NZ book trade awards: Lamplight wins Bookshop of the Year, A&U wins Publisher of the Year

The winners of the Aotearoa Book Trade Industry Awards, held 24 July in Rotorua, have been announced.

Auckland bookstore Lamplight Books won the Bookshop of the Year award. Judges described the bookshop as a ‘beautiful, browsable space filled to the ceiling with books’. The store opened in June 2021 amid pandemic restrictions, but has flourished despite the difficult trading conditions.

‘We think Lamplight Books adds to the bookshop fabric of Auckland with clear buying parameters, carefully assessed and informed by their neighbourhood,’ the judges said. ‘Co-owners Courtney and Melanie have left no stone unturned in pursuit of customer comfort and experience, with space to display beautiful hardbacks, an inky blue “living room” nook to browse fiction and nonfiction and a bright red table showcasing their favourite books.’

The Publisher of the Year award was presented to Allen & Unwin New Zealand. Judges praised the breadth of the publisher’s achievement across all aspects of its business, calling the team members ‘deserving and stand-out winners’. Judges said, ‘The team at Allen & Unwin prides itself on publishing strong, important, commercially successful books and this past year was their best yet.’

Dahlia Malaeulu, owner of the first all-Pasifika publishing company Mila’s Books, was named the Emerging NZ Publisher of the Year. Judges said, ‘In four years Mila’s Books has solidified a reputation for producing culturally rich, accessible and quality stories and resources that reflect Pasifika values, languages, cultures and most importantly, our tamaiti. Through the various Mila’s Books projects, the stories of over 90 first-time Pasifika authors (children, students, educators, parents) across Aotearoa have been shared with the world advancing Pasifika storytelling, with Pasifika, by Pasifika, for all of us.’

Ann Mallinson receives the lifetime achievement award in recognition of her significant contribution to publishing in Aotearoa New Zealand. In 1980 Ann and her husband David Rendel founded Mallinson Rendel, a trailblazer in New Zealand children’s publishing. Mallinson Rendel is the original publisher of Lynley Dodd’s world-famous Hairy Maclary series and describes her career highlight as the day when Lynely entered her office and read to her from the manuscript of Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy.

The winners by category are:

Bookshop of the Year

• Lamplight Books

Publisher of the Year

• Allen & Unwin New Zealand

Emerging NZ Publisher of the Year

• Mila’s Books director/publisher Dahlia Malaeulu

Emerging Bookseller of the Year

• University Book Shop Otago bookseller Anna Hoek-Sims

Bestseller Award (NZ-published title)

• Straight Up (Ruby Tui, A&U)

International Bestseller Award

• No Plan B (Andrew and Lee Child, PRH)

Marketing and Publicity Strategy of the Year

• Allen & Unwin NZ for The Bookseller at the End of the World (Ruth Shaw)

Book of the Year

• Lessons in Chemistry (Bonnie Gamus, PRH)

Sales Professional of the Year

• Arotahi Agency client services manager Matthew Simpson

Mana Māori Award

• Māori Language Week Campaign 2022 by Penguin Random House NZ

Innovation Award

• Coalition for Books Māori and Pasifika books campaign 2023
  

Lifetime Achievement Award

• Ann Mallinson.

Organised jointly by Booksellers Aotearoa NZ and the Publishers Association of NZ Te Rau o Tākapu, the awards celebrate the outstanding booksellers and publishers in Aotearoa’s book industry.

 Photo: Lamplight Books storefront

Category: Awards Local news