Jane Austen takes place on Britain's new £10 note
The Bank of England unveiled its first plastic 10 pound note, which features 19th century British novelist Jane Austen and will be available to the public from September.
Books
Holed up learning how not to write a novel
Holed up on Bleaker Island learning how not to write a novel
When author Nell Stevens travels to a remote corner of the Falkland Islands to write a novel, she struggles for inspiration. Bleaker House is the result.
Pacific voices join sweeping conversation
Pacific voices join sweeping conversation
Black Marks on the White Page (various authors) features contributions from Maori and Pacific writers stretching from Witi Ihimaera to Victor Rodger.
Lively history of feminist pioneer
Lively history of feminist pioneer
In Polly Plum: a firm and earnest woman's advocate, Jenny Coleman documents the life of a New Zealand feminist pioneer.
A.A.Gill’s poison-pen columns hugely entertaining
A.A.Gill’s poison-pen columns hugely entertaining
The late columnist AA Gill's tongue-in-cheek advice column lives again in Uncle Dysfunctional.
Search for love offers much to think about
Search for love offers much to think about
Abdulrazak Gurnah's Gravel Heart is a complex but rewarding read.
Children's books
Children's books
Helen Speirs reviews a selection of the latest books for children.
Something else afoot in space trip
Something else afoot in space trip
Meg Howrey's The Wanderers unmasks a wonderful bunch of characters.
Poetry roundup
Poetry roundup
Hamesh Wyatt reviews some latest works of poetry.
Tolkien estate, Warner Bros. settle 'Hobbit' lawsuit
Tolkien estate, Warner Bros. settle 'Hobbit' lawsuit
The estate of J.R.R. Tolkien has settled an $80 million ($NZ110m) lawsuit against Warner Bros. over the licensing of online games, slot machines and other gambling-related merchandise based on the author's books.
Lost souls struggle up from the street
Lost souls struggle up from the street
Apirana Taylor's novel Five Strings is a direct and often confronting window on disadvantaged people in our society.
A damaged girl's various selves conspire to reveal all
A damaged girl's various selves conspire to reveal all
A. S. King depicts a protagonist bumping into other versions of herself from the past and future.
Thriller wrap
Thriller wrap
Ted Fox reviews recent thrillers.
A work of truth and fiction
A work of truth and fiction
A brilliant psychological thriller, Delphine de Vigan's Based on a True Story explores the limits of reality and fiction and reads like a cross between All About Eve and Gone Girl.
Out of the gulag and into the fire
Out of the gulag and into the fire
The last of Simon Sebag Montefiore's Moscow Trilogy relates the helter-skelter fortunes of a Jewish Russian writer.
Paddington Bear creator dies aged 91
Paddington Bear creator dies aged 91
Michael Bond, the British creator of Paddington Bear, a marmalade sandwich-loving refugee from Peru who entertained generations of children with his exploits in London, has died aged 91.
Harry Potter fans mark 20 years of magic
Harry Potter fans mark 20 years of magic
Twenty years to the day after the first book in the Harry Potter series was published, fans gathered online and in the real world to express their enduring love for J.K. Rowling's magical creation.
Win a copy: Meditations on gender politics
Meandering meditations on gender politics
Gender politics can provide rich pickings for novelists, but Fay Weldon's Death of a She Devil and Dawn O' Porter's The Cows are a little unsatisfying.
That's an animal people call a gunman, on a spree, you see
That's an animal people call a gunman, on a spree, you see
Impossible to put down, Gin Phillips' Fierce Kingdom is a fresh, multifaceted take on a survival story.
Harsh reality of NZ prison life
No holds barred: the harsh reality of NZ prison life
Behind Bars by Anna Leask drops the reader into the chilling reality of prison life.