Papanui Book Club Recommendations September 2026Like this list

27 items

• H Is for Hawk

  Macdonald, Helen, 1970-

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  When Helen Macdonald's father died suddenly on a London street, she was devastated. An experienced falconer captivated by hawks since childhood, she'd never before been tempted to train one of the most vicious predators: the goshawk. But in her…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Correspondent

  a Novel

  Evans, Virginia, 1986-

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  In her letters to family and friends we come to know the life of Sybil Van Antwerp- stubborn, cantankerous, opinionated, always steadfast in her belief in the power of the written word. But as the clock begins to tick for Sybil, the need for a few…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Sun Rising

  James I and the Dawn of a Global Britain

  Whitelock, Anna

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  1603. Elizabeth I dies and with her, the Tudor line comes to an end. England is plunged into crisis. Into this time of uncertainty comes James I, arriving in London after an unprecedented procession from Scotland. In taking the throne, he…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Theo of Golden

  a Novel

  Levi, Allen, 1956-

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  Questions linger about Theo, a pleasant but mysterious stranger, after his arrival in the southern city of Golden. Who is he, and why is he here? He arrives early one spring and by chance or is it? he visits a coffee shop where 92 framed pencil…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Half Life of Valery K

  Pulley, Natasha, 1988-

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  In 1963, in a Siberian prison, former nuclear specialist Valery Kolkhanov has mastered what it takes to survive: the right connections to the guards for access to food and cigarettes, the right pair of warm boots, and the right attitude toward the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Horse

  Brooks, Geraldine, 1955-

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  A discarded painting in a junk pile, a skeleton in an attic, and the greatest racehorse in American history: from these strands, a Pulitzer Prize winner braids a sweeping story of spirit, obsession, and injustice across American history. Kentucky,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Women

  Hannah, Kristin, 1960-

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  Women can be heroes, too'. When twenty-year-old nursing student, Frances "Frankie" McGrath, hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on California's idyllic Coronado Island and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Travelling Cat Chronicles

  Arikawa, Hiro, 1972-

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  Nana is on a road trip, but he is not sure where he is going. All that matters is that he can sit beside his beloved owner Satoru in the front seat of his silver van. Satoru is keen to visit three old friends from his youth, though Nana doesn’t know…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Fine Balance

  Mistry, Rohinton, 1952-

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  In 1975, in an unidentified Indian city, Mrs Dina Dalal, a financially pressed Parsi widow in her early 40s sets up a sweatshop of sorts in her ramshackle apartment. Determined to remain financially independent and to avoid a second marriage, she…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Art of the Book

  75 Years of Thames & Hudson

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  In 1949 Walter and Eva Neurath founded Thames & Hudson with a clear aim: to create a 'museum without walls' through books that would make art and scholarship accessible to all. This volume - the most comprehensive history of an illustrated publisher…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Tempest

  the Royal Navy and the Age of Revolutions

  Davey, James (Lecturer in naval and maritime history)

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  The French Revolutionary Wars catapulted Britain into a conflict against a new enemy: Republican France. Britain relied on the Royal Navy to protect its shores and empire, but as radical ideas about rights and liberty spread across the globe, it…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Novel Life of Jane Austen

  a Graphic Biography

  Barchas, Janine, 1967-

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  Through vivid artwork and compelling narrative, readers are invited to journey alongside Jane Austen as she navigates the challenges and triumphs that shaped her works. Told in three parts (Budding Writer 1796-1797; Struggling Artist 1801-1809;…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Dig

  Preston, John, 1953-

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  In the long hot summer of 1939 Britain is preparing for war. But on a riverside farm in Suffolk there is excitement of another kind- Mrs Pretty, the widowed farmer, has had her hunch proved correct that the strange mounds on her land hold buried…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• In the Gardens of Impressionism

  Willsdon, Clare A. P.

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  A visual exploration of the Impressionists’ love affair with the new thinking about garden design that swept 19th-century France.

• Royalslinger

  Kim, Graci

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  "Fifteen-year-old Aria is about to start her second year of magical training at the Royal League of Dreamslingers. She and her bloom dragon, Rio, must pass the final exam to become fully fledged Fellows. But before training can begin, the king of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Born a Crime

  and Other Stories

  Noah, Trevor, 1984-

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  As host of the US hit show The Daily Show, Trevor Noah provides viewers around the globe with their nightly dose of biting satire, but here Noah turns his focus inward, giving readers a deeply personal, heartfelt and humorous look at the world that…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Shield of Sparrows

  Perry, Devney

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  The gods sent monsters to the five kingdoms to remind mortals they must kneel. I've spent my life kneeling--to their will and to my father's. As a princess, my only duty is to wear the crown and obey the king. I was never meant to rule. Never meant…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Thomas

  Burrowes, Grace

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  Thomas Jennings arrives to his newly acquired estate to find that his steward has fled under a cloud of scandal, and the property has been held together by Miss Loris Tanner, the steward's daughter. Thomas knows what it's like to not fit in, and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Last Devil to Die

  Osman, Richard, 1970-

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  Shocking news reaches the Thursday Murder Club. An old friend in the antiques business has been killed, and a dangerous package he was protecting has gone missing. As the gang springs into action they encounter art forgers, online fraudsters and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Big Book of Kiwi Nursery Rhymes

  Andrews, Kimberly

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  Chant and clap, play and sing along to this gorgeously illustrated collection of favourite nursery rhymes with a Kiwi twist by bestselling, award-winning author and illustrator, Kimberly Andrews. Rub-a-dub-dub, Three birds in a tub And who do you…Read moreRead more of this annotation