Visit us at our Kilbirnie shop or place your order on-line using the search function above.
The Children's Bookshop is a privately owned independent specialist bookstore dedicated to providing the widest range of children's and young adult literature from New Zealand and around the world. Established in 1992, we have just celebrated our 20th year in business.
The owners, John and Ruth McIntyre, and their staff are passionate about reading and are always willing to share their knowledge with their customers.
We are experts at matching children with books, and get the greatest pleasure at finding reading for children who aren't traditionally readers.
In 2003 The Children's Bookshop was named New Zealand's Independent Bookshop of the year, the first time it had been awarded to a specialist bookstore, and was runner-up to Unity Books of Wellington for the same award in 2008.
In 2011, John and Ruth were presented with the Storylines Betty Gilderdale Award for services to children's literature. The award was established in 1990 to commemorate the work of author Betty Gilderdale and to honour distinguished service to the development of children's literature and literacy. It is administered by the Storylines Children's Literature Charitable Trust.
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Opening Hours
Monday to Friday - 9am to 5.30pm
Saturday - 9am to 4pm
Sundays - closed
We are closed on Public Holidays (January 1 and 2; Wellington Anniversary Day; Waitangi Day [Feb 6]; Good Friday; Easter Monday; Anzac Day [April 25]; Queen's Birthday; Labour Day; Christmas Day [December 25] and Boxing Day [December 26].
Storytime with Marie
Join us at 10.30am Fridays for 30 minutes of stories, music and dance with ace storyteller Marie Murdoch. There's a lucky draw every week, plus discount vouchers for coffee or tea at Plaza Pizzeria opposite our store. The books Marie reads are available to buy that day with a 10% discount off the normal price. Pre-school children, with their caregivers, are welcome.
Try Our Gift Selection Services!
For those of you who have out-of-town or international friends and family (or live just around the corner), try our gift selection services for that upcoming special occasion.
Choose from one of two options:
1. Talk to one of our friendly, experienced staff members about our selection of books that would suit that special someone. We can give your gift a dash of colour with some complimentary gift wrapping too and, if it is to be posted, we can offer the most economic postal quote.
2. Purchase a Children's Bookshop gift voucher for our store in Kilbirnie or a national Booksellers token (redeemable at more than 350 bookstores round the country), for those who have so many books it's hard to keep track! Throw in a card for the occasion and it can be sorted as easily as dialing our contact number.
Enter a message for the recipient, if you so desire, for that extra personal touch.
Before you know it your card, voucher or present package will be on its way across the seas or across the road, without you needing to take off your slippers!
Special Orders
As well as carrying a huge range of contemporary literature we also stock childhood favourites from the past, and excel at sourcing hard-to-find books from around the world. Even if you have been told a title is out of print, please let us try to find it for you.
Please Note: Books found on our website do not necessarily reflect our current stock in the store. However, we are happy to order any book for you as long as it is in print.
When ordering through our website, we now have the PayPal option. Alternatively, you can contact us by phone with your Visa and Mastercard details.
Every effort is made to ensure the price is correct on out-of-stock items, but we reserve the right to make alterations in the event of publishers' price fluctuations.
Newsletter
We produce a high-quality customer newsletter twice a year, in June and November, keeping you up to date with reviews of the latest titles available. Let us know if you would like us to mail it to you. Or you can download it from our website.
Download a printable PDF of our latest newsletter
Schools
We have a considerable number of schools and public libraries who are regular customers, for whom we produce a collection of newsletters once a term. In them we review new books that we believe are must-haves - fiction and non-fiction - and we are happy to add you to our mailing list.
The Children's Bookshop Addicts' Club
Join our Addicts' Club - our special way of saying thank you to all our customer "addicts" who have been wonderfully loyal in the 20 years since we started the store.
Spend a minimum $500 (that's a rough average of about 25 books!) on any non-sale or non-discounted items - books and toys (except Booksellers' New Zealand book tokens) - in the store between mid-November and mid-November the next year and we will then send you a voucher worth 10% of your total purchases to spend at any time.
We will also invite you to an Addicts' Club pre-Christmas shopping night where you may spend your voucher, enjoy the Christmas spirit with a drink and nibbles, listen to a guest speaker and be in the draw to win parcels of superb books.
Ask to join next time you visit.