Excellence in Biology NCEA Level 2

written by Martin Hanson, published by Cengage Learning

Four colour throughout, this secondary education book is all class. There's times when you don't look at a file for a while and and when you next look go 'wow'. The work that Sarah has put into making this content sing is awesome. The colours are vibrant throughout and the design is fresh and almost bordering on trendy. Just the way your teenager would like it. I'd study Biology if I had a book like this. I hope it makes a huge difference to someone's learning.

There's a Hole in my Bucket

Sung by The Topp Twins and illustrated by Jenny Cooper, published by Scholastic

There's a hole in my bucket dear Liza, dear Liza, 

There's a hole in my bucket dear dear Liza a hole.

Don't you just remember getting the words to this song stuck in your head as a kid. When we read them accompanying Jenny's fantastically quirky illustrations, I just didn't want the song to stop. I love the attitude of  both the Topp Twins song and in Liza and Henry's actions on the page. This book is really cool. I can't wait to see were it will go.

Anita is the clever cookie whose design brought the two together.

The launch for this was held at Storylines in Christchurch last month. The Topp Twins have always been a favourite of mine so you have to excuse this pic, but they were awesome singing the song live.

Kim and Penny Scown from Scholastic posing with the Topps. Where's that Jenny Cooper?

Soup to Nuts - 1200 recipes

Yes that's right 1200 recipes! This book is colossal, over 800 pages. I have a great amount of admiration for Richard to have collected so many different types of soups. There's even one for 'Mock Turtle Soup'.

We took the content to heart in our studio and all had turns at bringing a different soup for lunch - once a week for most of the duration of winter. Maria's Borsch probably took out the top prize (actually I think her mum was the cook), it was delicious.

Editions is a publishing company based in Noumea and it was wonderful to work with Catherine Ledru. Her lovely french accent on the other end of the phone was like a purr when she tried to wrap her tongue around our english words. Meanwhile Richard Tapper is based in Hanmer Springs if you ever feel like a very tasty treat.

This is Maria's first big book project and to see her face when the printed copy arrived this morning was just priceless. There is a lot of passion in this book. Good job team.

Just look at the size of this spine. It's over 800 pages of soup recipes.

My Language My Inspiration

written by Chris Winitana and published by Huia in English and Maori.

With both of these books being around the 350 page mark, this was a great project to be involved with.

They are our first books with Huia and it was wonderful to work with such a professional as Jim Firth. Thanks heaps Jim for giving our services a go.

It was a real pleasure to see these books arrive in the post. We love the colour on the covers.

Native by Design – Landscape design with New Zealand plants

Edited by Ian Spellerberg and Michelle Frey | Photography by John Maillard
Published by Canterbury University Press

With twenty contributors all passionate and top in their landscaping field, this book had the potential to be a nightmare. Rachel Scott from CUP is far too good a professional though to let that happen.

We were involved in the consultation process right from the beginning and helped plan out the need for some sort of consistency. A book like this needs flow. It is full colour throughout with stunning photography. You'll really look twice at your back-yard next time you are out there for a coffee after reading this title.

Book launches are always interesting times too. With so many people involved I was a bit uncertain that we may not have made everyone happy. I was quick to grab a wine upon walking in the door. But I've never heard so much praise for one of our designers. It was warm fuzzies all the way around. Well done Anita. You cracked it again.

Christchurch 22.2 Beyond the Cordon

We are very privileged to have been asked by Hachette to design this amazing book. The bravery and dedication of the police and USAR teams working within the cordon is beyond our imagination. These images from the talented DVI photographers truly capture the full extent of the devastation previously unseen of our shattered city.

The photographs and stories told from the photographers themselves will be with us forever. I don't know if I can put into words how proud we are to have produced this book.

PS> Sarah and Maria have just got off the plane from Auckland and are back in Christchurch for this very special book launch. We are very much looking forward to having a celebration drink with the boys tonight.

Beach Bag Boogie

Written by Lindsay Wood and Illustrated by Rebekah Holguin. Published by Harper Collins

Sarah designed this one. Each spread has a 'boogie' attached to it, so she had lots of fun creating little song titles that reflect the text.

It's a 32 page picture flat with a few challenges placing text on the illustrations and a repeating rhythm that needed to be repeated on each spread. But the end product is definitely something to be proud of. Well done Sarah.

Introducing Cherie Woolford

Meet our new accounts lady Cherie Woolford. She really has been hiding behind the scenes. With all the changes, moving and shaking we haven't given her the proper welcome she is due.

Cherie has an impressive background in accounts with figures being her whole career. She's also a  highly versatile administrator with wide ranging experience in all aspects of office procedures. A good problem solver, with sound experience in reconciliations and cash allocation. A great team player who is enthusiastic, friendly and dependable. We are really enjoying working with her.

She's the lady who will be sending out all the invoices, paying the bills and chasing payments with chocolate fish rewards. 

Who said change isn't good ... welcome Cherie it's great to have you on-board.

Meows happy too. Cherie creates a very comfy desk.

Our Auckland studio is up and running

Wow it's hard to believe that we are finally here.

Sarah and Maria have had a fantastic road trip with two one way tickets on the ferry and big, big drive carrying not only their personal items, but their workstations and the server. True little camels they were.

Sarah and Maria crossing Cook Strait. They didn't need a passport.

Kim has just spent 10 days up here helping us all to settle in and to show our new studio manager and production coordinator Nigel Longstaff the ropes.

Whoops no that's not him. (Just a wee trick he tried to pull on us.)

Nigel Longstaff our new studio manager and production co-ordinator

Nigel will be the chief organiser in Auckland and a man you may want to get to know. He'll be making sure deadlines are met, quotes are accurate and everyone has everything they need on time. His email is nigel@bookdesign.co.nz

Nigel is a production, customer service and communications specialist who has a wide range of experience in managing creative studio's and pre-press departments with a solid background in print procurement. He comes to us highly recommended after working at Hachette for many years with a wonderful group of people he still calls his family. We say 'it's time to move over Hachette - he's ours now' and we are really looking forward to having him as part of our team.

There will be an opening party and very soon too. We just need to get the signage up and put the beers in the fridge. Watch this space.

Christchurch is also still up and running. We haven't abandoned our studio there at all. Kim and our new accounts lady Cherie Woolford are enjoying having swimming pools now instead of work stations as there is so much space. Skype is keeping us all in touch and doing a really good job. If you search Skype for any of our first names and then bookdesign you'll find us e.g. sarahbookdesign.

For all our clients the only change will be our courier address and lack of powercuts. Our workflows will be the same as always and you shouldn't notice any difference in dealing with your favourite designer. If you are sending us anything that is needed for production please use one of our free courier bags (just let us know if you need some more) to
9a Birkenhead Ave
Birkenhead
Auckland 0626

We've also set up a facebook page to help keep everyone up-to-date. 'Like' us at Book Design

I really need to finish with a big huge thank you to all our clients for being so patient, supportive and faithful throughout all of these changes. It's certainly been a year to remember and we are so glad to have made it. Thank you all.

Now lets bring it on ...

PS. If you know of any senior designers who are looking for a challenge, we still need one more to join our Akl team. Check out more at

Lots and lots of changes

It all started with a 7.1 earthquake, about a year ago.

Once Kim, Trisha, Anita and Sarah had picked up all the broken glass and tried to wash to the floors without water and power, dug out all the liqua-muck it was time to start thinking about work again. Lucky Maria missed the initial shake, as she was in Auckland.

At first no one felt safe to go anywhere. Sarah had no sewerage, Anita didn't have any power or water, Trisha was majorily shaken. Actually everyone was majorily shaken with earthquake-brain or head-fog becoming a common phrase. The first step was to see that the studio was still a safe place to be, after all it was to become the venue for a number of major shakes after this.

Kim cooked us all lunch and we shared a few wines and our stories. Then we slowly drifted back for short periods of time as we were ready. Maria came home and confidence began to grow again. Everyone agreed that work kept them sane. It was a regular routine with our fantastic clients that still wanted their projects completed. We even expanded with Anna Golden (nee Hutchinson) joining our team.

Then came February. Three very terrified ladies all standing in the middle of the studio holding onto one another while the earth kicked and bucked. Kim was downstairs at the time and remembers just shouting at them all to get down here, just get down here. It was awful. Sarah was at home having only just gotten out of hospital two days before and lucky Anna was away.

But the worst was yet to come. Out here, the valley had gotten off very lightly compared with town and the suburbs where Anita, Trisha and Sarah's homes were. Again dear Maria was very lucky as she lived out west.

There was loads of digging of liquafaction this time. Everyone helped each other and Maria took over running the studio for almost a week from her home. The news wasn't good though and everyone's outcomes all stem from what we were left with that day.

Anita McLeod

Fantastic designer of great titles that have gone far (Wonky Donkey, Quaky Cat, Hollie Chips, Beyond the cordon). Started at Book Design in May 2008, left July 2011, destination Perth.

Her home was inaccessible in the red zone and when they did get in there the door had been broken down, there was no power or water. They had to leave. Her partners job dramatically changed, her parents home majorily damaged. Nothing left for them in Chc, friends gone, time to see the world.

Trisha Roghan-Smith

Accounts extraordinare, bringer of lunch time entertainment and a good giggle. Started April 2010, left July 2011.

Trisha's home was badly damaged in Feb's quake and they have been told that their house has to come down. Their land is still zoned orange, so they don't know if they can rebuild on the site, it's been 7 months of waiting. Trisha has moved on from us because of the combined stress of home and work all became too much.

Anna Golden

Mac op, book industry expert, passionate reader. Started Jan 2011, left April 2011.

Anna moved to Christchurch from Wellington after the September quake to get married and begin a new life. She got way more than she bargained for after Feb and decided the challenge of learning a new Mac op role was just too much.

Sarah Chaussee

Senior designer of fame with 'You Know You're From Christchurch When' and numerous educational epics. Now based in our Akl studio.

Sarah has had to make some really big life changing decisions and we really, really didn't want to loose her too. If you have spoken with Sarah on the phone you'll have fallen in love with her American accent, so the thought of relocating again to a new city was a very hard one for her. But now she's there, may it just keep on getting better and better.

Maria Engelken

Junior designer and hero. Survivor of only one major shake as she managed to be out of town for all the others. Now based in our Akl studio.

It went a bit like this. 'Maria do you want to move to Akl?' 'Yeap, can we go now.' And she has never looked back. We have so much to be grateful to Maria for. Twice in the past year she has kept things running from her dining room with the only power and internet connection in the company. Her fantastic attitude and enthusiasm is making the Akl studio hum. She just rocks!

Kim Dovey

Director, designer, worrier, mother figure, food nutritionalist. Still doing the same thing from the same place in our Chc studio.

Kim was just getting in the car to look at new premises in the centre of Chc when the Feb quake hit, which is why she was not upstairs with us all. It just wasn't going to be a happening thing, but we still needed more space to grow. So the next few months began a totally new ride with many, many challenges. She's still living in Christchurch (her family just won't budge), but will be spending week about in Akl.

... and so we all moved on. Change is good, sometimes you just need time to get your head around it. Auckland is very exciting and we have had a fantastic reception from everyone. I still get a kick every time a client knocks on the door and walks into our studio in Birkenhead. It's just not something that happened often down here in Chc. Hee, hee, very exciting.

Sarah and Maria's last day in our Chc studio. Jazz the dog wasn't going anywhere.

You can see some images of the girls trip to Auckland and all the farewell parties on our facebook page.