Tu Meke Team
What unfolds when a graffiti artist with a fine arts degree and a wildlife-passionate television editor unite for children’s literature? Something. Truly. Remarkable.
Welcome to Tu Meke Tales, a groundbreaking fusion of talents between globally renowned artist FLOX, adventurous broadcast creative Malcolm Clarke, and the innovative publishing prowess of Little Love.
Guided by the expertise of esteemed kaiwhakamāori Evelyn M Tobin, these enchanting books have been meticulously crafted and also translated fully into reo Māori
Malcolm Clarke
Author
Meet Malcolm Clarke, a passionate author dedicated to igniting young minds through the magic of storytelling. With a background in screen editing and a love for literature, Malcolm crafts enchanting tales that transport children to vibrant worlds filled with adventure and wonder.
Drawing inspiration from his own experiences and the natural world around him, Malcolm's stories celebrate the beauty of New Zealand's landscapes and the importance of conservation.
From the lively antics of Tu Meke Tūī! to the endearing charm of Tu Meke Tuatara!, Malcolm's best-selling books have captured the hearts of readers both young and old.
When he's not penning captivating tales, you can find Malcolm engaging with audiences at schools, early childhood centres, and libraries, where his dynamic readings and interactive workshops spark imaginations and inspire creativity.
Hayley King | Flox
Illustrator
Her trademark native birds, ferns and flowers are a celebration of Aotearoa’s environmental taonga. Using distinctly vibrant and confident colour on a scale combined with delicacy they have magically transformed grey walls into vibrant depictions of the natural world.
FLOX swiftly expanded her practice into prints, publications, murals, graphic design, live painting, projects and workshops for both schools and the wider public. She has been involved in numerous collaborations, charity work and both group and solo exhibitions.
Her accessible narratives have broadened the appeal and shaped her into one of New Zealand’s most recognised contemporary artists.
In recent years FLOX has focused on refining new ideas, exploring other cultures and pushing her own artistic boundaries. This resulted in a three-month Artist Residency in Taiwan and a journey to Udaipur in India, to expand her international audiences.
Seen everywhere from Munich, Berlin Hong Kong, New York, Taiwan, India and the US, Flox continues spreading her wings and making her presence felt across public spaces and homes worldwide.
Anna Egan-Reid
Anna is a graphic designer who has been in the book industry for over 20 years. She paid her way through university by illustrating for Australian publisher Elsevier and the Samoan Government. After completing her Bachelor of Arts in Art History and English at Otago University, she went travelling before coming back to start her career as a designer and typesetter.
Originally taught by Mary at Egan-Reid Ltd and later Pindar, Anna spent two years as an inhouse designer at Penguin Books (NZ) before joining Mary and Sophia in the family venture, Mary Egan Publishing, in 2012.
Anna has been shortlisted for a number of PANZ Book Design Awards and is a previous winner of Best Non-Illustrated book, for Janet Frame: In Her Own Words in 2012.
Her skill in dealing with a wide range of texts, images and audiences and evident love and knowledge of typography won her the title of Allen & Unwin Young Designer of the Year in 2016. In 2017 Anna joined the PANZ Book Design Awards judging panel.
Anna lives in West Auckland with her partner Tom and their two sons, Louis and Cohen.
Sophia Egan-Reid
When Sophia’s father, Gerard Reid, was dying he wrote a business plan for Mary Egan Publishing – a company that he envisioned would be focused on doing the absolute best for a small group of clients, offering a publishing package from start to finish. Sophia started the business, with mother Mary and sister Anna coming on board full time after a couple of years.
Sophia is usually the first and last contact for clients. She does the initial pricing, spec-ing and once the job comes in, she passes it on to production and follows it through by managing the full project, print and delivery. She aims for her clients to have the best experience possible and to end up with the most beautiful book. Attention to detail and high quality books are always the end result.
Sophia was born into the publishing business. For as long as she could remember her parents had a home office and staff members were always coming and going.
Sophia won Young Publisher of the Year at the 2018 Booksellers Industry Awards.
She lives in Northland with her husband James, and dogs Gus and Peaches.
Evelyn Tobin, MNZM
Evelyn Tobin is a registered teacher with a current full (Pūmau) practising certificate who consults as an accredited provider and facilitator of professional learning development and training support for teachers, principals, boards of trustees, and community groups.
She is a pioneer of kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa Māori, and Aotearoa Māori Netball Healthy Lifestyles initiatives and has educational expertise and networks in te reo Māori, tikanga Māori, mātauranga Māori particularly in Māori medium education.
She has long term associations in the nation’s repositories of the National Library, Archives NZ and Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision. Evelyn is a creative, critical thinker and bilingual communicator who has extensive experiences and service on national governance boards, advisory, and ministerial groups.
