I started the Kiwi Kids’ Bookstore towards the end of 2020 as an online bookstore devoted to books by New Zealand authors for children and teens.
It was one of those ideas that started small and grew long, galloping legs! I’d been wondering if other indie Kiwi authors like me felt somewhat overwhelmed by the work needed to get their books into mainstream bookstores, which have a whole world of books to choose from. I can see now how little I knew then about the book sector, but I did know a teeny bit about creating an online store. I also had a kind of blind faith born of following my lifelong passion for children’s fiction. That feeling that I’m doing what I’m ‘meant’ to be doing has mostly grown stronger – alongside a few wobbles – over the past four years.
The number of New Zealand authors writing fiction and non-fiction for younger readers continues to grow at The Kiwi Kids’ Bookstore – there are well over 120 authors in our Meet Kiwi Authors section, and there are many more I am yet to discover. I’m proud to represent the talented authors and illustrators who choose the indie route. I also love many, many books released by local publishers, big and small.
I’ve been constantly surprised by how many books for readers aged 0 to 15 are published each year in Aotearoa. There are a lot! And I’ve figured out that I can’t stock every new release, (a) for budget reasons, and (b) because I also like building up backlist titles by author so I can offer a wider catalogue of their work. Most books are capable of finding new readers over several years, especially if they were particularly noteworthy when they were released. We’ll see how I get on with this approach as I start to fill the last available bookshelf in my home office!
I’m always reading through these backlist titles myself, as well as newer releases. Recently I’ve read Saving Sam by Susan Brocker which she’s re-published under her own imprint. A heartfelt New Zealand story of family, dogs and standing up to bullies. I loved Des Hunt’s To Trap a Thief – a fast-paced adventure with young teens and grandparents as the heroes in an explosive ending. I’m always recommending picture books by Waikato illustrator and author Deborah Hinde. I absolutely adore her book Hare where he enlists his friends’ help to hunt for his missing idea. It’s great fun to read and the illustrations are wonderful. I could go on for some time about favourite books by New Zealand authors, and I love helping customers with suggestions for their young reader.
In terms of staff, it’s a one-woman, two-dog, one-cat show around here with the semi-retired horse stepping into view outside the bookstore office window some days. The online bookstore is still a part-time gig as I’m also writing my own books, plus what’s meant to be my full-time job as a marketing and communications consultant. I count many of the authors whose books I stock as part of the team, as they’re often great sounding boards for my never-ending array of ideas. Without the initial group of authors who backed me from the outset, the bookstore would not have grown as well as it has. I’m also grateful for numerous teachers and librarians who choose to shop with the Kiwi Kids’ Bookstore. They’re the ones who confirm I’m on the right track with this focus on books by New Zealand authors.
