Book Corner

Who are you?

Kia ora, my name is Tahlia Armstrong. I have the pleasure of being an English teacher at Rangitoto College. 

Claim to fame?

I co-run the Ancient Greek club most Monday lunchtimes in E11. As well as English, my degree was in Classics and Ancient History, so this is an area of passion for me. I also help to look after the Fijian Meke Dance Club at the kura. I have been fortunate enough to find a home in the Pacifica space here and love being able to support students I have known well for years.

When you’re not reading, what do you love doing?

I love going to gigs and listening to music. I also love watching movies and TV and sharing kai with my loved ones. 

What do you love about our library/working at Rangitoto College?

As a teacher, it is the joy and privilege of my life to share my areas of passion with ākonga and like-minded colleagues. Creating positive and life-long connections with the people in our kura makes the mahi fun every day.

I also love the ‘all you can carry’ rule our library offers. In this cost of living crisis, buying books isn’t always realistic. We are so fortunate to have access to a plethora of incredible and up-to-date books. 

What was on the family bookshelf growing up?

A nice mix of fiction, nonfiction and poetry. My mum was an avid reader of true crime, romance and classic fiction (she had the most beautiful 1901 copy of Wuthering Heights, which I consider a family heirloom). My dad preferred to read non-fiction texts, mainly on military history. I’m fortunate enough to come from a large, loving family. As a kid I would often spend the night at my aunty and uncle’s. My uncle would read poetry to my cousin and I before bedtime; whilst this would put my cousin to sleep, I would stay up entranced and it sparked my love of poetry. My personal taste now is a real mixture of the three.

Tell us a brilliant book memory?

One of the first things I tell students about me is my love for the Twilight series. They re-ignited my love for reading as a young person. I have the most vivid memory of staying up past my bedtime with a torch under the bed to finish reading Breaking Dawn. I had tears streaming down my face but I couldn’t look away. To this day, I remain staunchly team Edward!

What are you currently reading?

I always have at least two physical books and one audiobook on the go at any given time.

One book I am currently reading is The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (which was recently made into a TV series). It’s set during the Vietnam War and told through flashbacks and a coerced confession of a Vietnamese political prisoner. I am part Vietnamese myself and my mother was a war refugee who fled Saigon in the year the novel is set. I am on a personal journey of connecting to my own tūrangawaewae, so reading works by Vietnamese writers is one way of doing that for me- another all-time favourite of mine is the poet/novelist Ocean Vuong.

What do you always recommend?

A book that I harp on about to my ākonga, friends and whānau constantly is Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro! It’s the first novel I ever taught as a teacher and it has a special place in my heart. It has big twists and will break your heart just a bit- I think all the best books do!

Who are you? 

My name is Aqib Hossain. I am a Year 13 student at Rangitoto College with a Bengali ethnic background. Currently, I am one of the four service leaders on the school Service Leadership Team in 2025. I have a passion for service, taekwondo, badminton, and cricket.

When you’re not reading, what do you love doing?

Whenever I am not reading, some things I like to do are spending time with friends and family, whether it be through playing video games, having video calls back home, or simply enjoying time with loved ones. Additionally, I enjoy playing and watching sports.

What are some books you’ve enjoyed reading here at school?

A text that I have enjoyed reading was Life of Pi. For one of my English assessments, we read Life of Pi, a novel written by Yann Martel. I enjoyed the novel because it highlighted the complexity of conforming to societal norms and the impact this has on our moral compass. It is an eye-opening novel that emphasises the crude nature of society when it comes to moral dilemmas, which is why I find the text very enjoyable.

What do you love about our library?

What I love about the College library is the technology that it employs to make the process of finding, selecting, and borrowing books and novels a breeze. The library is massive, with a broad range of texts, which can often make the process of finding different texts difficult. Thus, the iPad book-finding software is super helpful for locating books quickly and efficiently.

What are you currently reading?

Currently, I am reading short stories written by Owen Marshall. Owen Marshall is a Kiwi short story writer and novelist. Interestingly, Owen Marshall was an English teacher at Waitaki Boys’ High School for 25 years before becoming a full-time author. Apparently he would write his stories on Sundays before planning his classes. One aspect I enjoy about Owen Marshall’s short stories is the rich, hidden content within the text, which highlights and critiques different aspects of society. I would highly recommend his work to anyone who wants a text that challenges and critiques societal norms and agendas.

What are some mottos you live by?

Though the phrase is in Bangla, the English translation conveys the idea that a tree is not recognised by its appearance, but by the fruit it produces. The key idea of this motto is that it does not matter what people think of you; what truly defines you as a person is the outcome you produce.

Describe your perfect Saturday/Sunday?

A perfect Saturday for me would be one where I could sleep in—nothing else!

What advice are you grateful you’ve received?

A piece of advice that I am grateful to receive would be the advice to just go and give things a shot. Exceeding our comfort zone can be very daunting for some (very much so for me). Unfortunately, to achieve milestones we need to push ourselves beyond our comfort zone. It ties back to the idea that feeling uncomfortable is normal, but we need to get comfortable with being uncomfortable in order to achieve our goals.

Who are you? 

Hi everyone!! I’m Liv, a Year 13 student and one of the 2025 Deputy Head students. I’ve been at Rangitoto College since Year 9. I’m taking chemistry, biology, statistics, English, and geography, however, my favorite subject is English because I love being able to interpret books differently from those around me and explain my perspectives.

When you’re not reading, what do you love doing?

When I’m not reading, I love hanging out with my friends, watching Netflix, swimming at the beach and scrolling through social media.

What’s a book you remember reading/having read to you when you were little?

When I was little, I remember my dad reading Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy by Lynley Dodd to me every night before bed.

Describe why that book is memorable to you.

Hairy Maclary is a memorable book because of its rhymes: “With tails in the air, they trotted on down, past the shops and the park to the far end of town.” I also remember a board game based on the story, which made me love the book tenfold.

What do you love about our library?

I love the librarians’ kindness and willingness to help or suggest good books. I also love that several tables and chairs are available for everyone to do school work or read in the library. I also highly appreciate the number of books the library always offers in various genres.

What are you currently reading?

I am currently reading The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. This collection of 12 short stories explores immigration, identity, gender, power, and cultural expectations. The stories primarily focus on Nigerian characters in Nigeria and the diaspora, particularly in the United States. Diaspora is the spread of people from their original homeland. This is shown through the story, which features the characters who have migrated from Nigeria to the United States and are now grappling with culture loss, identity formation, and the pressures of embracing culture.

Why do you think people should read?

People should read because it enables everyone to grasp new perspectives and ways of thinking. Reading also allows people to connect with authors of various texts, broadening their knowledge and understanding of the wider world. Reading can also connect you with those around you as you find common interests in authors or genres of text.

What are some mottos you live by?

“Surround yourself with people who see the world through a ‘glass half full’ rather than ‘glass half empty’ perspective”
“Always give 100% in everything you do”

Who are you?

My name is Patrick Yam, and I’m an English teacher. I was born in the Philippines and moved to Auckland in 2009. I’ve been living here ever since.

What were you doing before this role?

I got my first job when I was in Year 13. I worked at a McDonald’s, which was not very fun, but it taught me how to be more independent, and more importantly, it gave me cash to afford going out with my friends. I worked at two different grocery stores, a cafe, a cinema, and a warehouse before I settled on becoming a teacher. I miss all my previous jobs (even McDonald’s), but I probably miss my job at the cinema the most. Majority of my co-workers were close to my age, so we goofed around a lot during our shifts. 

When you’re not reading, what do you love doing?

I love watching films. This year, I’ve made it a personal challenge to watch 365 movies that I haven’t seen before. Currently I’m on 107 films. I also love music. Ever since I was 16, I’ve been compiling a playlist of my favourite songs, adding to or removing from it over the years. It’s got a bit of everything, from Beethoven to Kendrick Lamar to film soundtracks to Frank Ocean to Paramore to 80s music to video game soundtracks, and much more. I also enjoy travelling, whether a simple roadtrip or a full on vacation overseas, preferably by myself. 

Do you remember reading/loving any books at school? Tell us about them.

In high school, I routinely issued out the same two books from the library: Roald Dahl’s Collected Short Stories, and a small book of New Zealand short stories whose title I’ve now forgotten, but I used to know several of those stories like the back of my hand. 

In intermediate school, I came across Alan MacDonald’s Henry VIII and his Wicked Wives and I was hooked. Ever since then I’ve been a nerd for anything to do with Tudor history.

In my old school back in the Philippines, I was obsessed with Pokémon books. I used to hide my favourites in the backs of bookshelves to make sure no-one else would borrow them…

Tell us a brilliant book memory?

When I was around 15 years old, I brought my copy of George R. R. Martin’s A Storm of Swords to a family friend’s Christmas party. While everyone else played party games, I curled up in a corner and read my book. I distinctly remember my mother getting angry at me because I refused to join the other kids for a group photo. I was up to the last chapter and plot twists were getting revealed; there was no way I was stopping my reading for anyone!

What are you currently reading?

Stephen King’s Under the Dome, which is about a small town that inexplicably gets split off from the rest of the world by an invisible barrier. I’ve been a longtime Stephen King fan (even if, in my opinion, he doesn’t always end his stories very well). Carrie is my all-time favourite Stephen King novel. I re-read it every year.

What’s your favourite book?

It’s a toss up between Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Notable mentions: Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl (which is also an excellent film), Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim comics, Patrick Ness’ The Rest of Us Just Live Here, and Daniel Handler AKA Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Event series.

Who would your ideal lunch companion(s) be, dead or alive?

James Baldwin. He was an African-American writer in the 1940s and 1950s. I’ve read four of his novels and loved them all. I can tell just from his writing that he would be such an interesting person to talk to. I also wouldn’t mind (but would be very nervous) having lunch with Ryan Gosling, or Oscar Isaac, or Mahershala Ali, who seem like authentic, humble people and are also some of my favourite actors of all time.

Claim to fame?

When I was a teenager I wrote a (very long, very cheesy, and quite historically inaccurate) historical fiction about Henry VIII and his six wives, then posted it online. To this day it’s still getting views; currently it’s up to about 17,000 reads. People are still leaving comments on it. I’m secretly proud and severely embarrassed about this. 

Who are you? 

Grace Love, an Economics & Business Studies teacher and Year 9 Dean (Go Blue!).

When you’re not reading, what do you love doing? 

I LOVE watching TV, I love being outdoors, and I love listening to music and especially going to live shows.

What do you love about our library/working at Rangitoto College? 

I love all libraries (and bookstores), something about being around books is calming. I love working at Rangitoto College because of all the friendly and supportive staff here. I also love working with the students, talking and thinking about economics and coaching basketball.

What was on the family bookshelf growing up?

My Mum’s a preschool teacher so we had lots and lots of amazing children’s books at home growing up. Some faves were My cat likes to hide in boxes, Willy the Wimp and the Large Family books by Jill Murphy.

Tell us a brilliant book memory? 

My Year 8 teacher loved books and reading, so she would read to us every afternoon after lunch, sometimes she would just keep reading until the end of school bell. It was awesome. Shout out Mrs. Nellis-Smith (the master of firm but fair).

Do you remember reading/loving any books at school?

I loved: Molly Moon’s Incredible book of hypnotism, the recruit cherub series, Jacqueline Wilson’s books, the sisterhood of the traveling pants. 

Tell us about them. What’s a book that’s changed your life/mind? 

Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Just read it, man.

But also, the Diary of Anne Frank and The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion.

What are you currently reading? 

The Fate of Sun King – it’s ok. I have just downloaded an Emily Henry book on my phone which I am excited to start.

Where do you seek inspiration? 

For life? From travel and nature. For books? from Booktok and my big sister.

What do you always recommend? 

It depends on the person, but the Fall of Giants by Ken Follet is a good one. And Freakonomics by Stephen Dubner and Steven Levitt

What’s your favourite book? 

It’s hard to one favourite but maybe Cross Stitch aka Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

Describe your perfect Saturday/Sunday?

A little bit of house work, lots of good food, time with family and friends and live music or sports.

Who would your ideal lunch companion(s) be, dead or alive?

Paul McCartney.

What advice do you have for teenagers today?

Make the most of the opportunities that present themselves to you and try new things. Get comfortable with being seen as uncool and be kind.

Who are you? 

I am Zhan Bowden, a Year 13 and head student at Rangitoto College. I am national champ in both secondary school and club athletics for triple jump. I can play the guitar and have a cat named Ferocious who takes up the majority of my camera roll. This year I am taking physics, chemistry, biology, sports performance science, and calculus. 

Describe why that book is memorable to you.

Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. This children’s picture book is about the young child Max being in such a rage that his bedroom transforms into a jungle. In this jungle there are massive creatures who Max tames and becomes their king being crowned ‘The wildest of them all.’ Max eventually decides to return home where he finds a hot bowl of supper. Both my grandparents and parents used to read this book to me every couple of weeks before I went to sleep after I had gotten angry at something. It is memorable to me because I used to feel like Max getting into a rage whenever I was told to go to bed or tidy my room. I could relate to the main character which made me feel special and it always calmed me down knowing that at the end of my rage, my family would still be there. It became a special sort of tradition to read this book to calm me, and I miss the warmth of someone reading to me.

What are some books you’ve enjoyed reading here at school? 

I will forever love any and all Roald Dahl books, especially The Twits, The Witches and Fantastic Mr. Fox.  I also enjoyed the Harry Potter series, with my favourite being The Goblet of Fire. I recently read and enjoyed the first installment of the Jack Reacher books Killing Floor by Lee Child.

What do you love about our library?

Throughout years 9-12 the library was like a second home. It was the only place where in the mornings I could, undisturbed, get some solid work done on my homework. It’s not the fanciest place, but it’s a great place for all those who just need an area to get work done. I like our school’s library because it’s for everyone and anyone, and you can see that just by walking in and seeing all the groups of different people gathered around tables.

What’s a book that’s changed your mind about something?

As part of my year 10 English class we were to read The Outsiders. It is a  novel about two rival gangs of young teens, the Greasers and the Socials, fighting. Ultimately the Greasers kill a member of the opposing gang and are forced into hiding. The gang are forced to come to terms over the consequences of their actions and the value and meaning behind friendships after one of their friends heroic sacrifices himself for a group of children. It has changed my perspective on how I value people’s time and opinions, allowing me to be more open and receptive to feedback.

What are you currently reading?

I am currently reading the second installment in the Jack Reacher series called Die Trying. Currently where I am in the novel, the main character, Reacher, a retired Major and military policeman and an FBI agent Holly Johnson, whose father is the chairman of the Joint’s Chief of Staff, have been kidnapped, being held by a group of Militia. I can only assume that the brilliant mind of Reacher will find a way to take down this organisation and escape.

Where do you seek inspiration from?

I have read both the autobiography of Steven Adams and Usain Bolt. Steven Adams is a New Zealander and brother of Valerie Adams, and currently plays in the NBA for the Houston Rockets as their centre. Usain Bolt is the biggest name in athletics and sprinting, holding both the world records in the 100m and 200m sprints. Being an athlete myself, I can relate to their struggles in training and their journey’s to where they are today. Both these sporting legends inspire me to push myself in training to become what any sporting person wants to be, the best. As well as this, they are both leaders in their respective fields, they really do both inspire me to be the best version of myself in all fields of life, whether that’s on the track, in class, or even just at home. I seek better inspiration from sporting legends than motivational speakers or celebrities as these individuals tend to demonstrate the significance of balancing life and sport to become the best versions of themselves.

What are some mottos you live by?

“Be the change you want to see in the world” and “Be the best version of you”.

What are some of your hopes and dreams for the future?

I am very sport oriented, so my goals and hopes align mostly around athletics. I would love to go to and / or compete in an Olympic games. I have watched the Olympics for as long as I can remember, and it is my goal to be there someday. Additionally, just being able to say that I am one of the best triple jumpers of all times would be a massive accomplishment.