Welcome to The Spinoff Books Confessional, in which we get to know the reading habits of Aotearoa writers, and guests. This week: Kiri Lightfoot, author of new young adult novel, Bear.
The book I wish I’d written
What would help me pay off my student loan? The Fellowship of the Ring? And I want to buy one of those fridges you can walk up to and press a button for chilled water and ice. But in all seriousness, Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason. Loved it.
Everyone should read
Understanding Te Tiriti: A Handbook of Basic Facts about Te Tiriti o Waitangi by Roimata Smail because we need good robust conversation and we need all the correct information. Plus, it’s a great size; you can read it in one afternoon.
The book I want to be buried with
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. I love this book: it’s a piece of art and it makes me feel peaceful and at ease. It celebrates kindness and friendship and reminds us about the importance of asking for help when we need it. If it turns out there is an afterlife, this book reminds me I might be joined by all the pets I’ve had to say goodbye to over the years.
The book I wish I’d never read
There’s no book I wish I’d never read because even books that aren’t for me still inform my writing.
Fiction or nonfiction
I like to have both on the go at all times. I LOVE a good fiction book to escape into, but right now, I am also reading The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin. I love thinking about what creativity offers us and how it grows.
The book that haunts me
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. I have two daughters.
The book that makes me cry
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. This book broke me into teeny, tiny pieces crumpled up on the couch. I didn’t just cry, I sobbed so loudly that my neighbour came to check on me. If you want to be moved or are due a good cry, read this book. It speaks to all my worries and fears as a daughter, a mother and a human. It is so beautifully crafted and even the story of how Patrick Ness came to write it makes me cry. I will let you google that.
The book that makes me laugh
I have read Clarice Bean, Utterly Me by Lauren Child to both my daughters, and we giggled our way through it (and not just because I was attempting to read the whole book in a cute English accent like Clarice Bean would have). I love the way Child writes about family; and Clarice is honest, creative, flawed and delightful. I wish I had these books to read when I was a kid.
The book character I never believed
The Boy Who Cried Wolf. I feel bad about it now… but I suppose that’s the moral of the story.
The plot change I would make
Sometimes I love a little romance. One Day by David Nicholls explores on-again, off-again, relationships: it’s a love story …. until it’s not! Couldn’t she just have met a Swedish backpacker and moved to Sweden or something? It would still have been sad, but at least there wouldn’t be the heartbreak of an unresolved love story.
Encounter with an author
In the 2000s I worked as a scriptwriter on an afternoon TV show for kids called Studio 2. It was the best job! One of our guests was Margaret Mahy and being a huge fan of all her books and her joyful writing I was pretty thrilled to meet her. Around that time I also did a workshop with another legend of publishing for young people, Tessa Duder. I was so inspired to write after these encounters. Twenty years later, I got to meet Tessa again at Storylines NZ Awards Day, when I was announced as the winner of the Tessa Duder Award for my manuscript, Bear. It was a pretty magical moment.
Best thing about reading
For me, the best thing about reading is being transported into other worlds from the comfort of your window seat (see below). I love the idea that books are doorways to other worlds to build curiosity and empathy for others. There is no better feeling than being captivated and wanting to jump back through that doorway every chance you get.
Best place to read
I love window seats. Whoever invented these is a genius. It’s a window, and a seat! They are so inviting and pretty and the perfect reading nooks. You can lie back in comfy cushions with your feet up and then look out the window while you take it all in. I have a great window seat at my house, that’s why we took the rental.
What are you reading right now?
I have just been given All That We Know by Shilo Kino. I’m a few chapters in, and this already feels like an important book for us in Aotearoa. It explores identity, language, colonisation, racism, and so much more, through the eyes of a young Māori woman in Tāmaki Makaurau. I can’t wait to see what unfolds and what it brings up for me. Next up, Amma by Saraid de Silva.
Bear by Kiri Lightfoot ($28, Allen & Unwin) is available to purchase through Unity Books.
