I did my first author talk on Thursday 16th January, at Frankton Library (near Queenstown airport), New Zealand.

I was very moved, because one of the people attending was Darren Rewi, a wonderfully generous Maori community leader whom I met last year when I was here. I had sought him out because I wanted someone to read a short section of my novel, to do a sensitivity check for me. He didn't stop there - he put me in touch with people from a Maori arts organisation, and also with a lovely librarian at Frankton Library. She, in turn has contacted colleagues and to cut a long story short has organised this short library tour of three venues, the second being tomorrow in Wanaka.

I feel highly committed to libraries. If it were not for libraries, I would never have ended up as well educated as I am. Thanks to my mother, my sister and I visited the library ever single week from shortly after I could read. It is important that books are available to people who cannot afford to buy them, and so I donated a copy of my novel last night.