Proudly published by Auckland Council Libraries

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It will come as no surprise that we love sharing great books and stories, but did you know that we publish our own books?

In 2020, we established a small but exciting publishing partnership programme to create and publish the pukapuka that we need more of in our libraries, with a particular focus on increasing our Māori and Pacific collections.

Many New Zealand publishers are already doing amazing work creating Māori and Pasifika books, and we wanted to play a part too.

The books we’ve published so far focus on te reo Māori and Pasifika languages and storytelling, often with a local angle.

They promote literacy and help ensure that our libraries continue to be places of belonging for all Aucklanders. We follow a unique partnership approach, collaborating with local communities to create stories and working closely with publishing partners to bring these stories to life.

Most recently, Auckland Council Libraries joined The Publishers Association of New Zealand / Te Rau o Tākupu as a member. We hope that this will help us grow our publishing programme further and demonstrate our serious commitment to creating books that reflect our communities and that communities want to read.

Our books

The books that Auckland Council Libraries has published or supported include the following:

Māmā, e hiakai ana mātou!
Book covers for Mama and Tina
Written by Teri Ta’ala, illustrated by No’oroa Te Hira Anguna, and published with Oratia Books.

This illustrated picture book tells the story of three tamariki who are hungry but just cannot find anything to eat in their house. That is, until their māmā steps in to cook up a tasty feast and save the day.

The book is written in te reo Māori by Teri Ta’ala and illustrated by Waiheke based artist No’oroa Te Hira Anguna. A local publisher, Oratia Books, helped us prepare the book for publication.

We also published a Samoan edition called Tinā, ua mātou fia’a’ai! which was translated by Veronica Ligaliga, Senior Librarian Pacific Content.


Cover of book called La'u Penina Tautele

Written by students from Tangaroa College, with Lauano Sulufaleese Deborah Riley and David Riley, Samoan translation by Rasela Lafaele-Uili and Lucy Seiuliali’i, published by Reading Warrior.

This bilingual Samoan and English book was written by students from Tangaroa College in Ōtara,  who had recently arrived in Aotearoa, New Zealand. In workshops led by teacher and writer David Riley (also known as the Reading Warrior), they chose objects that represented who they are as young Samoan people and created stories about how they keep connected to their Samoan culture from afar.


Stories of Our Lives: Tō Mātou Ao, A Mātou Pūrākau
Book covers for Stories of our Lives series
Published in collaboration with Literacy Waitākere, publishing services by Punaromia Publications (Press Gang).

Stories of Our Lives: Tō Mātou Ao, A Mātou Pūrākau is a book series created by Literacy Waitākere in collaboration with Auckland Council Libraries. The stories were written in English by Māori and Pasifika learners as part of their learning journey with Literacy Waitākere.

The books help us increase the low number of local literacy resources available for adult learners and aim to break down barriers and stigma attached to having literacy issues as an adult.

Read more on Our Auckland.

Te Manurewa o Tamapahore: Ngā Kōrero o Ngāti Te Ata

Book covers for Te Manurewa o Tamapahore

Written by Roimata Minhinnick with Teariki Tuiono and Kerry Marshall-Harding, illustrated by Melissa Pfeffer and Luiggi Riccio, learning resources by Leanne Nathan, published by Ono Ariki Solutions.

This bilingual series in te reo Māori and English tells the stories of South Auckland iwi, Ngāti Te Ata. Primary school teacher Teariki Tuiono wanted to create a resource for Manurewa schools and kids that could teach them the amazing stories of their own iwi.

In partnership with Ngāti Te Ata and the local community, he brought the tales about their landmarks, superheroes and magical animals to life in five books.

Borrow the books from your library or read them online:

Coming soon

Three people standing at book launch
Illustrator No’oroa Te Hira Anguna, writer Teri Ta’ala and publisher Peter Dowling (Oratia Books) at the launch of Māmā, e hiakai ana mātou!

We have many more exciting projects we plan to publish later this year. They include a book in te reo Māori and English about the response of Auckland marae to COVID-19 and the lockdowns, a bilingual children’s book in Kuki Airani and English, a video about Te Whare Wānanga o Wairoa in Howick and a bilingual eBook centred on the pepeha of Wharekawa Marae.

Keep an eye out for upcoming book launches and new publications on this blog and social media, and in the meantime, check out the books above with your library card!

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