Coming up roses

The US city of Portland has suffered its share of blights but keeps the faith in its crowning glory.

Make room on your shelves

MARK BROATCH previews what's coming in books in 2023.

Taste the history

Celebrating \"the great mumble jumble\" that is Middle Eastern food is what Israeli-born restaurateur Yotam Ottolenghi has in mind for his upcoming trip down under.

How to cut the road toll

It's time we stopped making excuses for the appalling deaths on our roads. It's not because of bad weather, bad roads, old cars, \"bloody tourists\" or the Covid vaccine turning drivers blind. If we drove well, the previous factors would be taken care of, but instead we choose to drive badly. (Not you and me, of course; our driving is exemplary. It's the other couple of million who are the problem.)

All very well

From ice baths to mindfulness retreats, the wellness industry is booming. Maybe it's time we started to question why that might be.

That was the year that was

The year 2023, like 2020, 2021 and 2022 before it, was a strange one for humanity. That there would be no relief became evident in the early hours of the New Year, when Twitter owner and chief executive Elon Musk banned all other Twitter users from the platform after the 16th poll asking whether he should step down as CEO concluded that, yes, he actually should.

A cut above

In the second of a series on artefacts that tell the story of Aotearoa's past, historian JOCK PHILLIPS explains the relevance of these killing knives.

Man of actions

It was more than 30 years ago that, as a recruit at the Sydney Morning Herald, I was told a wild story by a knockabout, cocky bloke in a faded jean jacket and lefty T-shirt from inside the central Sydney headquarters of the Australian Labor Party (ALP).

Happy ever after

Romance fiction sales are booming internationally, and a Kiwi author is among those cashing in.

Year in, year out

THE GOOD LIFE

On thinning ice

The second series of Frozen Planet is visually dramatic and stunning, but it also comes with a warning about climate change.

Crypt to script

Veteran British director Stephen Frears is taking another dig at royalty in The Lost King, his film about the search for Richard III.

Bursting our bubbles

The microbial cocktail in kombucha can go a little wild.

Taken as read

Yes, I do read your feedback and take it on board.

Hunger gains

Reconnecting with our body's signals is a way to reduce overeating and maximise health.

True stripes

Canterbury may soon be as well known for its reds and whites as it is for rugby.

Big flavours

North London chef HASAN \"BIG HAS\" SEMAY, a former Jamie Oliver protégé, lends his trademark informality to his debut cookbook.

Jungle juice

A hallucinogenic brew with awful side effects is being investigated for its potential to relieve mental illness.

Happy

Linda arrived at my school at the start of fifth form...

The Ukrainian dentist

Rhonda and Nick are having a picnic in Podilskyy Park. It is late summer and the leaves on the birch, black alder and hornbeam oaks are beginning to turn. The grass between them is soft and sweet. The air carries a faint scent of vanilla.

The listeners

Each summer, we commission 12 of Aotearoa’s finest writers to tell us a short tale. This year’s theme is ‘the joy of friendship’. Here are the first four.

Spreading the word

For the Brits, the word that best describes 2022 could be “permacrisis”. But what about here in New Zealand?

Noah's Ark

Climate change will trigger global migration on a massive scale. A new book asks whether we can overcome tribalism and treat the planet as “a commonwealth of humanity”.

Up & atom

Forget the grand New Year’s resolutions. Making little changes that go the distance is how to achieve big results.

A dog's tale

In the first of a series on artefacts that tell the story of Aotearoa’s past, historian Jock Phillips explains the relevance of a small carved canine, known as the Monck’s Cave kurī.

Damage control

National's biggest danger is that it will continue to try to sleepwalk to victory.

Going home

Australia seems unable to exorcise the cruelty of exile from its DNA.

Bridging the great divide

BULLETIN FROM WASHINGTON DC

Making it stick

Developers love to give their new subdivisions grandiose names, but will they stand the test of time, asks Lyall McFarlane.

An inspector called

How new British cop drama DI Ray connects to the murder of a Line of Duty character.