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thesaplingnz.bsky.social
The Sapling
@thesaplingnz.bsky.social
Website dedicated to celebrating Aotearoa-New Zealand literature for children and young adults. With editors Harriet, Faith & Nida. Pitches welcome!
We've solved Christmas for you!
We asked the children's bookstores around the country what books you need this Christmas, and here's what they said:
www.thesapling.co.nz/from-the-sho...
November 27, 2025 at 2:01 AM
Gavin Bishop's latest book is a monster-sized tome about Aotearoa's mythical taniwha. Take a look inside:
www.thesapling.co.nz/the-sampling...
November 12, 2025 at 1:46 AM
Kiwi Christmas Books is a fabulous charity making sure thousands of children have a book to open on Christmas morning. We spoke with founder Sonya Wilson about the initiative:
www.thesapling.co.nz/kiwi-christm...
November 10, 2025 at 2:07 AM
'… what is becoming an adult if it isn’t working out to use your little piece of power, for the good of others, or yourself'
@forster81.bsky.social reviews the new YA novel from @elizabethknoxnz.bsky.social:
www.thesapling.co.nz/review-kings...
October 29, 2025 at 12:34 AM
'King, like Violet, is rocking out'
Lucy Black reviews @rachaelking70.bsky.social's new Violet and the Velvets adventure:
www.thesapling.co.nz/review-a-sop...
@allenandunwinnz.bsky.social
October 16, 2025 at 10:29 PM
This Saturday is Bookshop Day!
Here's what your local children's bookstore has planned:
www.thesapling.co.nz/bookshop-day...
October 9, 2025 at 12:32 AM
Fishy business! Reviews for a guide to fishing from Al Brown, and books on coastal creatures and fish from Donovan Bixley and Gillian and Daryl Torckler:
www.thesapling.co.nz/fishy-busine...
October 3, 2025 at 1:03 AM
'If illustration were a sport, then, in my opinion, children’s books are the ultramarathon!'
Illustrator Hope McConnell on a day in her working life:
www.thesapling.co.nz/a-day-in-the...
September 29, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Here's short story to start your weekend, 'The Olive Twig' from Sonya McArthur's Tales of Curiosity:
www.thesapling.co.nz/the-sampling...
September 26, 2025 at 4:39 AM
Sorry! We've had to shut the site down to traffic outside of NZ/Australia – we hope to restore it soon and will update it when we can!
September 26, 2025 at 4:37 AM
September 23, 2025 at 2:23 AM
Ngā mihi ki a koutou e whakamaioha ana ki ēnei pukapuka i te wiki nei.

Kia kaha te reo Māori!
Toitū te reo!
September 19, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Nā Elizabeth Gray rāua ko Rehua Wilson tēnei taonga, ā, kua toa tēnei pukapuka i te whakamānawa hou mō ngā pukapuka e pūhia ana i te reo Māori (ki te rōpū Te Kura Pounamu) ki ngā New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults i tēnei tau.
September 19, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Ko te pukapuka whakamutunga o Te Wiki o te Reo Māori ko Hineraukatauri me Te Ara Pūoro.
www.thesapling.co.nz/te-whakataui...
September 19, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Congratulations Vida Kelly (A LOT OF SILLY), Sophie Hooper and Te Kani Price (THE DREAM FACTORY) on your joint win this evening!
The PANZ Book Design Awards are announced tonight!
We asked the finalists for the children's category to quiz each other on their work
shorturl.at/l6iGo
September 18, 2025 at 8:29 AM
Thursday’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori book is Te Whaea o te Motu: Whina Cooper me Te Hīkoi Roa mō Te Manatika—a moving biography of one of the most remarkable figures in Aotearoa’s history.
shorturl.at/YjzQ1
September 18, 2025 at 5:26 AM
The PANZ Book Design Awards are announced tonight!
We asked the finalists for the children's category to quiz each other on their work
shorturl.at/l6iGo
September 18, 2025 at 4:45 AM
Mō te Rāpare nei, te rā tuawhā o Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, e whakanui ana mātou i tētahi rangatira nui whakaharahara: pānuihia tēnei Whakatauira nō Te Whaea o te Motu: Whina Cooper me Te Hīkoi Roa mō Te Manatika.
shorturl.at/YjzQ1
September 18, 2025 at 4:44 AM
Wednesday’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori book is He Taonga Te Toka by Sacha Cotter and Josh Morgan (Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, Rongowhakaata). This is a beautiful exploration of feelings and what to do with them by this dynamic duo.
shorturl.at/xSYjh
September 17, 2025 at 5:53 AM
Tuesday’s Te Wiki o te Reo Māori book is How Many Times? / Me Hia Rawa Ngā Wā? Tim Tipene’s newest picture book is bilingual, making it a great text for reo Māori learners to have a go with. It also shares a message that parents will appreciate (listen to your mum!).
shorturl.at/pOhYE
September 17, 2025 at 5:52 AM
First up is The Lost Words by Kimberley Ngareta Kearney (Ngāti Maniapoto, Tuhoe) and Taylor Terewai Tiave (Ngāpuhi). We love the narrator’s statement: ‘These words are our words. And they will never be lost again’.
www.thesapling.co.nz/te-whakataui...
September 17, 2025 at 5:49 AM
Ko He Taonga Te Toka te pukapuka mō te Rāapa o Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori. Nā Sacha Cotter rāua ko Josh Morgan (Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, Rongowhakaata) tēnei taonga i hanga—koinei tētahi kōrero ātaahua e tūhura ana i te mahamaha, i te mōhio.
shorturl.at/xSYjh
September 17, 2025 at 5:34 AM
He aha te pukapuka mō te Rātū o Te Wiki o te Reo Māori? How Many Times?/Me Hia Rawa Ngā Wā?, nā Tim Tīpene rāua ko Nicoletta Benella! Ko pukapuka reorua tēnei, heoi anō, e whai take ana tēnei mō ngā ākonga reo. He ngahau te karere o te pukapuka mō ngā mātua–(whakarongo ki tō māmā!)
shorturl.at/pOhYE
shorturl.at
September 16, 2025 at 5:36 AM
Nā Kimberley Ngareta Kearney (Ngāti Maniapoto, Tuhoe) rāua ko Taylor Terewai Tiave (Ngāpuhi) The Lost Words, te pukapuka tuatahi. E whakamihatia ana ngā kupu o te kaikōrero e mātou: ‘These words are our words. And they will never be lost again':
shorturl.at/ccjvF
September 15, 2025 at 4:35 AM
Hei whakanui i Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, ka tukua e rima ngā Whakatauira nā ētahi pukapuka pikitia mīharo.
September 15, 2025 at 4:33 AM