NZ Booklovers Awards

Christchurch City Libraries lists literary prize winners and links to catalogue searches, but we may not hold copies of all titles mentioned.

Started in 2019 by nzbooklovers.co.nz, the NZ Booklovers Awards are given annually. Prizes are awarded for best adult fiction book, best lifestyle book, and best young adult fiction, junior fiction and children's picture book. In 2023 the Children's book category was split into Junior Fiction and Children's Picture book. The Young Adult fiction category was added in 2024. The winner in each category receives $500 and winners are announced in March each year.

See more literary prize winners and winners for children's literature and teen and young adult literature.

2025

Best Adult Fiction book

• The Space Between by Lauren Keenan (Penguin) Winner
• Better Left Dead by Catherine Lea (Bateman Books)
• The Call by Gavin Strawhan (Allen & Unwin)
• A House Built on Sand by Tina Shaw (Text Publishing)
• The Secrets of the Little Greek Taverna by Erin Palmisano (Moa Press)
• The War Photographers by SL Beaumont (Paperback Writer’s Publishing)
• Weeping Angels by Riley Chance (Copy Press Books)
• Woman, Missing by Sherryl Clark (HQ Fiction)

Best Lifestyle book

• Kai Hākari: Food Stories & Recipes from the Maunga to the Moana by Christall Lowe (Bateman Books) Winner
• 101 Ways to Find Calm by Rebekah Ballagh (Allen & Unwin)
• Edith Collier: Early New Zealand Modernist by Jill Trevelyan, Jennifer Taylor and Greg Donson (Massey University Press)
• The Laden Table: Recipes to share, infused with spice by Ashia Ismail-Singer, photography by Lottie Hedley (Bateman Books)
• Myths & Legends of the Ancient Pākehā by Glenn Colquhoun. Illustrations by Nigel Brown (Old King Press)
• Play Wild: Nature Craft Projects for Tamariki by Rachel Clare (Bateman Books)
• Wild Wellington Ngā Taonga Taiao: A guide to the wildlife and wild places of Te Upoko-o-te-Ika by Michael Szabo (Te Papa Press)

Best Young Adult Fiction book

• Migration by Steph Matuku (Huia Publishers) Winner
• Grasshopper by Mandy Hager (OneTree House)
• The Mess of Our Lives by Mary Anne Scott (OneTree House)
• The Night She Fell by Eileen Merriman (Penguin Random House)

Best Junior Fiction book

• The Grimmelings by Rachael King (Allen & Unwin) Joint winner
• The Raven’s Eye Runaways by Claire Mabey (Allen & Unwin) Joint winner
• Brave Kāhu and the Pōrangi Magpie by Shelley Burne-Field (Allen & Unwin)
• Children of the Rush, Book 3 by James Russell (Dragon Brothers Books)
• Nine Girls by Stacy Gregg (Penguin Random House)
• Rimu: The Tree of Time by Lauren Keenan (Huia Publishers)

Best Children's Picture book

• The Squeakling by Kristin Kelly, illustrated by Ronja Schipper (Scholastic NZ) Winner
• The Dream Factory by Steph Matuku, illustrated by Zak Ātea (Huia Publishers) 
• Elephant Park by Melanie Koster, illustrated by Jenny Cooper (Scholastic NZ)
• Hineraukatauri me Te Ara Pūoro by Elizabeth Gray, illustrated by Rehua Wilson (Huia Publishers)
• Little Axel’s Axolotl by Juliette MacIver, Illustrated by Christopher Nielsen (Walker Books)
• The Very Best Words by Erin Munro, Illustrated by Sarah Trolle (Moa Press)

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2024

Best Adult Fiction book

• El Flamingo by Nick Davies (YBK Publishers New York) Winner
• Chasing the Dragon by Mark Wightman (Hoebeck Books)
• Checkerboard Hill by Jade Kake (Huia Publishers)
• Double Jeopardy by Stef Harris (Quentin Wilson Publishing)
• Light Keeping by Adrienne Jansen (Quentin Wilson Publishing)
• Ritual of Fire by DV Bishop (Macmillan Publishers)
• The Waters by Carl Nixon (Penguin Random House)
• Where Light Meets Water by Susan Paterson (Simon & Schuster)

Best Lifestyle book

• Flora: Celebrating Our Botanical World. Edited by Carlos Lehnebach, Claire Regnault, Rebecca Rice, Isaac Te Awa, and Rachel Yates (Te Papa Press) Winner
• Enjoy by Kelly Gibney (Beatnik Publishing)
• Good Sports by Stuart Lipshaw (Penguin Random House)
• Living Between Land and Sea by Jane Robertson (Massey University Press)
• The Lucky Taco Cookbook by Sarah and Otis Frizzell (Penguin Random House)
• Ki Mua, Ki Muri – 25 years of Toioho ki Āpiti by Cassandra Barnett and Kura Te Waru-Rewiri (Massey University Press)
• Through Shaded Glass by Lissa Mitchell (Te Papa Press)

Best Young Adult Fiction book

• Catch a Falling Star by Eileen Merriman (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Before George by Deborah Roberts (Huia Publishers)
• Iris and Me by Philippa Werry (The Cuba Press)
• The Sparrow by Tessa Duder (Penguin Random House)

Best Junior Fiction book

• Below by David Hill (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Children of the Rush Book Two by James Russell (Dragon Brothers Books)
• Lopini the Legend by Feana Tu'akoi (Scholastic)
• Once Upon a Wickedness by Fleur Beale, illustrations by Lily Uivel (Penguin Random House
• Tūī Street Legends by Anne Kayes (Wildling Books)

Best Children's Picture book

• Dazzlehands by Sacha Cotter, illustrated by Josh Morgan (Huia Publishers) Winner
• At the Bach by Joy Cowley, illustrated by Hilary Jean Tapper (Gecko Press)
• Lucy and the Dark by Melinda Szymanik, illustrated by Vasanti Unka (Penguin Random House)
• Tama and the Taniwha by Melanie Koster, illustrated by Monica Koster (Scholastic)
• There Was an Odd Farmer Who Swallowed a Fly by Peter Millett, illustrated by Paul Beavis (Penguin Random House)
• When Grandpa Wore a Tutu by Dawn McMillan, Illustrator Jenny Cooper (Scholastic)​

2023

Best Adult Fiction book

• The Slow Roll by Simon Lendrum (Upstart Press) Winner
• A Message for Nasty by Roderick Fry (Awa Press)
• Barefoot by R.V. Bayley (Eden St Press)
• By the Green of the Spring by Paddy Richardson (Quentin Wilson Publishing)
• Harbouring by Jenny Pattrick (Penguin Random House NZ)
• Mrs Jewell and the Wreck of the General Grant by Cristina Sanders (The Cuba Press)
• The Darkest Sin by D.V. Bishop (Macmillan Publishers)
• The Doctor’s Wife by Fiona Sussman (Bateman Books)
• The Frog Prince by James Norcliffe (Penguin Random House NZ) 

Best Lifestyle book

• Rooms: Portraits of Remarkable New Zealand Interiors by Jane Ussher and John Walsh (Massey University Press) Winner
• Grow: Wāhine finding connection through food by Sophie Merkens (Beatnik Publishing)
• HomeGround: The story of a building that changes lives by Simon Wilson, photographs Mark Smith (Massey University Press)
• Kai: Food stories and recipes from my family table by Christall Lowe (Bateman Books) New Zealand Gardens to Visit by Juliet Nicholas & Rosemary Barraclough (Penguin Random House NZ)
• Robin White: Something is Happening Here by Sarah Farrar, Jill Trevelyan and Nina Tonga (Te Papa Press and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki)
• The Deep South by Andris Apse (Penguin Random House NZ)
• The Homemade Table by Nicola Galloway (Potton & Burton)

Best Junior Fiction book

• Amorangi and Millie’s Trip through Time by Lauren Keenan (Huia Publishers) Winner
• Kidnap At Mystery Island by Carol Garden (Scholastic NZ)
• Little Tales of Hedgehog and Goat by Paula Green, illustrations by Kimberly Andrews (Penguin Random House NZ)
• Masher by Fifi Colston (Penguin Random House NZ)
• Sylvia and the Birds by Johanna Emeny and Sarah Laing (Massey University Press)
• The Ghost House by Bill Nagelkerke (Ahoy! an imprint of The Cuba Press)

Best Children's Picture book

• How My Koro Became a Star by Brianne Te Paa (Huia Publishers) Winner
• Crane Guy by Sally Sutton, illustrations by Sarah Wilkins (Penguin Random House NZ)
• Kororā and the Sushi Shop by Linda Jane Keegan (Scholastic NZ)
• Matariki Around The World by Rangi Matamua and Miriama Kamo, illustrations by Isobel Te Aho-White (Scholastic NZ)
• My Mum is Queen of the Road by Jennifer Beck (Huia Publishers)
• Roo and Vladimir by Minky Stapleton (Scholastic NZ)
• The Lighthouse Princess by Susan Wardell, illustrations by Rose Northey (Penguin Random House NZ)

2022

Best Adult Fiction book

• City of Vengeance by D V Bishop (Macmillan Publishers) Winner
• Both Feet in Paradise by Andy Southall (The Cuba Press)
• Everything Changes by Stephanie Johnson (Vintage)
• Isobar Precinct by Angelique Kasmara (The Cuba Press)
• The Lighthouse by Christopher Parker (Beacon Press)
• The Liminal Space by Jacquie McRae (Huia Publishers)
• The Remarkable Miss Digby by Patricia Donovan (Mary Egan Publishing)

Best Lifestyle book

• Homecooked by Lucy Corry, The Kitchenmaid (Penguin Books) Winner
• The Edible Backyard by Kath Irvine (Godwit)
• Fish of the Day by Clarke Gayford and Mike Bhana (Penguin Books)
• Saffron Swirls and Cardamom Dust by Ashia Ismail-Singer (Bateman Books)
• Simply Food by Eleanor Ozich (Penguin Books)
• Who Lived There? by Nicola McCloy (Random House New Zealand)

Best Children's book

• Kia Kaha: A Storybook of Māori Who Changed the World by Stacey Morrison and Jeremy Sherlock (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Atua: Māori Gods and Heroes by Gavin Bishop (Penguin Random House)
• The Eight Gifts of Te Wheke by Steph Matuku (Huia Publishers)
• The Greatest Haka Festival on Earth by Pania Tahau-Hodges (Huia Publishers)
• Kōwhai and the Giants by Kate Parker (Little Love)
• My Elephant is Blue by Melinda Szymanik, illustrated by Vasanti Unka (Penguin Random House)

2021

Best Adult Fiction book

• Addressed to Greta by Fiona Sussman (Bateman) Winner
• Ephemera by Tina Shaw (Cloud Ink Press)
• For Reasons of Their Own by Chris Stuart (Original Sin Press)
• I Wish, I Wish by Zirk van den Berg (The Cuba Press)
• The Silence of Snow by Eileen Merriman (Penguin Random House)
• Tiny Pieces of Us by Nicky Pellegrino (Hachette)
• Victory Park by Rachel Kerr (Mākaro Press)
• While the Fantail Lives by Alan Titchall (Devon Media)

Best Lifestyle book

• Aroha by Dr Hinemoa Elder (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Landmarks by Owen Marshall, Grahame Sydney and Brian Turner (Penguin Random House)
• Shared Kitchen by Julie and Ilaria Biuso (Bateman)
• Surf Dreams by Derek Morrison (Penguin Random House)
• Two Raw Sisters by Rosa and Margo Flanagan (Bateman)
• Wild Kinship by Monique Hemmingson (Beatnik Publishing)

Best Children's book

• I am the Universe by Vasanti Unka (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Hare & Ruru by Laura Shallcrass (Beatnik Publishing)
• The Hug Blanket by Chris Gurney, illustrated by Lael Chisholm (Scholastic)
• The Midnight Adventures of Ruru and Kiwi by Clare Scott, illustrated by Amy Haarhoff (Penguin Random House)
• Sharing with Wolf by Melinda Szymanik, illustrated by Nikki Slade Robinson (Scholastic)
• Tatty Catty by Susannah Whaley, illustrated by Hayley Elliott-Kernot (Marigold Books)

2020

Best Adult Fiction book

• The Strength of Eggshells by Kirsty Powell (Cloud Ink Press) Winner
• The Claim by David Briggs (Red Door Publishing)
• The Fell by Robert Jenkins (Red Door Publishing)
• Lost in the Spanish Quarter by Heddi Goodrich (HarperCollins)
• Meltwater by Suzanne Ashmore (Mary Egan Publishing)
• Necessary Secrets by Greg McGee (Upstart Press)

Best Lifestyle book

• Big Ideas for Small Houses by Catherine Foster (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Homemade> by Eleanor Ozich (Penguin Random House)
• by Christine Fernyhough (Penguin Random House)
• Rachel Hunter’s Tour of Beauty (Bateman)
• The Recipe by Josh Emett (Upstart Press)
• Whole Again by Bronwyn Kan (Beatnik Publishing)

Best Children's book

• Wildlife of Aotearoa by Gavin Bishop (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Abigail and the Birth of the Sun by Matthew Cunningham, illustrated by Sarah Wilkins (Penguin Random House)
• Dinosaur Hunter: Joan Wiffen’s Awesome Fossil Discoveries by David Hill, illustrated by Phoebe Morris (Penguin Random House)
• How Maui Slowed the Sun by Donovan Bixley (Upstart Press)
• Rugby 1, 2, 3, Whutupōro Tahi, Rua, Toru by Thalia Kehoe Rowden, Illustrated by Myles Lawford (Scholastic New Zealand)
• Things in the Sea are Touching Me by Linda Jane Keegan, illustrated by Minky Stapleton (Scholastic New Zealand)

2019

Best Adult Fiction book

• This Mortal Boy by Fiona Kidman (Penguin Random House) Winner
• A Change of Key by Adrienne Jansen (Escalator Press)>
• Crystal Reign by Kelly Lyndon (Remnant Press)
• Fishing for Māui by Isa Pearl Ritchie (Te Rā Aroha Press)
• Grandzilla by Lisa Williams (Crummer Road Press)
• A Year at Hotel Gondola by Nicky Pellegrino (Hachette)

Best Lifestyle book

• Better than a Bought One by Jo Seagar (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Eco Home by Melinda Williams (Penguin Random House)
• Flourish by Juliet Nicholas and Barb Rogers (Penguin Random House)
• The Natural Home by Wendyl Nissen (Allen & Unwin)
• Ripe Recipes – A Third Helping by Angela Redfern and the Ripe Deli Team (Beatnik)
• Wild Delicious by Amber Rose (Penguin Random House)

Best Children's book

• Puffin the Architect by Kimberly Andrews (Penguin Random House) Winner
• Dear Donald Trump by Sophie Siers, illustrated by Anne Villeneuve (Millwood Press)
• Hero of the Sea by David Hill, illustrated by Phoebe Morris (Penguin Random House)
• Kuwi’s Rowdy Crowd by Kat Merewether (Illustrated Publishing)
• Lyla by Fleur Beale (Allen & Unwin)
• Who Stole the Rainbow? by Vasanti Unka (Penguin Random House)