Author Interview
Exploring New Zealand's Private Automobile Collections.
Don Jessen's new book Automania gives us a look at the privately owned automobile collections in New Zealand and some of the characters who own these special cars, motorbikes, military and commercial… Audio
Kiwi author's debut novel gains instant Hollywood attention
New Zealand author Rose Carlyle considers herself to be an ordinary person who wrote a book. But that book, her debut novel, The Girl in the Mirror is not ordinary in the slightest. She joins Jim in… Audio
How humankind has become an increasingly peaceful species
Homo sapiens can be the nicest of species and also the nastiest, according to Harvard University biological anthropologist Professor Richard Wrangham. He joins the show to discuss his book, The… Audio
Tim Saunders: This Farming Life
'An unsentimental yet lyrical love letter to the land' is how reviewer Linda Burgess describes Fielding farmer, Tim Saunders' new book This Farming Life. Tim also writes poetry and won the 2018… Audio
South Auckland doctor tells stories of struggle and hope
Decades of working as a GP has provided Greg Judkins with a wealth of health and wellbeing issues to draw on to create characters for his novel, Biopsies - stories of struggle and hope in South… Audio
Facing The Haka
What's it like to be facing the All Blacks from the other side of half way? We're joined by sports journalist Andy Burt who has co-authored a new book on the topic. Audio
Derek Grzelewski: catch lots of trout and enjoy the view
Wanaka and Colorado-based fly fisherman, guide, explorer, filmmaker and writer Derek Grzelewski tells Lynn Freeman about his latest book Fly-fishing in New Zealand, What you Need to know - a guide to… Audio, Gallery
NZ's metalhead, cat-crazy, self-publishing romance queen
She has been legally blind since birth, but that hasn't stopped paranormal romance writer Steff Green (aka Stephanie Holmes) from undertaking a self-publishing career that sees her clear a six-figure… Audio
A love letter to the mighty Mataura River
Dougal Rillstone's new book, Upstream in the Mataura details his 70-year fascination for the Mataura River - a river that almost claimed his life in the 1970s - from his childhood in Gore through… Audio, Gallery
The world’s most wanted man in 1695
Steven Johnson's new book, Enemy of All Mankind is also a harrowing account of the most dastardly pirate you've probably never heard of, Henry Every, and the brutal lifestyle and appalling existence… Audio
Christopher McDougall - running with donkeys
Christopher McDougall is best known for his super-popular book Born to Run about the natural joy of running, the science of sport and super athletes. Audio
Colonial Mastermind: the story of Edward Gibbon Wakefield (part 2)
In part two of Black Sheep's series on Edward Gibbon Wakefield we see theories of "systematic" and "humanitarian" colonisation run into bitter realities. The result is conflict, death and disaster… Audio
In an era of Google Maps, an atlas provides a different way of understanding the world
Meng Foon talks with author Chris McDowall, and contributors Nadine Anne Hura and Veronika Meduna about an Atlas of Aotearoa in this highlight from the 2020 New Zealand Festival Writers' programme. Audio, Gallery
The extraordinary story of Nazi evil sewn into family armchair
World War II historian Daniel Lee's new book, The SS Officer's Armchair, came about by chance after he met a woman whose mother had taken an old armchair for reupholstering in Amsterdam. What happened… Audio, Gallery
Samantha Power: top US diplomat's life and career
Former US President Barack Obama declared Samantha Power to be one of his country's "foremost thinkers on foreign policy". She was human rights adviser to the Obama White House before becoming the… Audio, Gallery
Stefan Buijsman on why maths matters
Mathematics underpins modern life, and if students were taught the ideas behind it they'd better understand its relevance and power, says Stefan Buijsman who got his PhD in the philosophy of… Audio
Chemical ingredients: what we do and don't know
How damaging for our health are processed snacks like Twisties and Doritos? Chemist and science communicator George Zaidan has been crunching the data on crunchy treats for his book Ingredients: The… Audio
Author Max Brooks on zombies, Yeti and disaster preparedness
Max Brooks has published three zombie-themed books, including the hugely successful World War Z - where a highly infectious virus breaks out in China and sweeps the globe, turning humans into… Audio
Colonial Mastermind: the story of Edward Gibbon Wakefield (part 1)
Edward Gibbon Wakefield used to be known as “The Father of New Zealand.” But modern historians have pointed to the disastrous impact of his colonial policies on indigenous people, his misleading… Audio
‘Racism has been found throughout NZ history, and it must be confronted for change to occur’
12 months after the Christchurch terror attacks, Guled Mire chairs an NZ Festival discussion with Alison Whittaker and Nyadol Nyuon from Australia, and Anahera Gildea and Jack McDonald from Aotearoa.
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