The Marlborough Book Festival

Rebecca Priestley - Fifteen Million Years in Antarctica

Tickets for the Marlborough Book Festival 2022 are on sale now.

Should we be paralysed by fear or optimistic for the world future generations will inherit?

Rebecca Priestley experiences both emotions in her eco-memoir, 'Fifteen Million Years in Antarctica', reflecting on her three visits to Antarctica. The book was praised by reviewers and longlisted for the general non-fiction award at the 2020 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards.

Speaking to Nikki MacDonald at the 2021 Marlborough Festival, Rebecca discusses the science carried out in Antarctica; her awe for the landscape and wildlife; and her concerns and hope for the future.

Elizabeth Knox Part 2 - The Absolute Book

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The Guardian praised 'The Absolute Book' as "everything a fantasy should be: original, politically engaged and teeming with literary allusion”.

Elizabeth Knox discusses her inspiration for the story, the references within to other fantasy traditions, and important messages the novel conveys about reality and the challenges of current times.

If you haven’t read the book before the session, we wager you won’t be able to resist after hearing all about it.

Elizabeth was speaking to Jane Forrest Waghorn at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Elizabeth Knox Part 1 - A Fantastic Life

Tickets for the 2022 Marlborough Book Festival are now on sale.

Elizabeth Knox has been imagining fantastic worlds and characters since she was a child. Some of those plots are still unfolding.

The writer shares stories from publishing rejections to publishing sensations starting with 'The Vintner’s Luck', and how she emerged from family loss to write her latest book, 'The Absolute Book', which she feels is her best yet.

Elizabeth was speaking to Kim Hill at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Dame Fiona Kidman - All the Way to Summer

Dame Fiona marked her 80th birthday last year with the publication of 'All the Way to Summer', a beautiful volume of stories; all moving, insightful and written with love.

The final stories trace her own history of love, a memoir of significant people from childhood and beyond.

The collection is the perfect starting point for a conversation about her extraordinary life.

Dame Fiona was speaking to Tessa Nicholson at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Becky Manawatu - Auē

What’s it like when your first published novel wins big awards and receives rave reviews?

'Auē', Becky Manawatu’s story of good kids and grim circumstances set just down the road in Kaikōura, has won a place in the hearts of her many readers.

Becky was speaking to Jane Forrest Waghorn at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Mike White - How To Walk A Dog

Mike White discusses his delightful, funny and moving book 'How To Walk A Dog' with Tessa Nicholson at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Mike talks about his dog Cooper, the remarkable people and dogs he’s met while walking him, and life at a Wellington dog park.

Brannavan Gnanalingam - Sprigs

The Ockham judges praised 'Sprigs' as “an unflinching novel which forces us to reckon with uncomfortable truths about power and privilege in Aotearoa”. The book comes with trigger warnings, but also nuanced storytelling and some comic relief.

Speaking at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival, Brannavan discusses the book and the issues around masculinity it puts in the spotlight with Tessa Nicholson.

Dame Fiona Kidman - Sense of Justice

Dame Fiona Kidman has never shied away from the big topics both on and off the page. She has a deep interest in social justice and telling the story of “outsiders”.

Speaking to Jane Forrest Waghorn, Fiona reflects on the causes she has taken up over her career, from her feminist writings in the 70s and 80s, to telling the tragic tale of Albert Black, one of the last people to be executed in this country, in 'This Mortal Boy' (2018).

The conversation was recorded at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival.

Charity Norman Part 2 - The Secrets of Strangers

In 'The Secret of Strangers' (2020), a gunshot rings out in a London cafe and the lives of five strangers are forever changed.

Speaking to Tessa Nicholson at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival, Charity discusses her involvement in the real-life event that inspired the book, as well as her recent novels, her inspiration, influence and writing process.

Charity Norman Part 1 - Advocate to Author

Charity Norman’s own life story is as fascinating as the lives she writes about in her gripping novels - minus meth addiction and cult membership. Born in Uganda and raised in UK vicarages, Charity pursued travel and a successful legal career as a barrister before moving to New Zealand.

 

Speaking to Barbara De Leo at the 2021 Marlborough Book Festival, Charity reflects on her road to rave reviews and bestseller status.