This week’s biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve Braunias
FICTION
1 Loop Tracks by Sue Orr (Victoria University Press, $35)
“Secrets and shame, family and lovers, Loop Tracks scoops all this and more into its orbit, creating a gripping portrait of a woman’s life, the harm she’s caused, the hurt she’s suffered; her mistakes, her glories, her oft-repeated wrongs. A family drama and a social commentary, it’s a book that will repeat over and over in your mind even after the final page has been read”: from a rave review by Josie Shapiro at ReadClose.
2 Auē by Becky Manawatu (Makaro Press, $35)
3 Bug Week by Airini Beautrais (Victoria University Press, $30)
Thomasin McKenzie is reading it, as pictured, above!
4 Rangikura by Tayi Tibble (Victoria University Press, $25)
“I’m not going to lie; I wasn’t sure how Tayi would follow up her first pukapuka, Poūkahangatus, which will always remain one of my favourite books of all time. But she really laid it all out there with Rangikura. She did the poet’s version of ‘bitch, hold my drink’, then she one-upped her own damn book! Rangikura is juicy; it’s biting into a purple-fleshed plum and letting it all run down your chin”: from a review by Ana McAlister, in Pantograph Punch.
5 Cousins by Patricia Grace (Penguin Random House, $26)
6 The Author’s Cut by Owen Marshall (Penguin Random House, $36)
“There are 20 short stories, chosen by Marshall from his 13 previous works, and the most striking feature of the collection is its extraordinary range of tone. The explosive opener [Coming Home After Dark, adapted into a film now in cinemas] is followed by benign character studies, warm and often comic depictions of ordinary people and their complex relationships”: from a review by Charlotte Grimshaw, in ReadingRoom.
7 Back to You by Tammy Robinson (Hachette, $29.99)
8 Landmarks by Grahame Sydney & Owen Marshall & Brian Turner (Penguin Random House, $75)
9 Six by Six edited by Bill Manhire (Victoria University Press, $40)
First published in 1989, Manhire’s selection of six short stories by six masters of the form – Katherine Mansfield, Frank Sargeson, Maurice Duggan, Janet Frame, Patricia Grace, and Owen Marshall – has become a bit of a classic, and the new edition is perfectly timed.
10 Inside the Black Horse by Ray Berard (David Bateman, $34.99)
NON-FICTION
1 She is Not Your Rehab by Matt Brown (Penguin Random House, $35)
2 Aroha by Hinemoa Elder (Penguin Random House, $30)
3 Eat Well for Less New Zealand by Michael Van de Elzen & Ganesh Raj (Penguin Random House, $35)
4 138 Dates by Rebekah Campbell (Allen & Unwin, $32.99)
“I’m tired of reading just bad news about online dating. Yes, you have to be careful. Build a process, and don’t compromise on your filters. But the vast majority of my 138 dates were genuine, decent men who were also looking for an emotional relationship”: the author, in the Sydney Morning Herald.
5 Tikanga by Francis Tipene & Kaiora Tipene (HarperCollins, $39.99)
6 The Forager’s Treasury by Johanna Knox (Allen & Unwin, $45)
7 Supergood by Chelsea Winter (Penguin Random House, $50)
8 From the Centre by Patricia Grace (Penguin Random House, $40)
9 Labour Saving by Michael Cullen (Allen & Unwin, $49.99)
10 Māori Made Easy Workbook 1/Kete 1 by Scotty Morrison (Penguin Random House, $25)
