KIA KAHA! FROM OUR BUBBLE TO YOURS

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Critical thought and enquiry—along with a deep reverence for the works of Dr Seuss!—is at the heart of the Ockham ethos. Since 2016 we’ve been the very proud sponsors of the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards, the nation’s premier literary competition. The 2020 edition is going to be live—livestreamed that is—on #theockhams YouTube channel at 6pm on Tuesday 12 May. Tune in:

bit.ly/ONZBA-YouTube. It will be ace.

But first a word for some unsung heroes. From Matakana to Pukekohe—from Arcadia to Unity— a shout-out to our city’s 77 bookshops. These guys: bit.ly/ BookshopsWillBeBack. They’re very nearly essential services.* Please support them. Buy local. Buy books! Buy New Zealand books! Especially buy the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards finalists’ books! * Yes, while we’re at it…thanks to the farmers, market gardeners, pickers and packers who fed us, the drivers—trucks and trains—who supplied us, the police, ambulance, fire and emergency workers who looked after us, the rubbish and recycling collectors who kept going, the cleaners who never stopped, the teachers who taught, the electricians and plumbers who fixed stuff, the couriers and posties who kept us connected, the nurses, docs, orderlies, pharmacists, phlebotomists, cooks, launderers, testers…everyone in the Aotearoa health system, the call centre people who listened, the bank workers who stopped us getting stressed out, Lord Sir Dr Ashley Bloomfield for being the nerd-king who set a million hearts aflutter, the Government for caring, the Opposition for being constructive…and finally, our supermarket workers, often overlooked, always undervalued—who were the glue, who kept things calm, kept kai on the table and were the very definition of essential and indispensable. Kia ora! Awesome! Thank you!