Iris and Me | Philippa Werry

So begins the story of Iris Wilkinson, who wrote poetry, novels and journalism under the pen name Robin Hyde. In January 1938, she left New Zealand for England. On the way, intrigued by glimpses of China, she ventured inland despite the war raging there, becoming one of the first women war correspondents - a feat that was all the more remarkable because she struggled with mental health and suffered a disability that meant she had a lifelong limp. Robin Hyde doesn't tell her story - it is narrated by a loyal but mysterious companion who asks the reader to guess the secret. Iris and Me is an imaginative account of the adventures of one of Aotearoa's most significant writers, presented in a form that Hyde herself would have loved - the verse novel. It was the runner-up for the NZSA Laura Solomon Cuba Press Prize 2022.

The author: Philippa Werry is a writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and plays. Her interest in history has produced titles such as Anzac Day, Best Mates, Waitangi Day, Armistice Day, Lighthouse Family, The New Zealand Wars, The Telegram, The Water Bottle, Quarantine and The Other Sister. Iris and Me was the runner-up of the NZSA Laura Solomon Cuba Press Prize 2022. Her work has also appeared in the School Journal, educational publications and in various anthologies and has been broadcast on radio. Several of her books have been shortlisted for awards and she is a frequent speaker with the Writers in Schools programme.