Giant wētā stars in new picture book, and in a young girl's gumboots ...

 Koro Wētā

Heather Haylock

Illustrated by Sarah Trolle

Māori translation by Ngairo Eruera

What happens when a girl and a wētā find they both like to use the same gumboots

From bestselling children’s author Heather Haylock comes a bilingual tale of a girl and a giant wētā that will both entertain and educate young Kiwi readers.

It tells the story of a girl whose favourite footwear is her trusty gumboots. But every time she leaves them outside at night, a giant wētā decides to use them as a hiding place. 

 

What to do? Her parents encourage her to care for the wētā, whom they christen ‘Koro’ (Grandpa), and help her to fill the gumboots with newspaper to dissuade him. It doesn’t work, and nor does leaving Dad’s smelly socks inside. 

Readers will have to pick up the book to find how girl and wētā manage to get along — and they’ll be swept along by Heather’s words in English and Māori, with Sarah Trolle’s fun illustration and Ngairo Eruera's te reo translation.

A page of fun facts about the amazing wētā awaits at the end of this delightful picture book, out in good bookstores now. A free teacher resource will be available for download from the Oratia Books website 

  

The author

Heather Haylock is the proud author of several picture books, both fiction and non-fiction, including the bestselling Granny McFlitter series. She lives with her family in Auckland; see https://www.heatherhaylock.nz 

The illustrator

Sarah Trolle is a primary school teacher and illustrator who works in a range of media. She has illustrated books by authors including David Riley and Erin Munro. She lives with her family in Nelson.

The translator

Ngairo Eruera is a senior lecturer at The University of Waikato and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa in Tauranga. A registered translator and advocate for te reo Māori, he lives with his whānau in Katikati.

Publication: 8 July 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004269-0 | RRP $22.99

Paperback, 270 x 210 mm portrait, 32 pages, colour

New team members bring wide experience to help grow Oratia Books

Halfway through the year and things are humming along at Oratia Books. 

Our aim is for brilliant people to work with Oratia and not for us. The company’s flat and dispersed structure reflects that, with a mix of fixed and freelance contributors, working from home in different parts of the country and world. 

 

This year we’re pleased to have formalised working relationships with several collaborators and friends. We welcome these four publishing professionals who are helping to grow Oratia Books:

 

Mike Bradstock has taken on the role of editor-at-large for Oratia Books, from his base in Raumati South, Wellington. A vastly experienced publisher and writer, Mike was for many years publisher of Canterbury University Press, and before then a managing editor with Bateman Books and Reed Publishing. Mike is making a valued contribution in commissioning, editing and proofing for Oratia. 

Sharon Whitaker has come on board to manage the printing, production and shipping of Oratia Books. Based in Papamoa in the Bay of Plenty, Sharon is a renowned production manager who contracts to select publishing clients. During a long career at Reed Publishing, she managed multiple projects across trade and educational titles, working closely with Carolyn and Peter.

 

Sam Hill keeps the Reed connection alive, having joined Oratia as a freelance editor. He worked in editorial and distribution over his time at the Reed offices in Rawene Road, Birkenhead. Now based up the road in Glenfield, Sam is engaged in both editorial and marketing work for Oratia (sam@oratia.co.nz). 

Internationally, Maria Leonardi is managing the acquisition of international books under our new Five Oceans imprint. Based in Rome, Italy, Maria is a dual Italian and New Zealand citizen who has many years of experience in international rights and editorial management with publishing houses including nottetempo, Nutrimenti and La Nuova Frontiera. 

Maria Leonardi with Peter Dowling at the Bologna Children's Book Fair

Maria managed the New Zealand stand at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2022, and has attended the fair with Peter in the past two years.

 

A warm welcome to Mike, Sharon, Sam and Maria. 

 

They join our key contributors Frances Chan, Hirini Tane, Ella Fischer, Cheryl Smith and Sarah Elworthy in assisting the mahi of our senior team – Belinda Cooke, Carolyn Lagahetau, Alessandra Zecchini and Peter Dowling. 

Classic guide to traditional Māori designs comes back into print after many years

Māori Rafter & Tāniko Designs

W.J. Phillipps

In the more than 80 years since Māori Rafter & Tāniko Designs first saw the light of day, the book’s clear text and sumptuous colour patterns have served legions of readers and craftspeople. 

 

Now Oratia Books is bringing this classic work by W.J Phillipps back into print, enabling a new generation to access a work that until now had been hard to source. 

This handy guide provides a detailed exploration of important patterns used in Māori architecture and textiles, focusing on the intricate designs of rafter carving, tāniko weaving and tukutuku panels. 

 

With an all-new layout, updated text elements including macrons, and inclusion of new colour illustrations, this edition aims help readers easily access the designs.

 

That supports the aim Phillipps outlined in his introduction, namely ‘to analyse Māori rafter patterns and discuss their component parts in such a manner that a clearer understanding and a greater appreciation of them will be the result.’

Māori Rafter & Tāniko Designs is on sale now in good bookstores nationwide.

This new book adds to Oratia's range of arts and craft books from Oratia, including Hirini Moko Mead's Te Whatu Tāniko: Tāniko Weaving Technique and Tradition and Te Toi Whakairo: The Art of Māori Carving.

The Author

William John (W.J.) Phillipps was born in Oamaru in 1893. In 1915, he joined the staff of the Dominion Museum (now Te Papa Tongarewa), Wellington, where he worked as an ethnologist, ichthyologist, ornithologist and scientific illustrator. During a career that spanned five decades, he published some 200 scientific papers and authored several books in the fields of zoology and anthropology. He passed away in 1967.

Publication Date: 10 June 2025 |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004279-9 |  RRP $39.99

Paperback, 250 x 185 mm portrait, 72 pages colour

Samoan Proverbs for Children shares traditional wisdom, language and culture

 

Alagā'upu Fa'asamoa Ma Uiga mo Tamaiti
Samoan Proverbs for Children

Tauanu'u Perenise Tapu Sitagata

Illustrated by Ani Huia Ligaliga

Out for Samoan Language Week, a new book presents Samoan proverbs with explanations for children

Traditional wisdom that can inspire and guide the kids of today — that’s the concept for a bilingual picture book that will be published in time for Samoa Language Week 2025.

Alagā’upu Fa’asamoa Ma Uiga mo Tamaiti features 30 Samoan proverbs, vividly illustrated, with translations and explanations in both Gagana Samoa and English.

Designed to introduce children to the rich cultural heritage of Samoa, the book conveys proverbs that guide family life, leadership, education, the environment and more. 

Teacher, translator and community leader Tauanu'u Perenise Tapu Sitagata draws on a wealth of traditional wisdom that can appeal to younger readers of all ethnicities in Aotearoa. 

He and emerging artist Ani Huia Ligaliga worked with Oratia Books in partnership with Auckland Libraries to prepare the book.

Publication will be in early May ahead of Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa – Samoa Language Week 2025 (1–7 June).

  

The author

Tauanu’u Perenise Tapu Sitagata was born and raised in Samoa and lives in Auckland. An eminent orator and community leader, he  teaches at McAuley High School in Ōtahuhu and the Centre for Pacific Languages in Manukau. 

The illustrator

Ani Huia Ligaliga is a Māori artist and illustrator. She studied art at Brigham Young University, Hawai'i. Her other illustrations include The Ever-Standing Tree. Ani lives in Hamilton.

Publication: 6 May 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004270-6 | RRP $21.00

Paperback, 230 x 215 mm portrait, 32 pages, colour

Oratia Books Catalogue 2025 highlights 17 new books for adults and kids

The Oratia Books Catalogue 2025 is out now in print and digital form.

This year we're delighted to profile 15 additions to Oratia Books and two for our international Five Oceans imprint — alongside the more than 130 books we keep in print. 

New in 2025 is our selection of Audiobooks (see page 9 of the catalogue), offering six choices across te reo reference, children's storybooks and YA fiction.

Three new books add to the growing Moana Oceania series, curated by editorial director Carolyn Lagahetau. 

From October Five Oceans will actively bring books from around the world into English and Pacific languages for readers across Oceania, with the outstanding Turkish junior novel The Ant Rebellion and fabulous Finnish picture book Forest Field Notes launching.

Many more New Zealand authors and illustrators fill the pages of this catalogue, which draws from Oratia Books' grounding in Te Wao-nui-o-Tiriwa, the Waitakere Ranges forest, guarded by the ruru (native owl).

Click here to view or download the PDF, or to request a print copy please email info@oratia.co.nz

Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2025: Hopeful signs from the global meeting ground for children’s books

The publishing world gathered in the historic Italian city of Bologna this past week for the biggest event on the global children’s book calendar — the Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF). 

Opening morning at the fair

In four days at the Bologna fairgrounds in the city’s northeast, publishers, agents, authors, illustrators, librarians, booksellers, distributors, printers and many others came from the four corners of the Earth — to promote our authors and illustrators, do business and discuss ways forward in the face of digital and economic challenges. 

This 62^nd edition of the fair brought 1,577 exhibitors from 95 countries, and a total of 33,318 trade visitors — an increase of 5% from 2024. 

New Zealand was there thanks to the collective stand organised by the Publishers Association of New Zealand (PANZ), under its contract for international literature promotion with Creative New Zealand. 

With sharply increased costs for global exhibitions but no increase in the international budget for well over a decade, the New Zealand presence relies on collegiality, much volunteer time, and the support of our freight partner Book Systems International. 

Stand set-up last Sunday: Trace Moroney and Katherine Shanks (above), me with Chris Shaw (below)

Chris Shaw, general manager of Book Systems in New Zealand, was there in person, and together we got our books to our stand last Sunday and helped with the set-up, overseen by the unflappable Katherine Shanks of PANZ. 

 

Oratia was fortunate to have our Rome-based foreign rights manager Maria Leonardi helping me, alongside esteemed colleagues Eboni Waitere and Pania Tahau-Hodges of Huia Publishers and Trace Moroney of EQ Publications. 

Cheers to the Oratia's Italian team: Milan-based Anna Spadolini
(our European agent, left) and Rome-based foreign rights manager Maria Leonardi

Allen & Unwin, Auckram Publishing, Cultural Hub, Illustrated Publishing, Mila’s Books, One Tree House and Scholastic also had their books on display, with Lynette Evans of Scholastic and Rachel Lawson of Gecko Press the fair as well. 

 

Book fair routine is to arrange meetings in half-hour slots at either party’s stand, which calls for a level of fitness and patience to thread through the crowds between the four large pavilions. 

 

A sample of opening day meetings with author/translator Lawrence Schimel (Spain), Alejandra Ramos Henao and team (Enlace Editorial, Colombia), Anjola Ayodeji (Ouida Books, Nigeria), Goksun Bayraktar (Black Cat Agency, Turkey) 

For me that meant almost 40 formal meetings with partners from 26 countries, leading on later each day to various receptions, cocktails and dinners with many others. A lot of talking and a lot of books!

 

Dreaming up more New Bums with our publishing partners from Dover Publications, New York;
from left Patty Sullivan, Theresa Trinder and Betina Cochran

Among other outcomes, those meetings firmed up deals for more in our global hit New Bum Series, translations and distribution of some of our new books, and confirmation of two exciting trilingual publications to publish in 2026 under our international Five Oceans imprint. 

There’s no overnight success in this game: those results comes after years of fair attendance and networking. New entrants need all the help they can get, which is why PANZ mentorship remains key to New Zealand’s export promotion. 

 

Celebrating Five Oceans forthcoming Tamil-Māori-English edition of the classic Thirukkural with Sankara Saravanan (right)
 and Dr P. Shankar of the Chennai International Book Fair

Overall, it’s fair to say that the decline in global reading levels, effects on literacy and authorship of digital media and AI, and the rise of trade protectionism are all weighing on sentiment among book publishers and their partners. 

Always a pleasure to meet up with our sub-agent Shin Su of Bookman, Taiwan

But if anything, that recognition is redoubling the commitment of the children’s book world to re-engage young readers, and stay true to the exchange of books and ideas that fuels cultural expression and international understanding.

BCBF provides a vibrant platform for that trade, with its central malls hosting ample illustrators’ exhibitions and a plethora of panel sessions. 

Diary of a Wimpy Kid author Jeff Kinney in discussion at The Illustrator's Café

Across the fair were illustrators’ and translators’ zones holding non-stop workshops and presentations, a bustling agents’ centre, and the BolognaBookPlus zone where adult publishers also get to share in the rights activity. Amazingly, there are well over 500 separate events during the fair’s four days.

Particularly busy were the stands of 2025 guest of honour Estonia, and Chile and the Philippines (both upcoming countries of honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair). 

Having this honour status turbo-charges business and cultural opportunities; we’ll be following up on productive discussions with the Philippines in particular.

 

At left Eli Camacho, illustrator and publisher of Manila-based Adarna House, with Mitch Balladares from the National Book Development Board Philippines

The attention shown to Mila’s Books, after it took out the BOP Bologna Prize for Best Children’s Publisher Oceania, demonstrates the value of a physical presence here (only those who exhibit are eligible). That win continues a string of successes for New Zealand publishers in the awards (Huia won last year, while Oratia scooped the prize in 2021).

 

Hearty congrats to Dahlia Malaeulu of Mila’s Books, who’s also the author of Oratia's book Moana Oceania: Sāmoa. 

Great supporters of Mila Books and our Moana Oceania series: David and Sarah DeLuca of Bess Press, Hawai'i

To all the Oratia authors and illustrators, we couldn't be here without you and hope that exposing your work to the world will make a difference. 

Sincere thanks to the PANZ council and team – Katherine on site and Courtney Sina-Meredith and Gemma Finlay back in Auckland – for their hard work to keep Aotearoa in the international game.

And a big grazie mille to the fair's brilliant director Elena Pasoli, her fab team (special mentions to Deanna Belluti and Irene Rinaldi), and BolognaBookPlus organisers Jacks Thomas and Sheerin Aswat, for making this such a productive and stimulating few days. 

Viva Bologna!

 

— Peter Dowling, Publisher

Northland author-illustrator debuts with a universal 'tail ' about who we are – or think we are

I'm a Submarine

Nigel McHardy

Hello whale!’

‘Whale? I’m not a whale. I’m a submarine.’

 

A seagull is a seagull, and a whale is a whale. 

Seagull knows a thing or two about sea creatures and submarines. But after meeting Whale, Seagull learns that things are not always what they seem!

 

Whale tries hard to convince Seagull that he/she may look like a whale, but is actually a submarine!

When a storm arrives, Seagull gets to put Whale’s claims to the test, acting like an avian Jonah and finding that with a little imagination, we can be who we want to be.

 

In this highly original debut book, designer and nature enthusiast Nigel McHardy takes young readers on a fun journey that is all about the joy of pretending and questioning what you see. 

As an illustrator and designer, Nigel had been mulling over the idea of a book for over a decade. A redundancy finally pushed him to get serious and flesh out the concept, and Oratia Books agreed to take on the project.

While the primary characters in the book are a seagull and a whale (or is it a submarine?) the beautifully illustrated story is as much about identity as it is the ocean. 

“It’s also about how people perceive the world differently. While people may look similar on the outside, we’re certainly not the same on the inside. That idea was very much on my mind when I developed this story.

 

“I wanted to share the idea that we should have the freedom to choose our own identity,’ says Nigel. “Having kids myself encouraged me to put this into a book.”

 

Another inspiration is his father’s shipwreck. In 1968, he was aboard the Maranui when it sank off the coast of the Coromandel in a terrible storm. Only a third of the crew survived. It’s something Nigel only learned about in the past few years, and it had a profound impact on him. 

There’s a shipwreck in an underwater scene in the book, and Nigel used photos of the Maranui as a subtle tribute to that part of his family’s history.

  

The author

Nigel McHardy lives in the countryside with beautiful views over the Whangarei Harbour that inspire his stories. A professional designer by day, he enjoys dreaming up new projects inspired by his love of nature, and spending time with his family. This is his first book. To find out more, visit https://www.nigelmchardy.com 

Publication: 3 April 2025  |  ISBN: 978-1-99-004280-5 | RRP $21.00

Paperback, 230 x 215 mm portrait, 32 pages, colour

New edition of classic history returns to print ahead of Anzac Day

The Anzac Experience: New Zealand, Australia and Empire in the First World War

Christopher Pugsley

Revised edition of much-praised history examines the Great War experience of New Zealand, Australia and Canada

‘One of the best works of Australasian military history I have ever read.’ 

– Allan Converse, The Journal of Military History

 

One hundred and ten years on from the Gallipoli campaign of 1915, a new era of wars in the eastern Mediterranean obliges us to consider the role of the military in human history. 

 

To understand how New Zealand and Australia first developed their response to global conflicts, The Anzac Experience is an important primer. This gripping book captures the evolution by trial and error of their respective armies, alongside that of Canada, from the Boer War in South Africa to involvement in the First World War. 

 

It tells the story of citizen soldiers becoming professional as they learned the lessons of Gallipoli and applied these to the Western Front — earning them the status of the fighting elite in the British armies in France. 

Richly illustrated with photographs and maps, The Anzac Experience blends social analysis and military history in a compelling combination. In its research and writing, Christopher Pugsley walked every New Zealand battlefield on Gallipoli and the Western Front. 

 

This revised edition features a new cover and updates to the text. 

 

The author

Christopher Pugsley is recognised among the first rank of military historians. A retired Lieutenant Colonel in the New Zealand Army, he was a lecturer in military studies in New Zealand and Australia, and retired in 2012 as a Senior Lecturer at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. Among his recent works are the fifth edition of Gallipoli: The New Zealand Story and Le Quesnoy 1918. He lives with his wife in Waikanae.

Publication: 1 April 2025  |  ISBN: 978-0-947506-00-1 | RRP $49.99

Paperback, 240 x 170 mm portrait, 356 pages, b&w