Join us for another intimate evening in the bookstore as we chat to award-winning filmmaker and crime writer, Michael Bennett (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Hinerangi).
If you haven't yet had the good fortune of falling upon this incredible crime series, or you think crime isn't for you, let us introduce you -
Bennett's Hana Westerman series, Better The Blood (2022), Return To Blood (2024) and Carved In Blood (2025), is the first crime thriller novel series about a Māori cop written by a Māori author. The series is included in the curriculum for NCEA level 2 and level 3 students at multiple secondary schools across Aotearoa, how great is that!
Michael's Ngaio Marsh Award winning work on Non-Fiction, In Dark Places, was the result of his nearly decade-long commitment to the fight for justice for Teina Pora, a young Māori man wrongly imprisoned for 21 years. It won Best Non-Fiction at the Ngaio Marsh Awards and is a captivating and tragic tale of how the trajectory of one man's life was changed forever.
This is a conversation not to miss. Michael has the ability to enrapture any audience, from topics on literature and film to whakapapa and whanau, he is absolutely captivating to listen to.
Tickets are $10 and $5 of that will be redeemable against purchases made on the night.
