All Her Lives by Ingrid Horrocks
Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction
A striking collection of interconnected stories exploring womanhood across generations and continents. Blending emotional insight with historical awareness, the book examines identity, activism, love, and inherited social pressures through elegant, intelligent, and deeply resonant storytelling.
Black Sugarcane by Nafanua Purcell Kersel
Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry
A powerful debut poetry collection examining memory, migration, labour, and identity. Rich in lyrical precision and emotional depth, the poems transform personal and cultural histories into vivid, enduring imagery that expands the possibilities of contemporary New Zealand poetry.
Mr Ward’s Map: Victorian Wellington Street by Street by Elizabeth Cox
BookHub Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction
Cox uses a historic Wellington map to explore colonial history, urban change, and social inequality. Combining archival research, photography, and storytelling, the book reveals layered histories of race, class, gender, and land while connecting Victorian Wellington to contemporary issues.
This Compulsion in Us by Tina Makereti
General Non-Fiction Award
An insightful collection of essays exploring whakapapa, identity, family, and belonging. Blending memoir with social commentary, Makereti reflects on her personal history and Māori literary traditions, creating a thoughtful, emotionally honest work about connection, storytelling, and understanding ourselves through writing and memory.
Te Āhua o ngā Kupu Whakaari a Te Kooti by Tā Pou Temara (Ngāi Tūhoe)
Mūrau o te Tuhi – Māori Language Award
A major scholarly work examining the prophetic language and teachings of Te Kooti Arikirangi Turuki. Structured like a whare tūpuna, the book explores faith, history, whenua, and mātauranga Māori while celebrating the enduring depth, sacredness, and power of te reo Māori.
