Twenty one New Zealand books the NZ Book Council is looking forward to in 2016

Gecko Annual Edited by Susan Paris and Kate De Goldi Gecko Press, October 2016 The Gecko Annual is a 136-page miscellany – a contemporary spin on the much-loved annuals we all remember, with a good dose of sophistication and subversiveness. We wanted to give 9-12 year olds – an age group currently under-served – a heady mix of fiction, comics, poetry, essays, how-to’s, art, games, satire, and a film script. It’s a feast of content that can be dipped into, pored over, returned to again and again – and like all good annuals this one has something for everyone in the family. The content has been commissioned exclusively from New Zealand writers and illustrators and introduces a number of new names – a feature that will be ongoing. It promises to be smart, dynamic, elegant and playful – a timeless and beautiful package thanks to the exemplary design and production values of Gecko Press. We can’t wait! Pre-order here.

Mansfield and Me Sarah Laing Victoria University Press, October 2016 Sarah Laing’s autobiographical comic, Mansfield and Me, charts her obsession with Katherine Mansfield. “I’m quite interested in her transgressive behaviour – how she was like a punk in her time, how she had affairs and dabbled in the occult, reinventing herself over and over. I’m interested in how she defines what it means to be a writer in New Zealand, and how central she is to the notion that New Zealanders are good at writing short stories. The graphic novel is going to dovetail into a personal account, and I’ll use her experiences to explore my own parallel ones.” — New Zealand Listener Two minutes with Sarah Laing

Women of the Catlins: Life in the deep south Diana Noonan & Cris Antona Otago University Press, April 2016 A haunting, off-the-beaten-track destination, the little-known Catlins region of New Zealand is as mysterious today as it ever was. In this first in-depth look at the lives of its inhabitants, award-winning writer Diana Noonan and photographer Cris Antona collaborate to capture the thoughts and feelings of 26 women from this remote outpost. As the subjects speak for themselves on topics as diverse as family, work, isolation and their relationship with the environment, there is, at last, an opportunity for readers to enter into the heart of this rugged, unknown landscape where few venture and only the strongest make it home Full list