Books & Authors

Carla Guelfenbein is a novelist and screenwriter and was born in Santiago to a Russian-Jewish family. She is one of Chile's bestselling writers and the author of five novels including In the Distance… Audio

Tilly Lloyd of Unity Books reviews Lotharingia: A Personal History of Europe's Lost Country by Simon Winder. Following bestsellers Danubia and Germania, this book is the third and final instalment in… Audio

Rae McGregor reviews Conventional Weapons by Tracey Slaughter, which is published by Victoria University Press. Audio

Sometimes the best way to deal with difficult topics in the real world, is to explore them in the world of fiction. Neal Shusterman writes for children, teens and adults.  Audio

Last night was a big one for Chessie Henry. She won the Ockham New Zealand Book Award for best first work of general non fiction for her first book We Can Make a Life.  Audio

Widely regarded as Australia's foremost landscape designer, Paul Bangay shares tips with Kathryn Ryan to help turn a small outdoor space into a garden paradise. Paul's new book Small Garden Design… Audio, Gallery

Pigs can hope. Monkeys believe in fairness; animals of all shapes and sizes experience a wide range of emotions says biologist Frans de Waal.  Video, Audio, Gallery

Robert Kelly pops in to take us on a tour through the works of surrealist fiction author Jasper Fforde and investigate how the absurd can provide a way to look at our present. Audio

Almost everything we know today about climate change, the potential for extreme weather, the threat to wildlife, we knew back in 1979. A small group of scientists tried to convince the world to act. 

Donald Trump cheats at golf, and lies about his handicap. Why does it matter? Former Sports Illustrated writer Rick Reilly talks about the President he says is as rotten as a year-old banana. Audio

Its Mother's Day, and a mother is the inspiration behind a new book of essays just out this week. In an era of endless blogs, tweets and posts, what room is there for the personal published essay… Audio, Gallery

Hollywood maverick John Milius was a good example of the old warning: "keep your politics out of the movies". A self-proclaimed right-wing anarchist Milius seems to be the direct link between Dirty… Video, Audio, Gallery

Dr Eugenia Cheng is coming to Auckland for the Writers Festival to talk about her latest book, The Art of Logic: How to Make Sense in a World that Doesn't. She speaks to Jim about her mission to rid… Audio

Wylie Gustafson has possibly the most famous yodel in the world - the three second Yahoo! yodel - but he never expected he would need to hire a lawyer because of it. Video, Audio

Bret Easton Ellis has spent most of his career causing controversy. He's doing it all over again with latest book, White.  He speaks to Jim about his latest work and why he's targeted millennials. Audio

Professor Michael Worboys has debunked the myth that our canine fur babies are the result of centuries of bonding and taming. Instead, he's discovered that our modern day pooches are the result of the… Audio

Screenwriter, director, film and television producer, and LGBT rights activist Dustin Lance Black has recently written a memoir about his upbringing called Mama's Boy, which describes growing up… Audio

The Wilco frontman and author of the 2018 memoir Let's Go (So We Can Get Back) speaks to Kim Hill ahead of his visit to the Auckland Writers Festival. Video, Audio