This quintessentially Kiwi romp captures the fun and chaos of getting a wee one to bed. The whimsical tale, told using clever rhyme, counting in threes, and with a sprinkling of kupu Māori, is complemented by detailed, witty illustrations in a beautifully calm colourway. A funny, engaging and magical bedtime read.

Fetū is the youngest sister of heavenly-appointed guardians, and her only job is to be the heart of the family. But what good is her love, when her siblings keep turning into stars? Deftly interwoven with Sāmoan cultural values and evocative illustrations, this deeply moving tale brings Mataali‘i to life in a new and powerful way.

This charmingly illustrated and playful trilingual counting rhyme follows a bunch of cheeky weka on their Rēkohu adventures. Numbers and simple nouns in ta rē Moriori, te reo Māori and English are followed by information about the Chatham Islands and their creatures. An entertaining and informative introduction to Aotearoa’s ancient languages.

A deceptively simple bilingual reo Māori-English board book, where carefully chosen kupu and vibrant, meticulously crafted illustrations create complex layers of meaning and connection. Words reappear in new contexts and combinations, and illustrations pair a diverse range of whānau members with cherished childhood belongings. Perfect for sharing, exploring and learning.

After a disappointing visit to the pet shop, an unimpressed child has to come to terms with her new, wet pet. Skilfully rhymed, with playful humour and modern, dynamic illustrations, the story highlights the joy to be found in not getting what you want. Fresh, funny and an absolute delight to read aloud.

Eleven-year-old Rebecca is a shy introvert, desperate to go unnoticed. All that changes when a new friend comes to stay for the summer. A gentle and poignant examination of finding friendship, family and the seldom-explored joys of being the quiet one. Each sentence is a poem in itself, thoughtful, resonant and artfully restrained.

A crime-solving kitten, an elusive hat and a diamond heist oil the wheels of this adorable comic caper. Detective Beans is on the case, even if his mum does want him back by dinner time. Li Chen’s sweet graphic novella artfully blends humour and adventure in a twisty tale of an intrepid young gumshoe cat.

In a post-apocalyptic world, plagues have swept away everything that was once familiar and knowledge is being reborn in the hands of ‘witnessers’. Hoping to join their ranks is twelve-year-old apprentice witnesser Bastienne Scull, a plucky survivor in search of her place. An immersive, environmentally profound vision of a possible future.

With her friends and a one-eyed raven as accomplices, Getwin is on a wild mission, determined to uncover truths about the world they live in — a world where writing and reading is restricted to the elites. Rich, atmospheric prose propels this fantasy quest, and the power of words is explored with magical enthusiasm.

Violet Grumble is putting aside her performance (and social) anxiety, picking up a guitar and starting a band. But when stuff starts to go missing, band rivalry tensions reach a new high. A riotously fun and brilliantly constructed adventure that incorporates a heartfelt and accurate depiction of the ADHD girl-brain in action.

The world seems determined to test Jasper Robinson-Woods. There’s his too-long name, his mum’s stupid boyfriend, his glaringly absent Dad, and his dying goldfish. Worst of all, there’s a creature lurking in his nightmares, threatening to tear everything apart. A moving novel of adolescent rage, humour, kindness, and the pain of finding yourself.

Grace’s life has been a series of earthquakes, right from the day she was born. Grace is trying to navigate these tremors when her best friend Charlie returns, and secrets of the past are finally confronted. A cleverly crafted, poignant examination of identity, loss, acceptance and resilience in an unstable world.

Desperate to escape both her planet and her Mum, Farah’s chosen destiny is Western Wānanga interplanetary military school. But Farah will have to test herself, and explore who she really is and what she wants to become. Te Ao Mārama is woven into this striking dystopian space odyssey set 3,000 years into our possible future.

When the girl of his dreams is an epic fail as a genome match, Kieran won’t accept the options that fate hands him. As the fabric of his world begins to unravel, Kieran questions everything – but discovering the truth could get him killed. A pacey, sophisticated and thought-provoking dystopian vision of a future Wellington.

The fascinating history behind the black uniforms with silver ferns that are worn by Aotearoa’s sportspeople is told in an engaging narrative, which will capture the interest of sports lovers and non-sports lovers alike. Crisp and dynamic illustrations provide a perfect accompaniment for this tale of heroes, national identity, pride and determination.

A stunning collection of whakataukī that explains their meanings and links them to everyday life. Speaking directly to readers with warmth and kindness, this pukapuka suggests ways of building connections and aroha and makes it clear that there are many ways to be Māori, while also being inclusive of readers of all backgrounds.

This beautifully illustrated creative non-fiction picture book tells the story of a night in the life of a ruru, from hunting, to evading human threats and mammalian predators, to feeding its young. The writing is poetic and well-paced, and is enhanced by expertly rendered illustrations washed in a dark blue-grey palette.

An in-depth and concise overview of Te Tiriti o Waitangi that is a must-have for every home, library and classroom. The complexity of our founding document is successfully explained from an authentic perspective, in a way that will be accessible to younger readers without simplifying or leaving out critical aspects, or seeking to elicit guilt.

Tui Pea Luva shares Pasifika perspectives through a wonderful collection of poems that are rich in descriptive language and identity, and reflect the realities of Tongan families. The layout and illustrations holding the text together are a visual delight and give room for the poems, and the reader, to breathe.

Seven-year-old Alice McKenzie and her brother were the last people to see a living moa. Isaac du Toit’s use of diorama takes the reader back to 1880, and his arresting illustrations are quirky, eerie, haunting, and strange. Are you brave enough to follow Alice into the Martins Bay sandhills of 145 years ago?

The journey of Hineraukatauri, a chrysalis who enters the human world without a voice, is shown through a stunning mixture of darkness and light, abstract imagery, and powerful and realistic figure drawing. The beautiful images convey a waiata-like sense of movement, reflecting the progress of Hineraukatauri as she is gifted different elements of music.

Cook Islands Māori poet Alistair Te Ariki Campbell wrote this poem for his great-granddaughter Ataahua, and Sarah Wilkins shares her vision of it through her illustrations. Changes in perspective offer deep insights into the magic of the words, and the beautiful drawings of Ataahua are visual treasures in themselves.

Sad Sushi is a powerful yet accessible exploration of the experience of depression, with illustrations that convey complicated emotions and mood shifts in a way that young readers might otherwise struggle to identify or understand. Complex, dreamy and at times almost ukiyo-e-like in its composition, this is a beautifully crafted picture book.

A little girl wants a pet – but isn’t at all impressed when the pet that she is given is a fish. What’s wrong with a fish, you ask? Ruth Paul’s delightful combination of zany images and quirky rhyming text will convince every young child that, actually, they would absolutely love to have a pet fish!

He kōrero whakaohooho tēnei mō tētahi haerenga roa, uaua hoki nō Ariā me ōna hoa ki te rangi, me kore noa e kitea e rātou he rongoā mō te kūmara e mate haere nei, otirā, mō te ao nui tonu. Ko te āhua, nō tuawhakarere rā anō te kōrero nei, i pēnei ai i te rawe o tā Hēni Jacobs whakamāori i ā Witi Ihimaera kupu. E rōnaki ana te rere o te reo, ā, ko ngā pikitia rerehua hoki hei kīnaki.

An inspirational tale of a long and difficult journey to the sky by Ariā and her friends, as they try to save the world’s dying kūmara – and the world itself. Hēni Jacobs’ excellent translation of Witi Ihimaera’s original words has the feel of a story from long ago. The reo flows easily, and is supported by the beautiful illustrations.

I te pukapuka o Hineraukatauri me Te Ara Pūoro, e whakamahia ana te reo waiata me ngā pikitia pūkare hei whakapuaki i te pūrākau mō te kawenga mai o te pūoro ki te ao mārama e Hineraukatauri. He taonga tēnei pukapuka e whakaatu ana i te wairua o te ao Māori ki te ao pānui pukapuka mā roto mai i tētahi whakaahuatanga Māori tonu o ngā atua Māori me te wairua Māori.

Hineraukatauri me Te Ara Pūoro uses lyrical language and evocative illustrations to tell the pūrākau of how Hineraukatauri brought music into the world. This book is a taonga that brings the essence of te ao Māori to the wider reading world, through an authentically Māori representation of atua Māori and wairua Māori.

E whakaaturia ana ngā wāhi me ngā kōrero nui whakahirahira o Rotorua i a Whetū rāua ko Kohu, he kea tētahi, he kererū tētahi, e tūhura haere ana i te rohe. He mōhiohio whai uara anō kua tāpirihia i tētahi mahere me ētahi meka mō ngā manu o Aotearoa. Ka kapohia ngā tamariki e ngā pātai o te pukapuka nei ki ōna kaipānui, e ōna pikitia whakangahau, muramura anō hoki.

The significant places and stories of Rotorua area are showcased here as Whetū and Kohu, a kea and a kererū, explore the area. A map and some fun facts about the manu of Aotearoa add informative value. Tamariki will be engaged by the questions this book asks of its readers, and by its whimsical, bright and colourful illustrations.

E whakaaturia ana i tēnei kōrero āhuareka te hiranga o ngā whetū o te kāhui o Matariki, arā, o Tupuānuku me Tupuārangi ki ngā tikanga whakatupu kai, hauhake kai anō hoki, otirā, ki te whenua tonu. E miramirangia ana ngā kōrero me ngā tikanga mō Matariki me tēnei wāhanga o te tau, ā, nā konā i whai tikanga ai hei ara e ako ai ngā tamariki i ēnei āhuatanga mō Matariki.

The importance of the Matariki stars Tupuānuku and Tupuārangi to food growing and gathering, and to the land itself, is displayed in this playful tale. The stories and tikanga surrounding the Matariki season are highlighted, giving this book considerable value as an accessible way for tamariki to learn about these aspects of Matariki.

Ka whakaako a Nanny Rina i ngā tikanga o te raranga ki tāna mokopuna i tēnei kōrero pārekareka kua puta ake i te ao Māori tonu. He whakanui tēnei whakaahuatanga i te pai o te mahi tahi a kuia me te mokopuna i te tukunga ihotanga o ngā tikanga i tētahi whakatupuranga ki tētahi whakatupuranga i te whānau Māori.

Nanny Rina teaches the intricacies of weaving to her moko in a fun and enjoyable story that comes authentically from te ao Māori. The depiction of the wonderful way in which grandmother and grandchild work together is a celebration of the way tikanga is handed down from one generation to the next in whānau Māori.

* Indicates a finalist book originally written in te reo Māori

While still navigating her own grief following the tragic loss of her mother, brave kāhu Poto rises to lead her whānau through looming threats and adventures. Told using original and poetic language with te reo Māori interwoven throughout, this is a story of resilience, inclusion, and aroha — a true celebration of the magic of Aotearoa.

A joyful, hands-on celebration of nature, creativity and the magic of play, bursting with ideas to explore, create and connect with te taiao. Clear, easy-to-follow instructions for nature-based craft activities will inspire confidence and imagination. Play Wild offers more than crafts: it’s an invitation to slow down, get outside, and find wonder in the everyday world.

In a society where reading and writing are privileges reserved for an elite few, Getwin hides a dangerous truth: she can do both. Lyrically written, The Raven’s Eye Runaways is lush with sensory detail — earthy, vibrant, and steeped in the natural and the magical. A tale of resilience, secrecy, and the quiet power of knowledge.

A bleatingly brilliant picture book packed with classic Aotearoa humour, quirky charm, and a dash of evil. This laugh-out-loud adventure follows a sleep-deprived witch and her noisy, rebellious lambs, who are plotting their escape. Tamariki will giggle at the chaos and cheeky humour in this creepy, creative delight that is perfect for read-alouds.

One Pākehā family’s whakapapa in Aotearoa is explored in a visually stunning graphic novel. Personal stories are woven into broader currents of 19th and 20th century history, showing the complexities of identity, belonging, and colonisation. The Writing Desk doesn’t shy away from uncomfortable truths, but is also a celebration of aroha and resilience.