Wondering what’s new this month in our non-fiction collection? Prolific novelist Phillipa Gregory tries her hand at non-fiction in Normal Women, a huge undertaking that puts so-called “ordinary” women at the front and centre of this British history, rather than the usual array of queens and affluent ladies. Mountains of Fire looks to be an adventurous and entertaining piece from the pen of a volcanologist (can we talk about that cover?), while Everything I Know About Books is a treat for any book lover, giving readers a glimpse into Aotearoa’s flourishing publishing industry with a huge number of contributors from around these literary motu. That’s not all, of course — browse our other picks below!
Mountains of fire : the secret lives of volcanoes / Oppenheimer, Clive
“We are made of the same stuff as the breath and cinders of volcanoes. No matter where we live on the planet, these fiery mountains have long shaped the path of humanity. World-famous volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer has worked at the crater’s edge in the wildest places on Earth. In Mountains of Fire we join him on hair-singeing adventures, close enough to feel the heat of the lava, from Antarctica to Iceland, to learn how deeply our stories are intertwined with volcanoes.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
What we remember will be saved : a story of refugees and the things they carry / Saldana, Stephanie
“Journalist and scholar Stephanie Saldaña, who lived in Syria before the war, sets out on a journey across nine countries to meet refugees and learn what they salvaged from the ruins when they escaped. Now, in the narratives of six extraordinary women and men, from Mt. Sinjar to Aleppo to Lesvos to Amsterdam, we discover that the little things matter a great deal. Saldaña introduces us to a woman who saved her city in a dress, a musician who saved his stories in songs, and a couple who rebuilt their destroyed pharmacy even as the city around them fell apart. Together they provide a window into a religiously diverse corner of the Middle East on the edge of unraveling, and the people keeping it alive with their stories.” (Catalogue)
Normal women : 900 years of making history / Gregory, Philippa
“Normal Women is a radical reframing of Britain’s story, told not with the rise and fall of kings and the occasional queen, but through social and cultural transition, showing the agency, persistence, and effectiveness of women in society – from 1066 to modern times. This is a book about millions of women, not just three or four. The ‘normal women’ you meet in these pages rode in jousts, flew Spitfires, issued their own currency and built ships, corn mills and houses as part of their daily lives. They went to war, tilled the fields, campaigned, wrote and loved. They committed crimes, or treason, worshipped many types of gods, cooked and nursed, invented things and rioted. A lot. A landmark work of scholarship and storytelling, Philippa Gregory puts women back where they belong in our history – centre stage.” (Adapted from Catalogue)
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