraries what they thought of the finalists for the NZCYA Bookhub Picture Book Award ... so they took the books to story time to properly assess them! www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-l...

Bee Trudgeon has compiled a gentle, compassionate book list for families facing bereavement by suicide: www.thesapling.co.nz/booklist-ber...

Kura Rutherford and her team of student librarians assess the finalists in the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults' Best First Book Category, and award some medals of their own: www.thesapling.co.nz/nzcya-2025-n...

'… the sensibilities of a British illustrator from the 1970s aren’t inherently the best choice for a book being published in Aotearoa in 2025' @babybookdel.bsky.social looks at the Margaret Mahy Illustration Prize, which asks unpublished illustrators to reimagine Mahy classics shorturl.at/6iLG2

check it out ! #authorinterview #YAauthor #booksky