Best reads of 2019Like this list

21 items

• This Searing Light, the Sun and Everything Else

  Joy Division : the Oral History

  Savage, Jon, 1953-

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  This was a scorchingly good read. I love a music oral history, and this one covers so many angles on the Joy Division story. It isn't all dark gothy bleakness thank goodness, there's psychogeography - and dry humour.

• Another Planet

  a Teenager in Suburbia

  Thorn, Tracey, 1962-

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  You'd know by her songs that Tracey Thorn can write, but by heck she can write. This look back at her teenage life is a wander round her past, and it will resonate with anyone who was a suburban teen wondering where to go next and who to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Heimat

  a German Family Album

  Krug, Nora

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  I love graphic novel memoirs - this one is one of the best ever. A beautiful journey into history & family.

• Days of the Bagnold Summer

  Winterhart, Joff

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  Belle and Sebastian has done the soundtrack to the film adaptation of this graphic novel. The book itself is funny, dry, bleak, and portrays the relationship between an introvert son and his solo mum in a funny, honest way. Joff…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Advanced Love

  Cohen, Ari Seth

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  Advanced Style was a joy, and this is joy - doubled.

• Conversations With Friends

  Rooney, Sally

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  I was a latecomer to Sally Rooney, whose novel Normal People has been immensely popular and critically acclaimed. She was born in 1991, I exclaimed. I read Conversations with Friends in a couple of days. Wow. A book to lose yourself in,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Testaments

  Atwood, Margaret, 1939-

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  I read The Testaments in one day, which is testament to how monumentally gripping it is. I laughed at the bit where someone in Gilead called leggings an abomination. But mostly it is bleak, serious, potent stuff and all 3 main characters…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Perfume

  in Search of Your Signature Scent

  Chapman, Neil

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  A book about perfume that's so good I had to nip out and buy a copy for my own small 'perfume library'. Who knew writing about smells would be so compelling.

• We Can Make a Life

  Henry, Chessie, 1992-

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  It has taken me a long time to read Chessie's book. I was scared it would be too raw, distressing, and maybe I didn't want to read about earthquakes. But I am so glad I read this book. It is a genealogy of aroha - compelling, honest, and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Funny as

  the Story of New Zealand Comedy

  Horan, Paul

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  A thoughtful and intelligent book that is a companion piece to the documentary series.

• Guo Pei

  Couture Beyond

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  Guo Pei: Couture Beyond for ultimate fashion book swoonery. Guo Pei's couture is the last word in luxurious opulence, and this book shows the level of detail close up.

• Truth & Beauty

  the Pre-Raphaelites and the Old Masters

  Buron, Melissa E.

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  This lavish book is a stunner. Combining works by Pre-Raphaelite artists like Rossetti and Burne-Jones with Old Masters by people like Van Eyck must have made for a brilliant exhibition - and it works just as beautifully in this big and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Dinosaur Hunter

  Joan Wiffen's Awesome Fossil Discoveries

  Hill, David, 1942-

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  Beautifully illustrated by Phoebe Morris, Joan Wiffen's story is a goodie for science lovers and explorers of all sorts. New Zealand picture books are just so good.

• Aroha's Way

  Phillips, Craig, 1974-

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  Lots to learn about anxiety and mindfulness in this NZ picture book.

• Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret

  Blume, Judy, 1938-

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  What a joy it was to revisit this with my pre-teen kid who find it utterly absorbing. Like those oft mentioned Teenage Softies.

• Guts

  Telgemeier, Raina

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  Don't ever think Raina's books are for kids only. Yes, kids and teens can identify massively with the stories. But I do too, and I am plenty older than that. Highly recommended. Raina's simply one of the best writers in the world.

• Dolly Parton

  Sánchez Vegara, Ma Isabel (María Isabel)

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  My whānau and me love the LIttle Person, Big Dreams series. The Dolly one is great - because Dolly is fab as.

• Vivienne Westwood

  Sánchez Vegara, Ma Isabel (María Isabel)

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  I loved this perspective on Viv. The illustrations are particularly delicious.

• Steven Universe. [3], Field Researching

  Kraft, Grace

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  LOVE LOVE LOVE Steven Universe. This collection is a delightful intro to its peculiar magic.

• The Tea Dragon Festival

  O'Neill, Kay (Cartoonist)

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  I'll never stop singing the praises of this local star. Katie's illustrations and stories are the very definition of heart warming.