LITERARY WELLINGTON
Gemma Browne waxes literal about Wellington’s voluminous charms
Ilive in a suburb that punches above its weight when it comes to bookish things. Newtown has five bookstores, both new and second-hand, a brilliant library, and plenty of op shops with well-stocked bookshelves. The local school parades through the streets every year on Book Day, with kids dressed as their favourite literary characters. It’s a great place to be if you’re a booklover, which my kid and I most definitely are.
Another Chapter Bookstore
(6 Riddiford St, Newtown) has the most inviting window display, with fairy lights and enticing books drawing you into the warm space within. It’s a small shop that is packed full of treasures. I’m amazed at just how long I can spend in there browsing, and I always have to stop myself from taking the entire contents of the shop home.
Food Court Books (84 Constable St) is another spot that is so cosy and welcoming it feels like you’re in your best friend’s living room, rather than a shop. Food Court Books specialises in both local and international small presses, and you’ll always find something unique on the shelves. They have an incredibly sweet shop dog, greyhound Dora, and if you’re lucky she’ll let you pat her. In the second-hand trade, there’s Book
Haven, Book Hound, and Rainbow Books, all on Riddiford St. Don Hollander at Book Haven knows his stock well, and is more than happy to look up a title for you if you can’t find it on the shelves. Chances are he has it in storage, and will only need a day or two to retrieve it for you. Book Hound is staffed by readers and writers, and the shelves are stocked with all killer, no filler. I found a first edition Spiral Press copy of The Bone
People at Book Hound, so it’s worth scanning the shelves for gold. Rainbow Books has towering stacks of books everywhere, and an iconic painting of a witch on the shop front, beloved by many a Newtown resident.
The great thing about Wellington is that every local library offers something different. Newtown’s library is a true community haven, where regulars all know each other and library staff by name. For a quieter library experience, and to browse a different set of shelves, my kid and I sometimes head over the hill to the
Ruth Gotlieb Library in Kilbirnie. Another bonus of being so close to Kilbirnie is that it is home to The Children’s Bookshop
(Kilbirnie Plaza). We spent many a Friday morning there for storytime when my kid was a pre-schooler, and now it is our main stop for birthday presents. The Children’s Bookshop hosts the annual Gecko Press sale, an event worth looking out for. Kilbirnie is also home to a great Paper Plus (60 Bay Rd).
Heading further out of the city, Johnsonville is home to Waitohi Hub, Wellington’s answer to Christchurch’s Tūranga. As well as housing the library, Waitohi has a cafe, meeting rooms and The Hive (a maker’s hub), and Waitohi also connects to the Johnsonville Community Centre and the local swimming pool. It’s a genuine community hub, a one-stop shop. When we want to exercise our bodies as well as indulge our literary love, we head to the harbour to take in the Wellington
Writers Walk. The walk features 15 text sculptures situated around the waterfront, each featuring lines about the city and landscape, which perfectly capture what it’s like to live in this city, “the world headquarters of the verb”.
Katherine Mansfield House & Garden
(25 Tinakori Rd) has been restored to how it would have looked when the master short story writer and her family lived there in the late 19th century. You can stand in the room where Mansfield was born, wander the house and imagine it as described in her story Prelude, and spend time in the stunning heritage garden.
At the end of the day, Wellington’s literary lovers need a place to let their hair down. The Library (53 Courtenay Place) fits the bill. You can slide into a booth, order a cocktail, and down it, surrounded by shelves heaving with second-hand books of all genres. Order a dessert while you’re at it. You’ll need sustenance to get through all your new books.
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