Aotearoa New Zealand Review of Books

Memoir Nonfiction

Night, Ma
by Elizabeth Knox

A remarkable memoir of a 'period of calamity after calamity, in rapid succession, like a maul of rocks in a river gorge'.

Sally BlundellApril 10, 2026

Art Illustrated Nonfiction Photography

Slow Burn Ahi Tāmau: Women and Photography Māreikura Whakaahua
by Lissa Mitchell

A powerful case against the gendered narratives 'across time and generations of creative practice'.

Hamish ConeyMarch 25, 2026

Biography Literature Nonfiction Poetry

Ruth Dallas: A writer’s life by Diana Morrow and This Moment, Every Moment: Ruth Dallas, Collected Poems

Re-discovering 'the brilliant and necessary Southern Aunt of New Zealand letters'.

Greg O'BrienMarch 17, 2026

Fiction Literary Fiction Novel

The Black Monk
by Charlotte Grimshaw

A 'psychologically unsparing' novel that is both 'a rant and a confession'.

Philip MatthewsMarch 13, 2026

Art Illustrated Nonfiction Photography Society

New Zealand Photography: Collected
by Athol McCredie

A 'pristine' updated account of 'two centuries of looking at each other' through photography.

Hamish ConeyMarch 3, 2026

Poetry

Lyrical Ballads
by Bill Manhire and What to Wear
by Jenny Bornholdt

New collections that are 'are alive, bamboozling, surprising and precise' from two former Poet Laureates.

Sophie van WaardenbergFebruary 20, 2026

Fiction Literary Fiction Novel

Party Boy
by Breton Dukes

Under pressure: a novel about a 'good man' who 'has done terrible things'.

John PrinsFebruary 11, 2026

Fiction Literary Fiction Short Stories

Angel Train
by Elizabeth Smither

Four 'remarkable worlds' that tell stories of friendship, flight and quiet defiance.

Sally BlundellFebruary 4, 2026

Art Essays Nonfiction Photography

Out of the Blue: Essays on Artists from Aotearoa New Zealand 1985–2021
by Christina Barton

Art writing 'that eloquently makes a case for the entire discipline of critical cultural thinking'

Hamish ConeyDecember 22, 2025

Fiction Māori Short Stories Speculative Fiction

The Emotion Dealer
by Jack Remiel Cottrell

Reality-bending stories of wit, invention, horror and heart.

Angelique KasmaraDecember 19, 2025

Fantasy Fiction Novel YA

Kings of This World
by Elizabeth Knox

A 'coming-of-age adventure set in a boarding school steeped in supernatural talent'.

Rachel O'ConnorDecember 17, 2025

Pasifika Poetry

Standing on my Shadow
by Serie Barford and The Venetian Blind Poems
by Paula Green

Two collections 'grounded in the day-to-day of pain and survival' where 'there is no shortage of tenderness and connection'.

Sophie van WaardenbergDecember 11, 2025

Fiction Literary Fiction Short Stories

Obligate Carnivore
by Stephanie Johnson

Sharp and often funny short stories where 'men are usually the problem'

Philip MatthewsDecember 10, 2025

Fiction Novel

Good Things Come and Go
by Josie Shapiro

A second novel that moves from LA to the Coromandel, exploring old wounds and dark secrets

Sally BlundellDecember 9, 2025

Memoir Nonfiction

The Way to Spell Love
by Nina Nola

A memoir of a Dalmatian family and the patriarch at its centre.

Stephanie JohnsonNovember 26, 2025

Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Short Stories

All Her Lives
by Ingrid Horrocks

Short stories about women embroiled in protest, revolution and dark discoveries.

Karin WarnaarNovember 5, 2025

Fiction Literary Fiction Novel Thriller

Empathy
by Bryan Walpert

A 'contemplative novel' – and a 'scared witless' thriller

Guy SomersetOctober 22, 2025

Asian LGBTQIA+Poetry

Dear Alter
by Jiaqiao Liu

A 'charged and electric' book that asks what it means to be human in a cyber age.

Joanna ChoOctober 10, 2025