Pages tagged with: writing

Kiwis love books. To celebrate New Zealand Book Month, we have come up with 31 reasons to love New Zealand books and writing. Check back each day in March for a new story about books, writers and their work.

Historian and poet Keith Sinclair has argued that the decade of the 1950s was the time 'when the New Zealand intellect and imagination came alive'

Frank Sargeson in his garden, Takapuna, Auckland, 1932

Nelle Scanlan, author of the 'Pencarrow' series of historical romances, at her writing desk

During the inter-war years no other monthly magazine matched New Zealand Railways for its commitment to promoting a popular literary culture in New Zealand.

A portrait of Dan Davin and his wife Winifred Gonley taken in London.

A charismatic ex-soldier, orator and propagandist, John A. Lee was a dynamic figure in the Labour Party from the 1920s until 1940, when he was expelled for attacking the leadership of M.J. Savage.

Hear Reverend Simon Acland's address at the funeral service for Dame Ngaio Marsh on 24 February 1982.

Standing portrait of dramatist and crime writer Ngaio Marsh taken c1935.

The magazine Newsweek described her novels as 'the best whodunits ever written'. Marsh was also an artist, playwright, actor and director. The New York Times called her New Zealand's best-known literary figure.

Jacquie Baxter and Stephanie Baxter at the unveiling of the gravestone of James K. Baxter at Jerusalem, Whanganui River, photographed in October 1973.

Portrait of  James K. Baxter in March 1971.

Acknowledged as New Zealand’s most accomplished poet, Baxter is also well-known for his wild lifestyle and the religious community he established on the banks of the Whanganui River.

Mixing alcohol and weapons is frowned upon by modern duck hunters who are more safety conscious than their forebears. Contemporary duck hunters also use non-toxic shot (it used to be lead) as hunter Gary Girvan explains in his book Duck hunting in New Zealand.

The story of New Zealand writing wouldn't be complete without acknowledging the important role sport has played as a source of inspiration for many New Zealand writers. For some writers sport is a subject of loathing, but the reality is Kiwis can't seem to get enough of sports books.

Allen Curnow was one of the defining voices of 20th-century New Zealand literature, with a career spanning six decades, and a strong local and international following for his work.

Allen Curnow, Denis Glover, Bob Lowry and Captain Donald McWilliam, seated in front of a movie hoarding in Christchurch in 1948.

The Esther Glen Award for children and young adult books is our oldest literary prize