If you’ve been stuck inside all summer because of the weather, why not while away these rainy days with a fantastic book or two. 

During a chat with summer host Lynda Hallinan, best-selling novelist Catherine Robertson, who also happens to be the co-owner of GOOD BOOKS, the independent bookshop in Te Aro, Wellington, shared her recommendations on some of the best cracker holiday reads, especially with Christmas book vouchers gifted and ready to be used in 2023. 

If you are looking for Smart, escapist fun: really well-crafted and intelligent novels written purely to entertain check these titles out:

• The Thursday Murder Club series by Richard Osman. Humorous crime set in a retirement home, pure enjoyment.

• Notorious by Olivia Hayfield aka Auckland-based writer, Sue Copsey: third in a series of incredibly smart modern takes on historic events. First was Wife after Wife, about Henry VIII and his wives, and its sequel Sister to Sister about Elizabeth I and ‘Bloody’ Mary. Notorious is a mystery based on Richard III and the princes in the tower. Great fun for history buffs.

• Tarquin the Honest by Gareth Ward – co-owner with wife Lou of Wardinis bookshop in Hawke’s Bay. His first adult novel, humorous fantasy inspired by Gareth’s love of the game Dungeons and Dragons. Snort-warm-ale-out-of-nose funny. 

• Miracle by Jennifer Lane – Miracle is out to solve the crime that her dad has been blamed for. Set in small-town Australia, this is a funny and poignant Trent Dalton-Esque page-turner. 

If you are after a book you can’t put it down these may be the answer…

• Mrs Jewell and the Wreck of the General Grant by Cristina Sanders (another Hawke’s Bay writer). A historic novel based on a real shipwreck, gripping and moving.
  

• No Plan B by Lee and Andrew Child – latest co-authored Jack Reacher thriller. I was disappointed by the first two by the brothers but this one is almost back to classic Reacher. 

• Remember Me by Charity Norman (yet another Hawke’s Bay writer, lol). A psychological thriller set in the Ruahine ranges, Charity’s eleventh novel.

• The Axeman’s Carnival by Catherine Chidgey – narrated by Tama the magpie, this is a compelling literary novel that deftly balances light and dark – original and brilliant.

• Small Deaths by Rijula Das – a literary thriller that is also a social satire set in Kolkata’s redlight district. Rijula lives in Wellington, and this is her debut, which has already won awards in India and has been recommended by Gillian Flynn!

I’m not crying, you’re crying: if you don’t find these moving, you’re a monster:

• Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout – follows on from Oh, William and My Name is Lucy Barton, by the author of Olive Kitteridge which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Strout is a genius.
  

• By the Green of the Spring by Paddy Richardson – a historic novel set around World War I, sequel to Through the Lonesome Dark. Sob!

• Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng, who wrote the bestseller Little Fires Everywhere. This is set in the near future in a US that’s gone full fascist and is separating children from parents who are un-American. Ng manages not to over-egg the ‘message’ and it’s a great read.

Fascinating non-fiction: 

• Civilisation by Steve Braunias – this book is 12 years old and won the then Montana NZ Book Award for non-fiction. Steve spends time in obscure places, mostly in NZ and writes wonderful essays about each one. 

• Guarded by Dragons by Rick Gekoski (technically not a Hawke’s Bay writer but he does live here part of the year). Rick is a rare book dealer, whose first book about his adventures in rare books was the international best-seller Tolkein’s Gown. Funny, sharply insightful and educational (in many ways).
  

• A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: in which four Russians give a masterclass on writing, reading, and life by George Saunders. This is based on the course he teaches at Syracuse University, and he is such a generous, humble guide. A must for writers and readers.

Genuinely helpful self-help books: 

• Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman – used to write This Column Will Change Your Life for The Guardian. Ostensibly a book about time management, this is actually a philosophical treatise on how we think about time and why that’s not good for us.
  

• Big Feelings: How to be Okay when things are not Okay by Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy. Talks about Burn Out, Uncertainty, Perfectionism, Envy, Despair, Anger, in a simple and practical way. I thought I wasn’t a perfectionist until I read this – I am 110% one, oops.

• I Am Autistic by Chanelle Moriah – Chanelle (they/them) is autistic and ADHD, and they wrote and illustrated this book because they couldn’t find any resources designed for autistic people by autistic people. We packed out the Hastings Library for their first speaking engagement, which shows how much demand there is. This year, Chanelle is bringing out This is ADHD.

On Catherine's to-read list:

• All Our Yesterdays by Natalia Ginzburg – recommended by Becks at GOOD BOOKS.
  

• Less is Lost by Andrew Sean Greer – the sequel to Less, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2018.

• Small Things Like This by Claire Keegan, shortlisted for the Booker prize. 

• How to Loiter in a Turf War by Coco Solid – rave reviews from everyone.