Hi everyone, I have for your perusal and reading leisure, a booklist below with not just a handful, but seven tween titles filled with unique Kiwi stories. It took me a while to read a few extras so I had to complete this post after the other two for this month but I managed to get it all done. I hope you all enjoy the stories selected below.
These tween stories will take you all across New Zealand and even back in time!!
The Ghosts of Young Nick’s Head by Sue Copsey (Pear Jam Books, 2011) is actually the first of the Spooky Adventure series that starts on the eastern coast of North Island. While on holiday at an isolated old house perched high on the cliffs of Young Nick’s Head, two friends Jo and Eddie are plunged into a deathly ghost story. Feeling somewhat terrified but determined, the boys set out to crack a mystery that has remained unsolved for over one hundred years. For fans of haunted houses, ghosts both good and bad, mysterious secrets from the past and some good old fashioned adventure, this is definitely the read for you!! A really well written story with just the right amount of family relationships and friendship mixed in with some spooky adventures and heaps of historical mysteries!! The next in this series is The Ghosts of Tarawera which won the Storylines Children’s Literature Trust of New Zealand Notable Book Award in 2016 and the last is The Ghosts of Moonlight Creek.
Trouble in time by Adele Broadbent (Scholastic, 2014) takes us on a journey into rural New Zealand and even back in time. We meet young Ben Jackson who has to contend with his great-grandad George moving in with his family. Although the age gap between the two seems unbearable, an unthinkable event changes it all almost overnight when Ben finds himself in the year 1935 when his Poppa George was twelve. An adrenaline-pumping adventure back in time quickly becomes a mission to save lives in one era, memories in another and the future of an entire city. I have to say from the start that this is not your average time-slip story where the hero gets stuck in the past until they learn something about themselves or an ancestor. This read takes more of a time-jump from one childhood to another, and the one in the past has some difficult challenges!! What I really liked was the idyllic New Zealand setting and how it differed in 1935 when Ben’s great-grandfather was young! I really enjoyed the characters here along with the overall storyline which explored the general themes of friendship, family, and dealing with bullying that rings true no matter the time or era you find yourself in!
This next read takes the reader to the picturesque Coromandel Peninsula in Where cuckoos call by Des Hunt (HarperCollins Publishers (NZ) Ltd, 2007). We meet Ben Mansfield who is only twelve, but he’s already got some man-sized worries. He’s losing his dad to a debilitating illness and his mum is struggling to keep the family together. Living in a sheltered bay, Ben gets to wake up to an assortment of cuckoos and other animals. His life drastically changes when he discovers his parents plan to sell the family farm. He has to grow up fast as change threatens everything he loves. But Ben finds an unexpected ally, and his decision to defy his father and raise an orphaned shining cuckoo takes him far from home, only to find himself in serious trouble. This eco-adventure tale will give everyone the urge to travel to the Coromandel and find these amazing creatures like I did!! Just like all his other books, Des Hunt takes us on a journey deep into the native bush of New Zealand, introduces us to the amazing creatures that call it home and tells of the immeasurable strength in our young heroes!! A good read about conservation and fighting for what we love!!
Time twins by Sally Astridge & Arne Norlin (Submarine, 2017) is a time-slip book with a twist to it. Eleven-year-old Astrid thinks she is imagining the quiet boy who appears in her room in the middle of the night and then vanishes as if by magic. Astrid lives in Sweden. She discovers the boy’s name is Tamati and he lives in New Zealand on the other side of the world. Among the many questions that pop into her head only two are important – how did he get into her bedroom? And why does he keep coming back? This was a tale of an unusual friendship thanks to ‘time-travel’, but along the present timeline, to someone who’s born at the same second instead of in another era!! A most unique premise, which made me wonder if our dreams take us to something like this!! I found myself turning the pages, wanting to hear more of Astrid’s adventures in Sweden and how Tamati fares in New Zealand!! I loved the family dynamics they both share. What upset me was the degree of bullying and violence that happened at Astrid’s school, but Astrid dealt with it thanks to the strength she found from her encounter with Tamati. I really loved how their relationship grew towards the end to one a bit more than a friendship!!
Red Rocks by Rachael King (Random house, 2012) is a magical story set along the wild southern coast of Wellington. We meet young Jake who’s school holidays sees him spending his holidays at his father’s house. Jake explores Wellington’s wild south coast, with its high cliffs, biting winds, and its fierce seals. When he stumbles upon a perfectly preserved sealskin, hidden in a crevice at Red Rocks, he’s compelled to take it home and hide it under his bed, setting off a chain of events that threatens to destroy his family. I loved how King developed the father-son relationship young Jake has with his dad. The descriptions of the Red rocks of Owhiro Bay at the southern coast of Wellington and the community that lived there were done expertly. Although Jake was lonely at first, the friendship he made with young Jesssie and Tom were what he needed. I loved the subtle way King layered the real world with the mystical one the seals inhabited. This magical story and the way the Celtic myths were woven into Maori legends makes it perfect for young readers, and it’s no wonder because it won the Esther Glen Award and the New Zealand Children’s and Young Adult Book Award in 2013.
This next title in this booklist, Spark Hunter by Sonya Wilson (Ahoy!, 2021) takes the reader all the way towards the far west of New Zealand’s South Island into Fiordland National Park. Nissa Marshall knows that something is hiding deep in the forests of Fiordland National Park – she’s seen their lights in the trees. She wonders why no one else seems to notice them? When Nissa abandons her school camp to track down the mysterious lights, she finds herself lost in a dangerous wonderland. And she’s not the only one at risk – the forest and the creatures in it are under threat too. This read felt like an adventure read wrapped up in fantasy!! I felt myself transported not only to the majestic fjords of Western South island but also deep into the mystic forests that cover the land there!! Nissa’s story is one of curiosity meets destiny for me. I loved how the people in her life responded to her absence and the way that was portrayed in the form of her text messages, emails, news reports and social media posts. Although there aren’t any images or drawings, the descriptions of the harsh landscape of Firodland gave ample imagination. I loved how the ‘sparks’ are depicted, ‘I am ana. I came with the ferns,’ and how they are described similar to the flora and fauna they represent. The scenes where she lives with them bring so much to the overall story. I loved how courageous she was and determined to do the right thing. This title won the Best First Book Award, the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults and the Storylines Notable Book Award in 2022
Best quote: “Everything in that forest is connected, whether we like it or not. The valleys determine the course of the rivers, the mountains affect the course of the clouds. The rain changes the rivers, the soil changes the trees. All of it is connected. Predator to prey. Us to you. You to us.” – Kaha to Nissa after the landslip.
My last title, Ride north by Maria De Jong (Anderson Press, 2025) is a story of a journey, a road-trip with a difference. We meet twelve-year-old Folly, who is angry and grieving for her mum. She isn’t ready for her Dad’s plans for a new life in Auckland with his new girlfriend. So Folly runs away with the one friend who truly loves her, her wise pony, Tooth. With her mother’s ashes in her backpack, Folly sets off to the fabled Cape Reinga, the northernmost point of New Zealand from Dargaville. Through tourist towns and wilderness, across beaches, roads and forest tracks, Folly and Tooth find both adventure and hardship. But then a spur-of-the moment choice sets danger on their trail. Girl and horse must fight to survive together – to the very end of the world. As I read this book, I felt myself fondly reliving the road trip I took with my parents a few years ago. The main characters, Folly and Tooth make an interesting pair. The colorful characters they meet on their ride northwards towards Cape Reinga are interesting. I found myself worrying for her when she got tangled with some bad people. I truly loved the description of the landscape the best. This was an awesome and really cool read!!
I hope you enjoy this selection of contemporary Kiwi reads!!
Stay safe and keep reading
Miss Mahee
Miss Mahee's Library of Reads 