“I have stolen ideas from every book I have ever read. My principle in researching a novel is ‘Read like a butterfly, write like a bee,’ and if this story contains any honey, it is entirely because of the quality of the nectar I found in the work of better writers.” – Philip Pullman
On Saturday morning, a crowd of WORD Christchurch Festival booklovers gathered at The Piano to hear about the nectar that some of our favourite authors had recently discovered. Host Kate De Goldi opened with this quote from Philip Pullman, and it set the scene perfectly. Behind every writer is a reader, and their work is undoubtedly influenced by what they read. The idea behind the Book Salon was simple: Each author chose three books to discuss that had influenced their latest writing, and we came away with a list of books to read, plus insight into their brilliant minds and the way they write.
First up was Charlotte Grimshaw, who described her latest novel The Black Monk as “a bookish book, but with a lot of action and plot”. Literary influences abound in this work; the titular character comes from a short story by Anton Chekhov, and another character named Alice is a reference to Alice in Wonderland. Charlotte’s chosen books were:
- The Untouchable by John Banville – A brew of dark humour, historic interest and sensational prose.
- Bleak House by Charles Dickens – A book of secrets, shame and shadows. If you read Dickens, it’s like mentally going to the gym, your sentences will get longer and longer.
- Père Goriot by Honoré de Balzac – Part of his epic ‘Human Comedy’ series, a forensic study of Parisian society.
Perhaps the most impressive thing was that she chose these books as a representative of each author’s work and had obviously read much more deeply! Kate admitted to only reading half of Père Goriot, but she had done her homework and skilfully connected these works with elements of The Black Monk.
Shariff Burke was next, with a very different collection of books to share. His debut short story collection Childish Palate is my favourite book by a New Zealand author this year, so I was particularly interested in hearing more about this. He talked about the big themes and questions driving his work: How much of who we are is shaped by our environment, particularly political and social influences? How much space does that leave for our own individual freedom? His chosen books were:
- The Nutmeg’s Curse by Amitav Ghosh – Connects the history of nutmeg to modern day colonialism, capitalism and genocide, based on how humans see nature as something to control. Challenged his perspective and made him think about different ways of understanding nature.
- The Will to Change by bell hooks – He felt a need to better understand patriarchal masculinity to write the male characters in his stories, and this eye-opening work shows how it is a system that affects everyone.
- Taiwan Travelogue by Shuangzi Yang – A queer love story saturated with food. He read this while editing Childish Palate, which shows in the joyful food descriptions included in his work!
Shariff’s reading shows the deep thought that has gone into his work, which is also very funny, relatable, and easy to read. He talked about using humour to make more difficult things entertaining, and he does this so skilfully – somehow his work leaves you smiling, while also facing some hard truths about the world.
Last but not least was Claire Mabey, author of the children’s fantasy novel The Raven’s Eye Rebellion, set in a world where reading and knowing have been denied. Her chosen books were:
- The Once and Future King by T.H. White – One of the oddest, most adorable books ever. Very smart and literary but with no plot, you’d never be able to do that now.
- Northern Lights by Philip Pullman – Almost a perfect book, the combination of profound intellect with a great adventure story, plus the best witches. Claire’s not sure she would have written novels for children without reading this series.
- Greenwitch by Susan Cooper - A feminist story combining tree lore, dreaminess and compassion, part of ‘The Dark is Rising’ series.
Claire’s passion for these books was contagious and brought to life the magic of reading for people of any age. She finished with a scene from The Raven’s Eye Rebellion where two characters are walking down the street talking about their love of reading and the power of books. I could hear murmurs of agreement from the audience; it was the perfect way to close the session.
I left the book salon inspired to read more widely, but also to think more deeply about what I read. Kate De Goldi was an incredible host, connecting her knowledge of literature with each author’s insights. All three writers had so much to share, it felt like one hour just wasn’t enough - I would have happily stayed for another! I hope WORD bring this event back for future festivals, it was a captivating way to expand my reading horizons.
Books discussed at the 'Reading for Pleasure Book Salon' with Charlotte Grimshaw, Shariff Burke and Claire Mabey.
More
For more book recommendations, read our post WORD writers: Which wave-making book should everyone read?
WORD Christchurch Festival 2026
- Follow our WORD coverage
- Get a copy of the WORD programme at libraries or check it out online
- Visit our WORD Christchurch 2026 page
- WORD Christchurch's website
Add a comment to: Reading for Pleasure Book Salon at WORD Christchurch