Author talk: Go Hard or Go Home with Kiri Allan

What does it take to rebuild your life when everything falls apart? In her first book, Go Hard or Go Home, former Cabinet minister Kiri Allan reflects on a turbulent six years in politics, revealing the personal struggles that unfolded alongside some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most challenging national events. From the Christchurch mosque attacks and the Whakaari/White Island eruption to the COVID-19 pandemic, Allan’s political career played out against a backdrop of crisis. Away from the public eye, she was also navigating a marriage breakdown, new parenthood, cancer and serious mental health challenges, culminating in a car crash and her resignation from Parliament. In this candid conversation with Queenstown barrister Bryony Shackell, Allan explores the pressures of public life, the cost of ambition and the difficult journey towards recovery. Honest and deeply personal, her story considers what happens when the identity you have built for yourself no longer fits — and how to find a way forward. About Kiri Allan Kiritapu Allan (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāi Tūwharetoa and Te Rarawa) is a lawyer, former Cabinet minister and author. First elected to Parliament in 2017, she held several ministerial portfolios, including Justice, Conservation and Emergency Management. She has since moved into consultancy and advisory work. Go Hard or Go Home is her first book. About Bryony Shackell Bryony Shackell is a Queenstown-based barrister specialising in criminal and family law, including youth advocacy and lawyer-for-child work. Her career has taken her across several countries and communities, with previous experience as an English-language teacher in Latin America and a youth worker supporting rangatahi in residential care. A regular interviewer at the Queenstown Writers Festival, she is a keen reader and passionate supporter of New Zealand literature and non-fiction. Part of the Queenstown Writers Festival, running 5–8 November 2026.