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Books & Authors
Breaking Mad: The Insider's Guide to Conquering Anxiety
TV presenter Anna Williamson looked to have it all at 25, but anxiety began to plague her and soon her dream life and career looked threatened when she broke down. She's written about her experiences… Audio
Rajorshi Chakraborti - Shakti
Rajorshi (Raj) Chakraborti is an Indian-born novelist, essayist and short story writer. He has also lived and studied in Canada, England and Scotland, and now lives with his family in Wellington. Audio
Chernobyl: History of a tragedy
Serhii Plokhy is a professor of history at Harvard University. His 2018 book Chernobyl: History of A Tragedy tells the story of the nuclear accident that occurred on Saturday 26 April 1986, at the No… Audio
Damian Barr: Maggie & Me author on his debut novel
Damian Barr is an award-winning Scottish writer whose 2013 coming of age memoir Maggie & Me (about growing up gay in Thatcher-era Scotland), was The Sunday Times' Memoir of the Year. Audio
Book review - Figuring by Maria Popova
Melanie O'Loughlin of Unity Books reviews Figuring by Maria Popova, which is published by A&U Canongate. From the creator of the award-winning brainpickings.org comes more cultural and historical… Audio
Book review - Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Jessie Bray Sharpin reviews Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, published by Bloomsbury. Audio
Sarah Quigley's Divorce Diaries
New Zealand author Sarah Quigley paints an honest picture of the pain of divorce and recovering from the trauma.
Audio
Aoteroa non fiction thrives
The Ockham Book Awards shortlist was announced this morning and publisher Nicola Legat has published half of the non fiction finalists! She's the publisher for Massey University Press and Te Papa… Audio
One in five school libraries 'suffering' under slashed funding
They are preparing to lobby the government to require all schools to have a library and to ring-fence their income so money for books and librarians cannot be diverted.
Book review - Apeirogon by Colum McCann
Carole Beu of the Women's Bookshop reviews Apeirogon: A Novel by Colum McCann, published by Bloomsbury. An extraordinary novel that features two real men, one Palestinian and one Israeli, who both… Audio
How to make good friends and keep them
Positivity, consistency and vulnerability are key to having more fulfilling friendships, according to founder and CEO of American friend matching agency Girlfriend Circles.com Shasta Nelson, whose… Audio
School librarians call for protection against funding cuts
School librarians want the government to protect their libraries and guarantee their funding.
They say survey results show that last year one in five schools cut funding to their library and that… Audio
Too much of the F-Word?
More and more book titles use coarse language to gain attention - is it the result of a desperate need to grab readers' attention? Audio
America's biggest art heist
Thirty years ago this month, two thieves impersonating police officers got into Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. 81 minutes later they left with 13 paintings worth US$500 million. Audio
Lisa Glass on books with things in common.
Lisa takes a look at three books today Amnesty- Aravind Adiga, Body Tourists - Jane Rogers and Nothing Important Happened Today - Will Carver and examines what they have in common. Audio
Slowing our crazy-busy lives
Do you zone out in conversations? Wake at 3am worrying about things? Find yourself addicted to your phone? Kerene Strochnetter has written a book entitled Crazy Busy - in which she argues that if busy… Audio
Book review - The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry
Bronwyn Wylie-Gibb of University Book Shop, Dunedin, reviews The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry. This book is published by Hachette. Audio
Getting better with age – the French way
When you're young you feel immortal, then little by little you come to learn you're out of the youth club, says French model and Chanel ambassador Caroline De Maigret. Video, Audio
Book review - The Lost Pianos of Siberia
Phil Vine reviews The Lost Pianos of Siberia by Sophy Roberts, published by Penguin Random House. Audio
Feminist romance writer Bronwyn Sell
Set on an island resort, author Bronwyn Sell has given her cast of characters a set of tricky situations and no way out in her latest novel Lovestruck. Audio