Little Women was more than a story. It was the house I grew up in

Summer reissue: Alie Benge on the book that built a shimmering private world for her and her sisters.  First published 10 February 2020.  Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021.  The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its members – click here to learn more about how you can support us from … Read more

Review: Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story is a pulpy true crime tale with a feminist twist

The second season of the female-focused anthology series is as much a portrait of a disintegrating marriage as it is a crime story, writes Catherine McGregor. This review contains mild spoilers for episodes one and two. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, they say, but we all know it’s not actually true, not … Read more

Emily Writes: Yes, marriage sucks, so why did I renew my vows?

With fewer couples than ever getting married, women are realising marriage is not all it’s cracked up to be. Emily Writes asks herself why, despite this, she’s so enamoured with her own. Last year, New Zealand recorded a record low of marriages and civil unions, with just 19,071 – less than half the rate of … Read more

Three Women: The astonishing study of female desire that has everyone talking

Summer reissue: Three Women is a fervent, scrupulous qualitative review of female desire. It’s also a lesson in commitment – and the powerful act of paying attention. First published 8 July, 2019. Imagine a pole vaulter strolling into the Olympics, eyeing the bar – the women’s world record is 5.06m – and casually hitching it like … Read more

Busting myths about arranged marriage

Shane Jones’ inflammatory comments last week failed to understand the complexity of arranged marriage, serving only to repeat deeply entrenched racist colonial stereotypes, writes Josephine Varghese. Last night I, an Indian immigrant, was having dinner at a small Vietnamese BYO in Christchurch (run by Vietnamese immigrants), happily savouring the lemongrass flavour in my favourite dish. … Read more

A review of Man Booker International Prize winner, Celestial Bodies

Anna Knox, who spent four years living in Saudi Arabia, has been waiting for a book like Celestial Bodies – a story that shakes up entrenched ideas of women in the Middle East.  Early on in Jokha Alharthi’s Celestial Bodies, Abdullah, son of Sulayman the Merchant, describes his family home in the village of Al-Wafi with … Read more

Let Me Be Frank: an essay about creativity and comics by Sarah Laing

Wellington writer, illustrator and Katherine Mansfield obsessive Sarah Laing has a new book out tomorrow. Here, she tells its origin story.  My first baby was really bad at breastfeeding – or else, as my mother and the Plunket nurse insinuated, I had the wrong shaped nipples. He couldn’t get the suction right and it would … Read more

Three Women: The astonishing study of female desire that has everyone talking

Three Women is a fervent, scrupulous qualitative review of female desire. It’s also a lesson in commitment – and the powerful act of paying attention. Imagine a pole vaulter strolling into the Olympics, eyeing the bar – the women’s world record is 5.06m – and casually hitching it like a metre higher. Then fucking nailing the … Read more

Being queer and Christian in 2019

As New Zealand increasingly backs queer rights, are our Christian churches evolving or standing firm that homosexuality is sinful? Max Towle investigates for RNZ. This piece originally appeared on RNZ. When he was young, every week Ryan Curran would step forward and silently beg and plead at the altar. “God please take this disease from … Read more

What two-mother families are doing about surnames

Discussions about family surnames in the media tend to ignore the fact that many queer families have been tackling the issue for far longer than most of their heterosexual counterparts. Lisa Melville talked to some two-mum couples about their approach to family names. With so much choice around surnames, how do two-mother families decide what … Read more

Does the Property (Relationships) Act work for modern families?

Nearly half of all children born last year were born to parents not married or in a civil union – and splitting up when you have property and children can be very complex. The Law Commission’s Stephen Day explains what the Property (Relationships) Act looks like now, and what it could look like with your input.  … Read more

Marriage equality and human rights through the eyes of a child

In Australia, there is currently a fight for marriage equality. A nationwide survey is asking for Australians to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on the rights of rainbow families. This has had a huge impact on children of gay parents as well as LGBTQIA+ children. Katherine and Roanne have been together for 17 years. They live … Read more

Let us once more inspect the private lives of Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath

Stephanie Johnson reviews Sir Jonathan Bate’s biography of Ted Hughes, a forensic account of his doomed marriage to poet Sylvia Plath.  There are people who still blame Ted Hughes for the suicide of his wife Sylvia Plath, who famously gassed herself soon after he left her. Their two small children, Frieda and Nicholas, were in … Read more