What I’m Reading: Catherine Chidgey

Sunday, 4 May 2025

Catherine Chidgey, twice the winner of the a national fiction prize, has written her ninth novel - a dark story centred on young triplets living in a boys home in England in 1979. The Book of Guilt, published by Te Herenga Waka University Press is out May 8. RRP$38.

Also in the Sunday Star-Times: read an interview with Catherine Chidgey on writing her latest novel, The Book of Guilt.

I am loving Makeshift Seasons, the latest collection of poetry by Wellington writer Kate Camp. She has an unfailing ear for the rich nuances of the everyday, and her work possesses a wisdom and wit that I find irresistible. The poems are shot through with images that are arresting and strange but absolutely spot on, and they highlight Camp's keen observational skills and imaginative breadth – she likens a wetsuit hanging in the shower to “a folded shadow”; a leftover mask is a “pale blue ghost”. One of our finest poets.

I recently finished the novel Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis, shortlisted for Women’s Prize for Fiction. The story follows Nadia, a London academic who finds herself accepting a position with the UN in Iraq – a decision that pushes her severe case of imposter syndrome to comedic extremes. Nadia's journey introduces her to Sara, a sharp-tongued East Londoner who joined ISIS at fifteen and is now languishing in an Iraqi camp. Nadia feels a responsibility to help the young woman, aware that Sara’s fate could well have been her own had she made one or two slightly different choices. However, swooping in equipped with little more than a saviour complex only makes an impossible situation worse. You might not expect a novel about the repatriation of ISIS brides to be laugh-out-loud funny, but Fundamentally is a deeply entertaining exposé of the bureaucratic intricacies of international aid. The humour never undermines the gravity of its message, however, and the author’s firsthand experience working in peacebuilding informs the story’s portrayal of its complex subjects.

I enjoyed immersing myself in the enchanting world of The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo. I suppose I’m a sucker for a book told from the point of view of an animal, if it’s done well, and narrator Snow – a fox spirit in the form of a young woman – brings to life the final, unstable days of the Qing dynasty in glorious 3D. Her hunt for a killer drives this story of grief and vengeance, which runs parallel to ageing detective Bao’s investigation into the death of a woman – possibly a courtesan – found frozen to death outside a restaurant. Part historical drama, part detective story, part Chinese folklore, part magical realism, The Fox Wife is a compelling genre-bender written in prose as sleek and lush as a fox’s winter coat.

Catherine Chidgey is appearing at the Auckand Writers Festival, on May 16-18. For more information visit writersfestival.co.nz