Lana Lopesi. Photo / Supplied
I have a somewhat eclectic taste in books. I find that consuming multiple kinds of work or types of stories, at one time, helps to illuminate different parts in each of them. Right now I'm reading between four books, by four local authors, each of them incredibly different but perhaps
united in the very New Zealand stories they each tell.
I have to admit, I am pretty late to the party when it comes to Airini Beautrais' award-winning book Bug Week - and I am mad at myself for it. They say good things come in small packages and I would have to agree. Dipping in and out of each of the chapters is an absolute delight – small stories with big punch – each time smacking you over the head with something completely unexpected.
I don't think I can say enough about Things I Learned at Art School, by Megan Dunn. The book, which sits between a memoir and an essay collection, is a work of brilliance, tracing Dunn's life growing up in New Zealand in the 70s, 80s and 90s. Even though the work is so specific to Dunn's own life, at times it comes searingly close to my own lessons from art school, and I'm sure those of many others.
With the dawn raid apology and the 50th anniversary of the Polynesian Panthers, I have found myself diving into The Platform: The Radical Legacy of the Polynesian Panthers, by Polynesian Panther and academic Melani Anae. The book recounts the experiences of Anae in the Panthers but the real treats for me are in the autobiographical moments, which reveal the tensions of fighting for social change within Anae's familial and cultural context.
I've been a fan of Tayi Tibble's writing since I came across her debut poetry collection Poūkahangatus, and her second collection Rangikura has not disappointed. It brings back Tibble's skilful wit and precious prose, refusing to shy away from big topics. I find myself not being able to put it down but also not wanting it to end.
