(by Eleanor Catton)

A hilarious idea by Orion, to compile nearly 100 photos of dogs doing just that, hanging out of car windows, noses a-twitching, fur flying in the breeze, just lapping up the sights and smells. Each picture is accompanied by a caption saying which breed each dog is and their characteristics. But we simply love it for what it is: dogs living in the moment and loving the ride. It’s a book which makes you laugh and smile.

(by Helen Macdonald)

Cambridge poet and academic Helen Macdonald this month won the £20,000 Samuel John Prize for non-fiction for this powerful account of her five-year relationship with a goshawk called Mabel. Macdonald bought Mabel for £800 as a way of dealing with grief and depression after the sudden death of her father. She developed an obsession with the bird, paralleling her own struggles with those of writer T.H. White (of Once and Future King fame), who had also tried to train a hawk.

That ended badly. Samuel Johnson judge Claire Tomalin said Hawk fits all the criteria: originality and beauty and it answered the question — “if you had one book to give a friend, which would it be?”

(by Janet Hunt)

Dedicated to “all the creatures of the oceans, great and small”, this is a first-class guide to New Zealand’s 38 marine reserves, and a companion to the TV series. Taranaki-based Janet Hunt, the author of award-winning books such as Wetlands of New Zealand, knows exactly how to get us hooked with her knowledge, passion for her subject and compelling writing.

It opens with a poem by her friend, the late Hone Tuwhare, called The Sea, Our Saviour, and a list of existing reserves plus six more which, pleasingly, are “upcoming”. The layout is user-friendly, and her chapter “The Unthinkable”, on the Rena disaster, includes a photo of a little blue penguin covered in oil getting a clean-up. It was one of the lucky ones.

(by Craig Bullock)

This is a heart-melting collection of stories about nearly 80 cats that suffered extreme trauma during and after the Christchurch earthquakes. With more than 14,000 aftershocks over the past four years, the lives of the people of Christchurch have changed indefinitely, says Bullock, and so, too, have the lives of the animals. The stories capture the anxiety and stress but the outcomes are generally — but not always — positive and the photos are incredibly beautiful.

(by Muru, Robin and Sam Walters)

Former All Black and Anglican Bishop the Reverend Muru Walters writes a strong introduction to this powerful, personal journey around a selection of this country’s marae. The text and photography by his son Sam Walters, who lived for many years in Britain, and Sam’s Welsh wife Robin, mark a time of discovery, meeting people on their marae, listening to the histories, learning the value of the meeting places in today’s context.

Sam and Robin visited about 300 marae over the course of three years, and focus here on 21 in depth (there are thousands dotted around the country). The variety of the buildings’ designs is astounding, big and little, ornate and humble. The book very much conveys the fact that the marae is a living community and cultural centre, not a dead historic fossil. And, for Robin and Sam, their project led to a gradual deep connection with their roots.

(edited by Paula Green)

As poet Paula Green says in the introduction to this marvellous collection, “pick a poem, hold it up to the light, find your favourite cosy spot and start reading”. So sit on the floor around the coffee table and share the gift of poetry with the kids.

There’s something old — like six delightful poems by James K. Baxter, two by Denis Glover — and something new, by poets such as Elena de Roo. Children’s authors like Margaret Mahy, David Hill and Gavin Bishop have their say, as do writers for adults, like Bill Manhire, Hone Tuwhare, Sam Hunt, as well as works by the 20 winners of A Fabulous Poetry Competition For Children. The pages are enlivened by lovely illustrations by Jenny Cooper. Treasury is just that, a real treasure.

(by Matt Turner)

The front cover features a J 1236 racing along Cass Bank in the Southern Alps. That sight alone should set trainspotters’ pulses racing. This handsome, largeformat history of trains in New Zealand is a magnificent homage to some difficult and impressive engineering works and a reminder of the good old days when train travel was an exciting way to move around the country, before cars became king and trucks took over the highways.

Towns were inter-connected by trains, and stations, like Dunedin’s Flemish-styled building, were worthy of civic pride. How times have changed, not necessarily for the best. But preservation groups have kept the flag flying and Turner, who worked with Motat on this book, is an excellent advocate for a mode of transport that thrives in other parts of the world.

(by James Russell)

With the help of talented illustrator Link Choi, Auckland based author Russell has created a fantasy world ripe with imagination and possibilities for two young boys who find themselves in possession of a (rapidly growing) dragon.

In the final instalment of this trilogy, Paddy and Flynn are finding it increasingly difficult to feed Elton John and keep him hidden from their mother. In a fitting finale, a hair-raising adventure makes Elton John realise he has outstayed his welcome.

(by Lynley Dodd)

This collection of six of Hairy Maclary’s adventures in hardback is great value and the robust cover will be absolutely vital because kids will want to go back to these charming stories time and again.

It also reinforces what a genius Dodd is with her rhymes and use of language — not to mention her illustrations — combining all these elements to have a magnetic effect on the reader and listener.

(by Myles Lawford)

My kids can spend ages on one of these “spotting” books, competing to see who can find certain objects or people first.

If they are anything to go by, this will be a huge hit, with Lawford’s colourful illustrations teeming with people involved in all sorts of activities in different New Zealand settings. As well as Kiwi and several other regular characters in the pictures, each scene has other objects, animals or people that kids are challenged to spot — should keep them busy for hours.

(by Oliver Jeffers)

Alphabet books for kids are mostly standard fare but not this one in the hands of Oliver Jeffers, who is one of the best and most imaginative author/ illustrators out there. In this large format hardback — subtitled “Short Stories for All the Letters” — Jeffers weaves quirky and whimsical tales devoted to each letter of the alphabet.

As always, the artwork is fantastic and the often absurdist humour will tickle the fancy of kids. A real keeper.

(by Herve Tullet)

Following on from the success of his interactive book, Press Here, Tullet returns with another cleverly conceived hardback that will have readers intrigued as he shrewdly leads them from page to page with invitations and exhortations to try a bit of colour mixing.

Youngsters will be delighted by the tactile nature of the book and the “results” they get from rubbing, tilting and shaking its pages.

(Various authors)

With about 230 pages of stories and poems by some of New Zealand’s best authors and illustrators, this large format hardback is aptly titled and will probably become a fixture on bedside tables around the country.

There are stories by Margaret Mahy, Lynley Dodd, Patricia Grace, Joy Cowley and Pamela Allen and more, along with poems from James K. Baxter, Katherine Mansfield and Peter Bland. With such diversity, there are some true gems for kids of all ages and tastes.

(by Beatrix Potter)

Another great Christmas gift, this hardback incorporates some of Potter’s best-loved tales and characters.

As well as the enchanting stories about Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny and others such as The Tailor of Gloucester, there is plenty of biographical detail about Potter herself interspersed throughout, including some beautifully reproduced examples of the Christmas cards she loved to create and her letters to friends and family.

(by Lynette Evans)

Right on time for the festive season is this “Kiwi-isation” of a classic Christmas song following in the footsteps of Scholastic’s success with The Twelve Days Of Kiwi Christmas, also illustrated by Myles Lawford. Entertainer Pio Terei is back on vocal duties — in Maori and English — on the bonus CD. It’s easy to sing along, with lyrics such as, “We wish you a Kiwi Christmas, a sweet-as Kiwi Christmas, a cracker Kiwi Christmas, and a kapai New Year!”

(by Bruce Potter)

Award-winning New Zealand illustrator Potter comes up with his best ideas while doodling so he has devoted a book to his muse Doodle Bug. In this hardback, Doodle Bug is hidden in various fantastical scenes that display the breadth of Potter’s talent and imagination.

The dream-like sequences are incredibly detailed and make a great case for the value of doodling. And the story behind the creation of Doodle Bug included at the end provides a fascinating insight into Potter’s work.

(by Karina Schaapman)

Given the painstaking work that Schaapman has put into creating Mouse Mansion, the chattels and the inhabitants, it’s great to see she is getting more use out of her handmade creations with the third instalment in this entrancing series.

All the scenes in this splendid hardback are carefully staged, then photographed. The incredible detail and textures make for a visually stunning accompaniment to the tales about curious and naughty Julia and her best friend Sam, a more obedient mouse.