From the Eastern Courier:
A talented East Auckland teenager has written, illustrated and self-published her own book.
Jennifer Cheuk, 17, from Howick, penned the collection of short stories and poems entitled The Peculiar Thoughts of a Hummingbird.
Cheuk began the adult’s anthology at the mere age of 15, compiling 13 quirky tales that delve into the ideas of society, the perspective of children and multiculturalism.
“I drew inspiration from Shaun Tan, an artist I really like; Katherine Mansfield; and all the other little random books I read when I was growing up,” Chuek says.
. . . .
The home-schooled student also illustrated the book and arranged self-publication on her own.
“I wanted to be able to say I had done this rather than had help from other people,” she says.
“It made it feel like more of an achievement for me.”
. . . .
Senior librarian Tina Brown says: “Jennifer has been coming to Highland Park Library since she was a toddler and has always joined in summer reading programmes, story times and school holidays programmes.
“Her book is not only delightful but also thought provoking.”
Link to the rest at Eastern Courier
I went to the original article to see if the Eastern Courier means the same thing we mean when we say self-published. It wasn’t clear.
The only link to the book is a general link to the top page of Wheelers, which apparently is a library supplier. I searched for the title at Amazon.com, Amazon.com.au, and Kobo.com. No results.
The price on Wheelers is $34.99. (NZ$?) Prices to libraries are inflated over retail. There is no cover image. The description of the book is, “A collection of short stories and poems.” The author’s bio is, “There is no author biography for this title.”
I still don’t know what self-published means in this case. And I don’t seem to be able to acquire the book. Shame.
I would assume that self-published in this instance means limited print run through a local printing business, which would explain why it’s only available via Wheelers and Auckland libraries.
NZ$34.99 will be the discounted price for libraries. That’s a steal for a hardcover in NZ! I mean that’s cheaper than a paperback!
Which is why I buy on Kindle.
You’d think more people would but NZ is quite slow to move to it. I think the Book Depository is more popular (owned by Amazon) than Kindle in NZ.