THE GROOVE BOOK REPORT

Curious readers, passionate book lovers, conversationalists and art fans, all!  We at Groove Book Report are over the moon that the   Verb Readers and Writers Festival 2024 programme  is NOW OUT!  International writers are back!  Writers are coming to Verb from the  USA, UK, Ireland, China  and  Australia , including a  Carnegie Medal winner  (Patrick Ness), a  Granta Best of Young British Novelist  (Jenni Fagan), a  Booker Prize longlister  (Elaine Feeney), and an  Orange Prize longlister  (Kathryn Heyman). The festival will feature international leaders in  Indigenous publishing ,  activists  who have changed our country for the better,  rangatahi  who are proudly extending literary art forms in exciting new directions, and an incredible line up of  brilliant writers and artists from across Aotearoa .  Read on for highlights, or you can take a deep dive into the festival ...

Performing at WOMAD Aotearoa 2025  -  From Trinidad and Tobago, Queen Omega  In anticipation of the full 2025 festival line-up, WOMAD Aotearoa is excited to reveal the first artists confirmed for the event and in true WOMAD style, there’s some incredible international names, alongside some outstanding local talent.  From Trinidad and Tobago, Queen Omega will command the stage, bringing one of the most valued voices in the world-reggae scene. Joining the line up will be Nitin Sawhney from the UK, a highly acclaimed musician, composer, and producer celebrated for his eclectic and genre-crossing work. In a special collaboration, The Veils, led by the captivating Finn Andrews, will team up with the talented NZTrio - Amalia Hall, Ashley Brown, and Somi Kim. Also announced for the 2025 festival lineup is Australia's folktronic act Amaru Tribe.  These unique performers represent a dynamic mix of global talent,...

New Zealand is often regarded as ‘God’s-own country’, but in this hard-hitting exposé, journalist Jared Savage details just how it has become a paradise for gangs. Drugs, guns and money, and with the influx of ‘501’ deportees from Australia into the territory of local gangs, the outcome is inevitable… This is the follow up from Savage's previous book on the subject, 'Gangland'.  Jared Savage is an investigative reporter (NZ Herald), winner of more than a dozen national and international journalism awards, including best reporter (twice).   From page one you are thrown right back in to Savage's confronting, yet thought-provoking, work.  His research is detailed and eye-opening.  He dives deep into the complex web of organised crime in Aotearoa and follows a selection of cases through to sentencing as illustrations of this.   He looks at the connection to Asia's gang cartels, such as the Pacific's own 'El Chapo', Rick Leung; there's the impact of the d...

From the pen of one of New Zealand’s finest comic artists, in tandem with the creative brains behind the Duffy Books in Homes theatre programme, comes this graphic novel that speaks to kids from upper primary school through to junior high school. Adapted from a play that confronts bullying, Jeff Szusterman’s story — superbly illustrated by Ant Sang — shows the popular Duffy (a Māori kid who captains the rugby team) coming to the aid of 11-year-old Marama, victim of physical and psychological bullying by the jealous Ashlee. Duffy is looking forward to rugby practice after school. There’s an important game coming up against the Tūī’s who beat Duffy’s team.  Talking about it on the bus with his friend, he doesn’t realise that something else is on his friend’s mind besides rugby. Duffy - aka Alan Duff (as a kid) represents the popular, friendly and helpful kind of kid.  A bit like the famous five, 'te ao Māori' style! His relationship with his friend  Marama is caring, full o...

Old Black Cloud: A cultural history of mental depression in Aotearoa New Zealand is a very welcome, highly accessible read into how understand, react and treat mental depression.  It also surveys the landscape and history of medical and social reactions and how the topic has contributed to the fibres of our culture.   Starting in our dark, wayward past Leckie looks at significant events, our evolving attitudes and also transitioning terminologies - moving from 'melancholia' to 'neuroses' to 'depression'.  She takes a wide journey accross of postcolonial Aotearoa, looking at the struggles of both indigenous and immigrant populations through a lens of mental illness.  She mines the archive, using extensive case studies, academic materials, historical medical records and media reports from the time to build intricate pictures - challenging and reviving a wider picture that has been glossed over or even expunged from history.  The impact of European arrival and...

This is the fourth book in #1 New York Times best seller Sara Shepard's hilarious, heartfelt and quirky humorous illustrated series featuring a highly imaginative girl (penny) who doodles in the margins to cope with her own anxiety issues. In this story, fifth grader Penny Lowry and her class are invited to NYC for a weekend trip, which is hosted by Billy J. Plumberry - a famous author and the celebrity that her own school is named in honour of.   As an anxious young lady, Penny finds plenty to worry about.  Her fear of the unknown, especially in a large city consumes her.  Isn't the city full of aggressive bike messengers that run over little kids?  Won't she get stuck in an elevator and be trapped for ever?  Why can't she take her dog?  Don't dogs and rats own the city and roam freely - they o in the movies.  And what about the pianos that fall out of windows everywhere?!!!  But then, she thinks, it might actually be fun to explore this ama...