THE GROOVE BOOK REPORT

This wonderfully a vivid, scholarly, yet accessible biography opens up the world of the Victorian collector, inspired by nature and a quest for knowledge. This wonderful book charts the life of one such man, one of Aotearoa's most influential naturalists. It's both a portrait of Auckland Museum's founding director and of Thomas Cheeseman himself. It delves into the cultural history of Auckland Museum and how it evolved from a modest curiosity cabinet to one of the leading scientific institution in the Southern Hemisphere. At the heart of the book lies the transformation of Auckland Museum under Cheeseman’s leadership, from a “shed of curiosities” into a respected institution with international connections. Auckland Museum was founded in 1852, beginning life in a small two-room farm cottage in Grafton. Over the following decades it grew steadily, moving into larger premises in central Auckland as its collections expanded. In 1929, subscriptions raised by Aucklanders in remem...

Oh, yes, folks, the master of 'cozy crime' Richard Osman has done it again. This is the fifth installment in his wildly popular Thursday Murder Club series. And again it's packed with both laugh-out-loud funny moments and deeply moving scenes. We open the book not long after Elizabeth's husband, Stephen, has passed away. Elizabeth is somewhat lost, despite her super spy background and training. It's great to see her vulnerable side coming through. However, it's not long before she is pulled back into the fold and re-unites with Joyce, Ron, and Ibrahim for another adventure. This one begins with a wedding but quickly spirals into mortal danger. At the heart of story lies a deadly puzzle: a guest at the wedding is entangled in a sinister plot involving kidnapping, murder, and an uncrackable code. It's Joyce’s daughter, Joanna’s wedding, a joyful occasion that quickly takes a darker turn. Elizabeth, still grieving the loss of her husband Stephen, is reluctant t...

 The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (NZSA) has named children’s and YA author Fleur Beale this year’s NZSA President of Honour. The author of more than 50 titles, Beale has been shortlisted 13 times for the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, said NZSA. She has won library and information association LIANZA’s Esther Glenn Award for Fierce September (RHNZ Children’s, 2010). Her title Juno of Taris (RHNZ Children’s, 2008) also won the Esther Glenn Award in 2009. Beale has received 16 Storylines Notable Book Awards, including in 2007 and 2023, and she won the Storylines Gaelyn Gordon Award for a Much Loved Book for Slide the Corner and for I Am Not Esther. She received the Storylines Margaret Mahy Medal in 2012 and an ONZM for services to literature in 2015, and she is the current patron of the Dorothy Neale White Children’s Book Collection at the National Library of New Zealand. “I am quite overwhelmed by the honour. The Socie...

 Unity Books and Massey University Press warmly invite you to celebrate the launch of Mr Ward’s Map: Victorian Wellington street by street by NZ social and architectural historian Elizabeth Cox. "In 1891, a remarkable map of Wellington was made by surveyor Thomas Ward. It recorded the footprint of every building, from Thorndon in the north and across the teeming, inner-city slums of Te Aro to Berhampore in the south." "Updated regularly over the next 10 years, it detailed hotels, theatres, oyster saloons, brothels, shops, stables, Parliament, the remnants of Māori kāinga, the Town Belt, the prisons, the ‘lunatic asylum’, the hospital and much more, in detail so particular that it went right down to the level of the street lights." Launching in-store: Mr Ward's Maps by Elizabeth Cox From 6pm, Friday 14th November Unity Books Wellington Form the Publisher, Massey University Press (MUP)  A fascinating journey through Wellington’s history In 1891, a remarkable map o...