Books & Authors

Jane Westaway reviews Outside Looking In by T.C. Boyle, which is published by Bloomsbury. Audio

From Colin and Stanley Meads and Alan and Gary Whetton, to the Whitelocks and the Barretts, New Zealand has a rich history of brothers who wore the black jersey. Audio

Louise Ward of Wardini Books reviews Katherine Rundell's The Good Thieves, which is published by Bloomsbury. Audio

Journalist Tom O'Neill has spent the last two decades wading through Charles Manson-related files to offer a new take on one of the most infamous cases in American history.  Audio

Harry Broad reviews The Bastard Brigade by Sam Kean, which is published by Hachette NZ. Audio

Kathryn Ryan speaks with Allan Jenkins, editor of Observer Food Monthly. His beautifully written book Morning: How To Make Time - A Manifesto is a diary of and a treatise to the sublime time before… Audio

The Christchurch City Mission turns 90 this month and to celebrate it has released a book called Guts and Grace. The book covers the Mission's long history of helping the community. Audio

Tamsin Martin of Scorpio Books reviews Expectation by Anna Hope, which is published by Transworld Publishers. A look at the changing friendship between three women as they move from their carefree… Audio

Parents are often concerned about how much time kids spend on social media. But the real menace to children and teens may be that the internet never lets you forget your mistakes.  Audio

David Hill reviews The Hiding Game by Naomi Wood, which is published by Macmillan. Audio

How do we get our kids to read? Especially teenagers. In an increasingly digital age it's important to find ways to make reading approachable, enjoyable and useful for younger readers.  Audio

This week's book critic, Penny Hartill discusses a few memoirs and through them, suggests they are the best genre for helping us to understand the past, particularly as it relates to colonialism. Audio, Gallery

Harry Ricketts from quarterly review periodical New Zealand Review of Books Pukapuka Aotearoa, reviews Landfall Magazine 237:Autumn 2019, edited by Emma Neale. Audio

Blood-letting, tying a dead mole to the head; these are just a few of the ways migraines have been treated over the centuries. The pain is so debilitating, patients have agreed to have holes drilled… Audio

Elisabeth Easther reviews The Behaviour of Love by Virginia Reeves, which is published by Simon & Schuster. Audio

The Boyfriend is the debut novel of Laura Southgate. It's a book that deals with the confusing, often painful time of finding yourself. It's the story of Erica, moving from her teens into her 20s and… Audio

In 2017, author Elspeth Sandys travelled to China with other family members to mark the 90th anniversary of her cousin Rewi Alley's arrival in Shanghai. The book she wrote about that journey is called… Audio

Melanie O'Loughlin of Unity Books reviews Places and Names by Elliot Ackerman, which is published by Allen Lane. A new kind of war reporting, written by a former US Marine who saw combat in… Audio

James Ellroy is regarded as one of the best literary crime writers in the world, with his books painting vivid portraits of the seedier side of Los Angeles and the underworld. Some of his well known… Audio