THE GROOVE BOOK REPORT

Tony Ballantyne’s Captain Cook and the Unsettled Afterlives of Empire is one of those history books that feels less like a biography and more like a long, uneasy conversation New Zealand keeps having with itself. It’s literary, carefully argued, and quietly provocative—never shouting, but constantly nudging you to notice how Cook keeps reappearing whenever the country argues about who it is.    Ballantyne starts with cultural shock tactics. Sort of. One of the most striking threads in Ballantyne’s postcolonial section is the way he situates New Zealand’s debates within wider Pacific currents. Haunani‑Kay Trask’s late‑1980s visit to Aotearoa—where she challenged celebratory narratives of Cook and empire—becomes a kind of hinge moment. On the prime show ‘Holmes’, Trask’s unapologetic framing of Cook as a coloniser and symbol of dispossession collided with a television culture that still treated him as a largely heroic figure. The outrage from many Pākehā viewers, and the show’s ...

On 25 August 2026, Hachette will release Home Again: My life and times in a band called Shihad , a new memoir from Shihad frontman Jon Toogood, written with Karl Puschmann. While walking his regular Heron Park circuit, Toogood reflects on Shihad, family, grief, mental health, music and the quieter thrill of finding home in the unknown. Tim: There's a bit towards the end where you're talking about you were playing at a Mānuka Phuel Full Metal Orchestra and there's Phil Judd is drumming away at that gig. And then afterwards asks if you want to go for a smoke? And you are, like    Jon: Yeah, man! Tim: And then his daughter… Jon: She just comes over and just goes ‘You look familiar’. And he was like, “you know, don't be so rude, you know, Shihad’s the best rock band to come out in New Zealand for year, bro! Nice one.” Tim: And then you text Tom afterwards, which is where it all started when he gave you Highway to Hell and you say: Life goals complete, bro! Jon Too...

Penguin Random House New Zealand, have announced the Penguin Children’s Bookseller Grant, a $50,000 initiative designed to engage and entertain readers aged 0 -12, who are at a pivotal stage in their literacy journey.  In response to declining literacy levels, we have been exploring ways we could make reading more appealing to young people. It only takes one good book to make a lifelong reader. To make a meaningful impact on that introduction to reading, we are supporting booksellers with a $50,000 grant to fund initiatives aimed at encouraging children's interest in reading.  Successful applicants will be notified on 11 November and rewarded upon implementation of the project. The details Application questions: View here Terms & conditions: View here Key dates Applications open: 18 August, 2026 at 9am Applications close: 14 October, 2026 at 5pm Winners contacted: 11 November, 2026 at 5pm Further info Successful applicants will receive grants valued up to $5,000 inclusive ...

If you’re looking for a sign to go hard for reading: NZ Children’s Book Week is it! (Read NZ Chief Executive Juliet Blyth) Led by Read NZ Te Pou Muramura, this inaugural nationwide celebration brings together children, whānau, schools, libraries, bookshops and communities for a week of reading, storytelling, authors, activities and, of course, plenty of books.  Here's what's happening across the week: Saturday 15 August – Bookshops get things started Bookshops around the country will be celebrating with special events and activities, including Dorothy Butler Children’s Bookshop, Time Out Bookstore, Wardini Books, The Children’s Bookshop in Wellington, The Next Chapter in Wānaka, Books & Co in Ōtaki and Scorpio Books. Monday 17 August – Aotearoa reads together At exactly 11am, thousands of tamariki around the country are joining in the inaugural National Read Along, with Sacha Cotter and Josh Morgan reading Dazzlehands / Ringakoreko, alongside te reo Māori transl...