Author Interview
Mohamed Hassan: being Muslim in the 21st century
Egyptian born New Zealander Mohamed Hassan is an award-winning writer, journalist and poet. He grew up in Cairo before moving to Auckland. His new essay collection How to be a Bad Muslim explores… Video, Audio
Why today's girls are growing too quickly
10 is the new 13 for girls growing up today. There is so much pressure on them to leave their childhood behind well before they hit their teens says Australian journalist and author Madonna King. She… Audio
How to simplify your time management with the 'rule of four'
Many of us go through life as if one day, eventually, we might get through everything on our to-do lists and satisfy everybody's demands. This is simply impossible, says writer Oliver Burkeman, so we… Video, Audio
Witi Ihimaera: 'the concept of time now has an indigenous alternative'
With the first celebration of Matariki as a public holiday just weeks away one of Aotearoa's most prominent writers, Witi Ihimaera, has written a new children's book about Matariki, Te Kokorangi, The… Audio
Laurence Fearnley: beauty of MacKenzie Country in fiction
The striking landscape of the MacKenzie Country provides the backdrop to Winter Time, the new novel from award-winning author Laurence Fearnley. Audio
Francis Fukuyama: can Western liberal democracy be rescued?
In his new book, Liberalism and its Discontents, American Political scientist Francis Fukuyama argues that liberalism is threatened not by a rival ideology, but has been pushed to new extremes by both… Audio
The New Zealand Book Awards for Children & Young Adults Shortlists Announced
The 2022 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults shortlists are announced today - we talk to finalist and former judge Steph Matuku. Audio
Retelling the story of the Beatles roadie
For seven years, from the early days in the Cavern Club, to that last recording session, Mal Evans was the road manager, bodyguard and personal assistant to the Beatles. His story is finally being… Audio
Adventures of real life pirates revealed
Real pirates don't wear boots or puffy shirts or carry cutlass swords in their mouths. But some kept diaries that describe in detail their adventures. Writer and artist Keith Thomson has turned those… Audio
Tanya Levin on leaving Hillsong
Tanya Levin was just 14 when her family joined a small Pentecostal church in the suburbs of Sydney, which went on to become the megachurch Hillsong with branches in 30 countries. She talks to Anna… Audio
Short story writer Vivienne Lingard talks Pocket Money
Miscommunication between couples and families features prominently in the first short story collection by Devonport writer and artist, Vivienne Lingard. Pocket Money & Other Stories is the title of… Audio
Ethically influencing the world around us: Dr Zoe Chance
In her new science-based book, Influence Is Your Superpower: How to Get What You Want Without Compromising Who You Are, Dr Zoe Chance explains the new rules of persuasion and the science of… Audio
How to embrace discomfort
The laws of nature tell us there is no light without dark, no death without birth, we can't have rainbows without a little rain. But the world tells us to lean into the positive and forsake sadness… Audio
Changing the narrative on ADHD
Nancy Armstrong is an award winning executive producer whose husband and three children have ADHD. She wants to change the way we think of it from disorder to secret power. So she made a documentary… Video, Audio
Anthony Horowitz: Licensed to thrill
One of Britain's most successful contemporary writers, Anthony Horowitz' work spans books, TV, films, plays and journalism. He's perhaps best known for Midsomer Murders, Foyle's War, his Sherlock… Audio
Looking at the business behind the pandemic
Just as the world is starting to go into the first of many lockdowns, reporter J David McSwane tagged along on a private jet with a businessman on a mission to buy medical face masks for the… Audio
Carole Brungar's Vietnam saga reaches its end
A five-novel series about the impact of the Vietnam war on veterans and their families has just wrapped up with the release of Carole Brungar's book The Return.In the last book, she's thinking about… Audio
Writer Mahyar Amouzegar examines gifts from the gods
Eight interlinked stories of ordinary people whose lives are touched by the gods make up a new collection by Iranian/American/Kiwi writer Mahyar Amouzegar. The Hubris in an Empty Hand is his fourth… Audio
The oddities of the English language
In Dr Arika Okrent's latest book, Highly Irregular: Why Tough, Through, and Dough Don't Rhyme - and Other Oddities of the English Language, the linguist examines the weirdness of the English language… Audio
Movie child star Wil Wheaton on surviving Hollywood
Wil Wheaton is best known for his roles as Gordie Lachance in Stand By Me, Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and a version of himself on The Big Bang Theory. He talks to Jesse about… Audio