Kids: New Zealand books

There are so many fantastic authors in Aotearoa who have written so many fantastic books! We've picked out a few for you in a mixture of new and not-so-new.

Updated July 28, 2025
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Wellington City Libraries Children's team at Wellington City Libraries
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Lizard's tale
Chan, Weng Wai
Paper Book
It's Singapore in 1940, war is just around the corner - but twelve-year-old Lizard doesn't know that. He lives in Chinatown above a tailor's shop, surviving on his wits and hustling for odd jobs. When he steals a small teak box containing a Japanese code book from a Raffles Hotel suite, he finds...
Detective Beans & the case of the missing hat
Chen, Li
Paper Book
Meet Detective Beans, the best kitten detective in town, equipped with his tie, brown trench coat, and--GASP. It's gone! His detective hat is missing! Follow along to discover the charming, whimsical, and mysterious world of Detective Beans. Meet Detective Beans (just Beans for...
Snake and lizard
Cowley, Joy.
Paper Book
From award-winning author Joy Cowley comes an engaging story of two unlikely, but inseparable friends. Snake is elegant, calm and a little self-centered, while Lizard is exuberant and irrepressible. Through a series of small (and not so small) adventures, the two friends bicker, compete with each...

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