| Kia ora tātou,
Āke, ake, ake! This month we look towards Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori (14–20 September) and the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1975. We celebrate with two new releases in the Māori language – a translation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth by the great Te Haumihiata Mason, and an original text by tohunga Tā Pou Temara, exploring the visions, teachings and songs of the prophet Te Kooti and his Ringatū faith.
In poetry, we are thrilled to release the sensuous second collection from Wellington poet Emma Barnes, If We Knew How to We Would.
And we dive into the evolution of immigration politics and policy in Aotearoa New Zealand with Edges of Empire, by leading social scientists Francis L. Collins, Alan Gamlen and Neil Vallelly.
Read on to find out more about our forthcoming titles, recent media and upcoming events.
Ngā manaakitanga, nā mātou o AUP |
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| | POET LAUREATE ROBERT SULLIVAN |
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| | Congratulations to Robert Sullivan (Ngāpuhi, Kāi Tahu) on his appointment as the New Zealand Poet Laureate for 2025–2028. From Star Waka to Hopurangi–Songcatcher, from Whetu Moana to Te Whāriki, from K Road to Moeraki harbour, in the pages of books and on stages across the nation, Robert is a shining star in the world of books and poetry. |
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| | NGĀ PUKAPUKA HOU | NEW BOOKS |
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| | Matapēhi William Shakespeare Nā Te Haumihiata Mason i whakamāori
He kōrero i whiria ki te pōuri me te toto, e miramira ana i te hiahia tangata: ko Matapēhi, te whakaari a Wiremu Hakipia, kua whakaorangia ki te reo rangatira. |
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| | | Te Āhua o ngā Kupu Whakaari a Te Kooti Tā Pou Temara
He kōrero hirahira tēnei e wānangatia ai ngā kupu whakaari a Te Kooti Te Turuki Rikirangi – he poropiti, he kaiārahi, he pou nō te Hāhi Ringatū. |
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| | | If We Knew How to We Would Emma Barnes
The difficult second album from the author of I Am in Bed with You. A poetry collection that answers a question nobody asked: How many thoughts can you work into a single poem? |
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| | | Edges of Empire The Politics of Immigration
in Aotearoa New Zealand,
1980–2020 Francis L. Collins, Alan Gamlen
and Neil Vallelly
Written by three leading social scientists, Edges of Empire provides an insightful account of who is included in Aotearoa New Zealand and under what conditions. |
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| | | | BOOK LAUNCH Join us to celebrate the launch of If We Knew How to We Would, the new poetry collection by Emma Barnes.
Thursday 11 September 6pm Two/FiftySeven Level 2, 57 Willis Street Wellington
With readings from Always Becominging and others. Mask wearing is appreciated (KN95s will be available at the door). Thanks to Unity Books for bookselling. |
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| | | BOOK LAUNCH Join us to celebrate the Dunedin launch of Edges of Empire by Francis L. Collins, Alan Gamlen and Neil Vallelly.
Thursday 9 October 6pm UBS Otago 378 Great South Rd
Dunedin
To be launched by Associate Professor Miranda Johnson. Thanks to UBS Otago for hosting and bookselling. |
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| | NGĀ PUKAPUKA TATA | FORTHCOMING |
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| | | WHAKAATU PĀPĀHOU | RECENT MEDIA |
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| | No Good By Sophie van Waardenberg ‘What has always been charming about van Waardenberg’s work is her ability to find precious delight in everyday minutias, and effortlessly blend amusement with melancholy.’ – Melanie Kwang reviews for Kete Books. ‘You can’t go wrong with van Waardenberg’s debut: full of surprise, relatable and raw emotion, and warmth.’ – The Spinoff. ‘The beauty of these poems is hard to overstate: they manage to be precise but not fussy, lyrical but not cloying, vulnerable but never self-indulgent.’ – ‘Very Good, In Fact’, a Maddie Ballard review and Q&A with the poet on bad apple. Read an interview with Sophie van Waardenberg on NZ Booklovers: ‘No Good has these things in it: grief, cats, television, complaining, sapphism, antidepressants, loneliness and eggs. It is, as one of my students once described a poetry book, ‘Just poem after poem after poem’. ‘Most of the poems are in perpetual motion – vivid and vital and in your face, full of enthusiasm for the act of being alive’ – Mary Cresswell reviews on Flaxroots Productions. Listen to Sophie reading two of her poems from No Good on NZ Poetry Shelf.
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| | | In the Hollow of the Wave By Nina Mingya Powles In the Hollow of the Wave featured in last month’s ‘best recent poetry – review roundup’ by Rebecca Tamás – the Guardian. ‘With a very delicate touch’ – In the Hollow of the Wave featured in the NZ Listener. ‘Powles has created something innovative – a multimedia collection that honours traditional craft knowledge whilst speaking directly to 21st-century concerns about cultural transmission and environmental vulnerability.’ – Savannah Patterson reviews for Kete Books. In the Hollow of the Wave has been a recent feature on the Unity Books bestseller list. ‘Powles writes with delicacy, has an eye for what is beautiful and values the skills of those who can produce tactile art.’ – Reid's Reader.
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| | Other recent media & news ‘Such a delight’ – listen to Stella Chrysostomou review Anna Jackson’s Terrier, Worrier on RNZ’s Nine to Noon. ‘I thought, well, this is something new. I thought, how does she know so much about Renaissance falconry manuals? I thought, Anna Jackson is very good.’ – Florence Kitteridge reviews Terrier, Worrier for The Post. ‘I utterly love this book of wonder.’ – Terrier, Worrier review on NZ Poetry Shelf. And read an email conversation on NZ Poetry Shelf between Anna Jackson and Paula Green as they discuss their new books. ‘Luckily, Dear Alter has such a sophisticated and multivalent voice, at once wise and vulnerable on its theses of otherness, gender, intimacy, grief and distance, that dipping back into its electric currents comes easily.’ – Dani Yourukova reviews Dear Alter for Takahē. ‘The robots are everywhere but why treat them as human? Jiaqiao Liu featured on RNZ’s Culture 101 with Mark Amery. ‘a unique outlook’ – Dear Alter in the NZ Listener. ‘For those challenged by questions like, ‘Why do equity scholarships exist?’ – the answers are here, laid out clearly and comprehensively.’ – Pauline Smith reviews Oceans Between Us for Kete Books. ‘not only does Te Hau Kāinga normalise the inclusion in history of all members of New Zealand society, but in describing that society it gives expression to a completely different worldview.’ – Helen Watson White, Landfall Review Online Congratulations to Linda Bryder who is the 2025 inaugural winner of the Australian and New Zealand Society of the History of Medicine Book Prize for The Best Country to Give Birth?, announced at the Society’s biennial conference in Sydney. And a shoutout to Neil Pardington who is a finalist in the Best Awards for his design of Toi Te Mana, and notably his original typeface ‘Mana’ designed specifically for the publication.
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