THE GROOVE BOOK REPORT

Rachel Cusk’s novel “Second Place,” Richard Powers’s “Bewilderment” and Kazuo Ishiguro’s “Klara and the Sun” are among the 13 books nominated for this year's most prestigious literary award -  the 2021 Booker Prize, announced here on Tuesday, USA time. Ishiguro, known for the won 1989 British literary award winner “The Remains of the Day,” about a butler working for a Nazi sympathizer, has been nominated for “Klara and the Sun.” The novel about a 14-year-old girl who gets a humanoid machine companion to help relieve her loneliness. The Booker Prize’s judges, led by the historian Maya Jasanoff, have been unanimous in their support for the novel - “What stays with you in ‘Klara and the Sun’ is the haunting narrative voice — a genuinely innocent, egoless perspective on the strange behavior of humans obsessed and wounded by power, status and fear,” the panel said in a news release announcing the nominees. Ishiguro’s work goes up against Powers’s forthcoming novel “Bewilderm...

This year’s Verb Readers & Writers Festival (3 - 7 November 2021) has the theme of ‘coven’. The word is evocative of so much, not in the least ideas of community, magic, creation and circles of knowledge. To celebrate some of the brilliant writers who will feature in the Festival, we have teamed up with   The Pantograph Punch   to create a book club so we can read books in advance and talk about them together before hearing the authors themselves in the Festival in November. How it works in a nutshell:  Either sign up for all five months of reading in one go ( The Full Cauldron option ), or just purchase the month/s you'd like. Books arrive to your door (with a stunning book mark designed by Sara Moana). Then you get an invitation to an online book club to chat with fellow readers.   Read more about how it works here. This month you will get two books as we kick off with new work by two phenomenal poets ,  Rangikura  by Tayi Tibble and  B...

  Wellington. The land of dips and rolls, the wind has a life of it's own.  Dig a little deeper and the city is unforgiving and unrepentant.  Forget the politicians, they're poor amateurs in deception and crime. It's Saturday night down on the wharf.  Celebrations are in full swing for the Weston's fortieth Wedding Anniversary.  Their daughter, Stella, has returned from London to attend. Once shoulder-tapped as detective material, a few bad decisions and a questionable ethical dilemma saw her leave the force under a cloud.  She's now a private investigator in London, reduced to filming errant husbands for court cases.  She doesn't want to be home. Later that night her best friend Teri is found dead in a lane in the central city.  Her phone is missing.  It looks like suicide, but Stella won't believe it. Stella Weston is relentless, foul-mouthed and tenacious.  She's not above taking big risks to find the truth about her friend and the sh...

  Karen McMillan returns with another fast-paced, original for readers 8-12 years old.  Action-packed, fast-paced, full of magic and adventure and quirky ideas, Jewel Lagoon is the next fabulous installment in her Elastic Island series.  This book will appeal to long term readers and those more 'reluctant' types.   The four main characters: Kiri, Jed, and twins Emma, and Ethan, have distinct personalities and are masters of their skills, which help them navigate through the challenges on their adventure.  All children will identify with these amazing characters.  This is like a new take on the Famous Five but more fantastical and humourous.   "I really like Emma," Emily reckons, " She is a bit like eme, I think.  She's smart, pretty, dreamy and quick to come up with solutions."  Emily, our young reviewer also liked Kiri, especially her singing, and her  bright, smiling personality.  "In Elastic Island, I really love her ad...

This intriguing novel takes a different and refreshing view of the War, looking at things from the other side.  Based on real true events, this is a compelling tale about a German immigrant who becomes deeply involved in a sinister Nazi spy operation based in the Big Apple during the early stages of World War II.   In the closing years of the 1930s, Europe is embroiled in the beginnings of a second war.  Although desperately trying to remain isolationist, America can not avoid the fighting either.  The streets of New York have also become battlefields with anti-semitic gangs and racist bullys spreading lies and venom at every opportunity.  German nationalists openly celebrate Hitler’s rise in strength and power.   Josef Klein is a recent German immigrant.  He has no real skills, and is hopelessly naieve, having grown up i a small town, away from the husssssstle and bustle of a big city.  He is oblivious to all the troubles plag...

We at the Groove Book Report are deeply saddened to hear of the passing on Friday 9 July of a lifelong advocate and supporter of children’s literature, Betty Gilderdale, just days short of her 98th birthday. Generations of children know Betty as the author of the much-loved series of five Little Yellow Digger picture books, which she created alongside her artist husband, Alan Gilderdale. With over half a million Little Yellow Digger books in print, the original picture book stands out as one of New Zealand’s all-time bestselling children’s picture books, a wonderful legacy to leave to the world of children’s publishing. It is a legacy that is being continued by their son Peter, who has taken up the mantle of writing new books in the series. Betty and Alan emigrated to New Zealand from England in 1967, bringing their young family with them. From 1969 to 1985 Betty taught at North Shore Teachers’ Training College (later Auckland College of Education), then in Auckland University’s Depart...

This delightful board book, in both English and te reo Māori, has a simple question-and-answer format that introduces new words in an engaging and interactive way. The charming photographs by renowned New Zealand photographer Jane Ussher provide opportunities for tamariki and their whānau to tell new stories and explore both languages. The text includes a vocabulary list and simple language tips. Tūhuratia ngā mahi a ngā kararehe i tēnei pukapuka pārekareka. He nui ngā kupu hou ka hua i te pukapuka nei i te wairua pāhekoheko, i te ngāwari o te whakatakoto o ngā pātai me ngā whakautu, me ngā whakaahua ātaahua hoki a te kaiwhakaahua rongonui, a Jane Ussher. Mā konei e āhei ai ngā tamariki me o rātau whānau te kōrero i ā rātau paki hou me te tūhura i ngā reo e rua. Kua tāpirihia he rārangi kupu me ētahi tohutohu ngāwari mō te taha ki te reo. Click  here  to look inside. Read the 10 Question Q&A with Te Ataakura Pewhairangi  here .  Te Ataakura Pewhairangi, Ngāti Por...