Warming to the idea

Adaptation to climate change is focus of NZ-made nature series with global reach.

It's from Hōne to Heke

Tāmati Rīmene-Sproat's Waitangi Day special isn't the treaty treatise he'd planned. But it's still an illuminating look back at our national day.

Emotions to the fore

Sleater-Kinney make a grief-stained return and the debut by London's Folly Group suggests they are going post-punk places.

Tainui uprising

He taught a mate to dance in a beer ad and portrayed Billy T James on television, but actor-playwright Tainui Tukiwaho's heart is in the creative possibilities of theatre and three new shows he has on the go.

Listen up

An exploration of noise that will open your mind to the world of sounds in nature and beyond.

Vital acts

Patricia Grace's late-life story collection weaves together myth and contemporary tales.

University blues

Come and Get It is an intricate campus novel that intersects class, race, desire and indiscretion.

First impressions

What does the year hold for fiction? Mark Broatch checks out five promising titles from first-time novelists.

Hell in high waters

A year ago, Auckland flooded. Since then, many residents have been living in limbo with glacial progress on repairs.

Past & present tensions

Contested histories - including treaty interpretations - stem from individual memories and experiences, historian Rowan Light suggests.

Turtle recall

Red-eared slider turtles have gone from pets to pests. Until now, it's been too cold for them to breed here but global warming could change that, putting our native species further at risk.

Tour of terror

After one of the most explosive encounters involving NZ soldiers since Vietnam, traumatised soldiers returned home from Iraq - to silence.

Child's play

Ann Packer surveys some summery reads for young ones.

Fighting back

The hell that was slavery is relayed in all its horror in award-winning writer’s first historical novel.

Charting the abyss

Real-life adventure story reveals the daring efforts being made to map vast tracts of the world's unexplored seabed.

Songs, the key of life

Music-loving novelist Michel Faber explores the psychology and sociology behind the sounds that keep us hooked.

Austerity attractions

Auckland Philharmonia has some stellar concerts planned, despite budget constraints.

Rock of ages

Ancient rocks may foretell the future of Antarctica's glaciers as the planet warms.

It's a wind up

As humiliating as they can be, those reminders of past blunders are all part of being mates.

2024 flaxes its muscle

What's that old aphorism for something being better than nothing? That it is better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick? Well, let me tell you, that expression is pointless: everything is better than getting a poke in the eye with a sharp stick, and I have just had the extremely pointed experience to prove it.

BFR-your new BFF

A simple pressure cuff is giving hope to those people with rheumatoid arthritis who want to continue exercising.

Without a trace

Piha is world renowned for its wild surf but it has another claim to fame - six people have disappeared. Are they the victims of a serial killer and is it time for an inquiry?

Harmony preserved

Best known for being a member of one of rock's first supergroups, Graham Nash is bringing his distinctive voice to New Zealand for the first time.

Stranger things

A moving portrayal of dealing with grief and childhood wounds.

Wim & vigour

Prolific German director Wim Wenders talks about how his acclaimed new film about the life of a Tokyo toilet janitor went from side project to awards contender.

Acts of war

Two very different experiences of World War II and a rollicking read from Australia in latest summer reads.

A dog's life

They're man's best friend. We talk to them and expect them to understand, but what do they make of us?

Money and the bag

The great actor-director Orson Welles reckoned living in the lap of luxury was terrific except \"you never know when luxury is going to stand up\".

Trying for abstinence

Summer has arrived in the Far North, drying out the land, emptying the rainwater tank, spreading the scent of mānuka, sea and salt. We hear reports of a celebrity wedding in a neighbouring bay: glamorous TV news reporter Helen Castles has married sports broadcaster Andrew Saville. Castles has a solid fan base around here. I once rode in a crowded minivan to a local unveiling and the whole journey was taken up with an admiring group discussion of her journalistic exploits.

Kafka's bad dream

In the UK, the corner shop performs much the same function as the Kiwi dairy: it's where you buy basics like bread and milk until you visit a supermarket or more dedicated establishment. In many places, these corner shops also double as sub-post offices, charged with selling stamps, dispensing pensions and a multitude of other state-related issues.