VOLUME FLYERS (31.10.26)
Catch these five books!
Let this week’s flyers land on the top of your reading pile.
U.X.O. by Brannavan Gnanalingam $30
“Brannavan Gnanalingam has become well known for gripping, occasionally gristly, writing about New Zealand society. From the first page U.X.O. he ups the stakes by writing about the Sri Lankan Civil War. And yet, somehow, the book is a page turner.” —Murdoch Stephens
THE BEADED CURTAIN by Lloyd Jones $40
‘A beaded curtain shifts and clatters in the doorway of Lloyd Jones’ mind, filtering early life, explorations, hauntings, and the terrible violences — domestic and global — that we too quickly turn from. This compelling narrative testifies to a writer’s vital work: paying attention and asking we do the same.’ — Kate De Goldi
BLACK BAG by Luke Kennard $38
”Luke Kennard’s of-the-moment satire considers anonymity and disgust, the online rackets of cryptocurrency and energy drinks, and what it means to find love in our unstable times. There’ll be a lot of discussion about what the novel has to say about the state of modern masculinity (fractious; confused) — we also admired its sharply crafted sentences, memorable sex scenes, and humour.” —judges’ citation on short-listing the book for the 2026 Booker Prize
END TIMES FASCISM, And the fight for the living world by Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor $40
”Their analysis of contemporary fascism is grounded and convincing — and I love the explosion of language that comes from their conversations, their passion, and their insistence that we make a vibrant common life on earth that reverses climate catastrophe and affirms social and economic equality." —Judith Butler
DIRTY WORK: The Taxpayers’ Union and New Zealand’s hard right by Nicky Hager $35
An exposé of the Taxpayers' Union and the wider spiderweb of lobby groups and astroturf organisations that have been working to push political discourse in New Zealand to the right, to use race politics to create division, and to smear and discredit those who oppose them. Gives insight into the thinking behind the current right-wing ‘vote splitting’ campaign. "I do not care and New Zealanders do not care about this topic." —Christopher Luxon