This week’s bestselling books – March 20

2026-03-19 - 16:03

NONFICTION 1 Every Second Counts by Charlotte Glennie (Hachette, $39.99) Perhaps the author, or publisher, went a little bit overboard in asking for endorsements. There’s a limit to this sort of thing. Two or three endorsements is about right. Decency and modesty tends to prevail. But praise for Every Second Counts by Charlotte Glennie comes from Helen Clark (“A powerful, candid memoir that shows the importance of bearing witness to world events and giving individuals a voice”), Kim Hill (“An essential reminder of the need to bear witness in an age of fake news”), Charlotte Grimshaw (“An urgent reminder of what we need to value and preserve: first-rate, ethical journalism that honours authentic human stories”), Jack Tame (“Having distinguished herself as a bold and courageous foreign correspondent, she brings us to the frontlines of a fast-changing Asia to witness history in all of its agony and exhilaration”), Anna Fifield (“An inspiring story of resilience, ambition and the surprising paths life takes”), Noelle McCarthy (“Lively and colourful, compassionate and self-aware, this is a vivid, fast-paced account of a life driven by curiosity and shaped by news”), and, inevitably, Paddy Gower: “Every word counts. Like a good journo, it is all about the story. The story of a life, truly raw. This book traverses the complexities of journalism and of the world. But also the complexities of a life – a reminder there is nothing more complex than a life itself.” What? 2 Surviving White Island by Kelsey Waghorn (HarperCollins, $39.99) Memoir of a tour guide who survived the tragedy at White Island. From my review: “Waghorn has lived to tell the tale. You read her book with a sense of awe and terror, of imagining the moment it erupted, the toxic blast and the panic and the certainty of death—there are passages which take you straight to that Hell.” 3 Be Brave by Barbara Dreaver (Awa Press, $45) The best journo memoir of the year. 4 Champions Do Extra by Brad Thorn (HarperCollins, $39.99) 5 Lessons on Living by Nigel Latta (HarperCollins, $39.99) 6 The Blood Says Otherwise by Ruben Miller (HarperCollins, $39.99) I have been really enjoying this new memoir by a forensic scientist, not least because we have both dealt with some of the same homicides. Miller’s book is sensitive and personal, as he tells of the crime scenes he has worked in his ghastly trade and the toll it inevitably took. He also writes, sometimes, very well. He concludes his remarks on one case: “A drunk old man, a slippery floor, an unforgiving hearth. Disturbed oil, missing paint and stains caused by bloodstained hair. A lonely existence and a frail body, ending in a brutal crack to an old skull, free-flowing blood from a horrible injury and a slow crawl to bed and hopefully a bit of peace.” I look forward to chairing him at the Auckland Writers Festival in May. You might want to book now. My own event, talking about my book Polkinghorne: Inside the murder trial of the century, chaired by the fabulous Lady Deborah Chambers, has already sold out. 7 Become Unstoppable by Gilbert Enoka (Penguin Random House, $40) 8 The Hollows Boys by Peta Carey (Potton & Burton, $39.99) Shortlisted for the Ockham NZ book awards in May, and among the haul of all 16 shortlisted titles up for grabs in the greatest book draw of all times, exclusively at ReadingRoom. Enter now. We’re talking four books of poems, four novels, four works of nonfiction, four great big coffee table picture books. We’re talking The Book of Guilt by Catherine Chidgey and A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardern and 14 other titles, the best of the best, worth north of $1200. The contest rules are simple. Readers need to nominate their favourite NZ book of last year, and share a few lines stating why that is so. They can draw from the shortlist of 16 books; they can draw from books that got as far as the longlist; or they can draw from any NZ book whether it was nominated or not, so long as it was published in 2025. The book that receives the most votes will be crowned as winner of the People’s Choice Award on the morning of the Ockham awards on May 13. Another 30 entries arrived last week, bringing the total to about 120. Second place remains tied between the Jacinda Ardern memoir and the Catherine Chidgey novel—and remaining in first place is the dark horse, an outsider, but ahead by a reasonable distance, He Puāwai: A Natural History of New Zealand Flowers by Philip Garnock-Jones. Amazing! It’s a picture book which comes with 3D glasses, and is shortlisted for best book of illustrated nonfiction at the Ockhams. Will it win that award, and the People’s Choice as well? Votes have come in for about 25 books. Carolyn: “Northbound by Naomi Arnold gets my vote for favourite New Zealand book this year. It is the book that I recommended evangelically to book loving friends, some of whom did not share my opinion. And it is also the book that I read again a few months later in order to savour it more completely than a fast reader does first time round. The last books I found myself wanting to read again in this way were Delirious, The Axeman’s Carnival, and How to End a Story by Helen Garner–all 800 pages of it. So, good company for Naomi Arnold.” And I really liked this, from Chris: “I read The Hollows Boys by Peta Carey because I know Peta and felt obliged so I could speak to her about it intelligently. What a surprise when it became the book I kept sneaking to read when I should have been doing something productive. The grit, bravery, stupidity, greed and diverse personalities of those involved with helicopters and deer recovery reminded me of my time opal mining in Coober Pedy. The hunt for that elusive ‘parcel’ often meant lives were lost and the location of claims secreted in a no rules race where it became more about the addiction than the dollars.” I wrote back to her, and asked, “Please tell me more about opal mining in Coober Pedy.” She replied, “Coober Pedy was a small community like Te Anau and accidents happened often. When the siren sounded there was a good chance you knew the person. We had a good friend lose a leg in machinery, my husband his finger and another his life (not an accident). Stakes were high and anyone could buy/stake a claim with no experience....not unlike the young Hollow boys learning on the job. “Another parallel was the fact that people worked hard and played hard. The isolation made it feel like the rules of the ‘outside world’ did not apply which is why many returned, even after making enough to leave. “The community, the gamble and the free and easy lifestyle were addictive.” Have your say. A panel of judges are sorting and collating. To enter, send in your vote (with comments) for your favourite NZ book of 2025, and email it to stephen11@xtra.co.nz with the subject line I WANT TO WIN ALL 16 BOOKS SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2026 OCKHAM NZ AWARDS PLEASE. The deadline is midnight on Sunday, April 26. 9 Everything But the Medicine by Lucy O’Hagan (Massey University Press, $39.99) 10 A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardern (Penguin Random House, $59.99) Up for grabs among the prize haul of all 16 books shortlisted for the Ockham NZ awards. Enter now. FICTION 1 Black Velvet and Vengeance (Tatty Crowe 3) by Deborah Challinor (HarperCollins, $37.99) 2 The Black Monk by Charlotte Grimshaw (Penguin Random House, $38) From a review by Philip Matthews, at the Academy of NZ Literature site: “Grimshaw’s long and complex project, to create a series of social novels that mirror contemporary New Zealand life, has reached a kind of event horizon with The Black Monk. Will her readers follow her into the black hole and come out the other side? Some will resist. It gets dark in there. But you can see that something urgent and important has been processed. It is a disordered book for a disordered time.” 3 The Secrets of the Lost Vineyard by Erin Palmisano (Hachette, $37.99) 4 Seed by Elisabeth Easther (Penguin Random House, $38) 5 See How They Fall by Rachel Paris (Hachette, $27.99) Published nearly 12 months ago, and still on the bestseller chart. Paris’s twisty thriller has an enduring appeal, and a very attractive cover of a swimming pool. It looks, Herald journo Kim Knight told Paris when she interviewed her, like your swimming pool. Paris laughed, and agreed they were very similar. I often think about that. I wish I owned a swimming pool. 6 Julia Eichardt by Lauren Roche (Flying Books Publishing, $36.99) 7 Tea and Cake and Death (The Bookshop Detectives 2) by Gareth and Louise Ward (Penguin Random House, $38) 8 Dead Girl Gone (The Bookshop Detectives 1) by Gareth and Louise Ward (Penguin Random House, $28) 9 Hoods Landing by Laura Vincent (Āporo Press, $38) Shortlisted for this year’s $65,000 fiction prize at the Ockham book awards in May. As such it is up for grabs among the prize haul of all 16 books shortlisted for the Ockhams. Enter now. 10 The Book of Guilt by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press, $38) Shortlisted for this year’s $65,000 fiction prize at the Ockham book awards in May. As such it is up for grabs among the prize haul of all 16 books shortlisted for the Ockham. Enter now.