The New Zealand Collection presents – This week in history: 24th – 30th May

This week’s selected topic comes from the Today in History page at nzhistory.net.nz. The New Zealand Collection is located on the second floor of The Central Library. Each week we feature topics in the This Week in History display in the NZ Collection and using available databases and the library collections to illustrate and provide additional information.

29 May 1953: Hillary and Tenzing conquer Everest

Arguably our most famous New Zealander and someone whose picture we probably all carry around in our wallet, all be it on the $5 note, as he was one of the few living non-heads of state to feature on the banknotes first issued in 1990. This week we celebrate Sir Edmund Hillary’s Everest climb to the top of the world.

Edmund Hillary came to worldwide attention when he and Tenzing Norgay became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak. Hillary and fellow New Zealander George Lowe were members of the British Everest Expedition which was led by John Hunt. The summit was reached 4 days before the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. They reached the 8848m summit on the 29th May 1953. There was much discussion and controversy over who was the first to step on the summit. The news broke on the morning of the coronation and Hillary was one of the first to receive a knighthood from the new Queen bringing about another controversy as Hillary was knighted while Norgay was awarded the George Medal.

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Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tensing Norgay in Wellington. Further negatives of the Evening Post newspaper. Ref: EP/1971/3690/6A-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22751853

I used the Proquest database located on the MyGateway page of the library webpages to find some articles written about Sir Edmund Hillary. The great thing about the Proquest database is that it offers full text, searchable access to national and provincial newspaper from Australia and New Zealand including The Dominion Post, Sunday Star Times and The New Zealand Herald. You need a library card to log on so you can search from home or on the free internet service available at all our branch libraries. I found a number of obituaries written at the time of Sir Edmund’s death. I particulary liked this quote from an article titled “The man mountain” by Anthony Hubbard in the Sunday Star Times on the 6th Apr 2003.

Hillary laughed about the cascade of compliments coming his way during the 50th anniversary of his conquest of Everest. “What’s the term they use?” he asked. “No, not the hero, the ah… I always forget the name.” He called out to his wife upstairs. “June, what am I?” Lady Hillary came down and said, matter of fact: “An icon.”

“An icon!” he laughed. “I’m certainly not an icon at home.” “No man”, she replied, “is an icon to his wife.”

While talking about Sir Edmund Hillary with a colleague he mentioned a performance he had seen at Womad and sent me a link. It received a rousing reception at the festival and it is worth a look. The group Public Service Broadcasting say in their Youtube account description that “They take samples from old public information films, archive footage and propaganda material, attempting to ‘teach the lessons of the past through the music of the future’.” You can view the clip below or hop over to to our catalogue for their CD titled Inform educate entertain.

You can also view a N.Z. On Screen short film of Hillary returning to New Zealand after the history making climb to the summit of Everest at their website here. You will also be able to view other documentaries about Sir Edmund Hillary from the same link.

A trivia question: What vehicle associated with Sir Edmund’s Antarctic expeditions is pictured on the five dollar note? Go to see the answer here as it’s quite hard to see on the bottom left corner of the note.

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Following his ascent of Everest Hillary devoted much of his life to helping the Sherpa people of Nepal through the Himalayan Trust, which he founded in 1960. Due to the trust and his determined efforts many schools and hospitals were built in this remote region of the Himalayas. Through the trust many New Zealanders have donated money and volunteered in the building projects and staffing of schools and hospitals in Nepal. On the 50th anniversary of the climb the Prime Minister of Nepal made Sir Edmund an honorary citizen of Nepal. A close connection between Nepal and New Zealand continues today and at the time of the tragic Anzac Day earthquake in Nepal Himalayan Trust members and other New Zealand travellers and volunteers were in Nepal. A number of appeals have since been launched in New Zealand to provide aide to the Nepalese people.

Various expeditions to climb Everest had been undertaken since 1921 and you can read digitised newspaper articles on the Papers Past database with a simple search of Everest. You can also read online the New Zealand Geographic here and search for articles on Hillary by logging on with your library card. I found the following article on Papers Past from the Evening Post 18 July 1934 which illustrates the drive that adventurers felt to conquer Everest which was sometimes called the ‘Third Pole’ in relation to the difficulty, excitement and interest in planning and making North and South Pole Expeditions.

Evening Post 18 July 1934, Page 9

Sir Edmund Hillary was on the front cover of many newspapers and magazines following the Everest climb. Articles can be found in the London Times which you can search using your library card to log in from the Newspaper database collection here. As the 1950s print media is not widely digitised you can instead view Wellington newspaper front pages of the time on microfilm, or you can ask to see the Life Magazine issue (Vol 15, No. 3. August 10, 1953 – International Edition) that had Hillary and Tenzing on the front cover. The famous magazine contained an article written by Sir Edmund Hillary, Tenzing’s own story and some stunning photographs. There is also a small glossary of the special ‘Language of Everest’ to explain climbing terms used in the article. You can also ask to see the 1953 New Zealand Alpine Journal that has an editorial dedicated to the ‘Ascent of Everest’ and contains an article by Hillary about the previous year’s British expedition to the Himalayas or the May 2003 copy of National Geographic for an article on the 50th anniversary of the ascent.

Hillary Magazines

Hillary died of heart failure at the age of 88 on 11 January 2008. At Scott Base in Antarctica and at all New Zealand government and public buildings flags were lowered to half mast in recognition of his death and as a tribute to what he meant to the people of New Zealand. A state funeral was held in New Zealand and a thanksgiving service was also held in London. Many memorials and lasting tributes have since been set up to commemorate him. The library holds a number of books about Hillary and Everest, the first is a fascinating illustrated biography with stunning photos many taken by Sir Edmund who was an avid photographer.

Syndetics book coverSir Edmund Hillary : an extraordinary life / Alexa Johnston.
“Around the world Sir Edmund Hillary is a legendary figure – climber, bold adventurer, practical philanthropist and one of the most widely respected persons of our time. He has survived extremes of human experience – from historic triumphs to crushing personal loss – but he sees himself as an ordinary man, persistent rather than heroic. This beautiful book is profusely illustrated with over 500 images, using fascinating material, such as letters, cards, diary pages, and ephemera, from his personal archive. It is a magnificent tribute to one of the greatest climbers and explorers of all time.” (Syndetics summary)

Here is a quote from Edmund Hillary’s diary from Sir Edmund Hillary : an extraordinary life.

Tenzing is an absolutely first class companion for a climber such as myself who likes a lion’s share of the leading. His great strength & endurance enable him to maintain almost any pace without complaint. He is always watchful and efficient in his technique & over dangerous ground the rope is kept tight with a comforting assurance of readiness to meet any emergency.

Syndetics book coverView from the summit / Edmund Hillary.
View from the Summit is a thoughtful and honest reappraisal of a life spent pushing human ability to its limits and relishing the challenges thrown down by the elements. It is also the story of a man whom the world has taken to its heart.” (Inside Cover)

Syndetics book coverSir Edmund Hillary & the people of Everest / foreword by Prince Philip ; with photographs by Anne B. Keiser ; text by Cynthia Russ Ramsay.
“Describes Hillary’s ascent to the summit of Mount Everest and his lifelong relationship with the Sherpas.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverEverest 1953 : the epic story of the first ascent / Mick Conefrey.
“On the morning of 2 June 1953, the day of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation, the first news broke that Everest had finally been conquered. Drawing on first-hand interviews and unprecedented access to archives, this is a ground-breaking new account of that extraordinary first ascent. Revealing that what has gone down in history as a supremely well-planned expedition was actually beset by crisis and controversy, Everest 1953 recounts a bygone age of self-sacrifice and heroism, using letters and personal diaries to reveal the immense stress and heartache the climbers often hid from their fellow team members. Charting how the ascent affected the original team ­in subsequent years and detailing its immense cultural impact today, Everest 1953 is the perfect book to commemorate this remarkable feat of the human will.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverEverest – the first ascent : the untold story of Griffith Pugh, the man who made it possible / Harriet Tuckey.
“Marking the 60th anniversary of the first ascent of Everest in May 1953, Everest — The First Ascent tells the story of the doctor and physiologist Griffith Pugh, without whom the successful conquest of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay would not have been possible. Recruited as an advisor in 1952, Pugh battled for fifteen months — in the face of opposition, suspicion and ridicule — to revolutionise almost every aspect of British high-altitude mountaineering, transforming the approach to oxygen, clothing, boots, tents, air beds, fitness, hygiene, health-care, diet and acclimatisation. The results were a stunning success and opened the door to the golden age of Himalayan climbing. Pugh’s techniques are still in use today, yet he has never enjoyed popular credit for his work.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverAfter Everest : inside the private world of Edmund Hillary / Paul Little with Carolyne Meng-Yee.
“Edmund Hillary is a towering figure among adventurers. His conquest of Everest and his dedication to the welfare of the Nepalese people is well known. While much has been written about what Sir Edmund Hillary did, ‘Ed’, the man behind the legend, is less well known in large part because he controlled how his story was told. The years leading up to Everest and the other great adventures are remarkable enough, but it is the drama of Ed’s later years that throws light onto the world of the private man: the death of his wife and daughter in an air crash, his remarriage to the widow of an old friend, and, finally, the falling out, after his own death, of family members and those in his inner circle. Ed’s image was that of a simple, straightforward man, but in reality he was a complex bundle of paradoxes. This is the story of the man behind the legend.”–Back cover.

Syndetics book coverThe conquest of Everest : original photographs from the legendary first ascent / George Lowe and Huw Lewis-Jones.
“Published to mark the sixtieth anniversary of the conquest of Mount Everest, this visually spectacular book features a trove of original photographs and other rare materials from the George Lowe collection, many unpublished, complemented by classic images from the final ascent. Stunning landscapes, candid portraits, and action shots describe the day-by-day moments of the historic expedition as never before.The extraordinary journey is retold from Lowe’s point of view, capturing the drama of the expedition and the personal stories of those involved. The book also includes contributions from an impressive team of mountaineers and explorers, including Reinhold Messner, Sir Chris Bonington, the late Sir Edmund Hillary, Peter Hillary, Doug Scott, Stephen Venables, Norbu Tenzing Norgay, Tom Hornbein, Kenton Cool, and Jan Morris.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverEverest / [editors, Ian Penberthy and George Lewis].
“Approximately 400 unique photographs, along with descriptive captions, transport the reader from base camp to the snow-clad slopes and ridges of Mount Everest, and to the peak itself. The Earth’s highest mountain… has long been a lure for mountaineers and explorers. The dangers of altitude sickness, adverse weather conditions, and ferocious winds make the peak tantalizingly difficult to attain. The ninth British expedition, led by John Hunt, made two attempts in 1953. The first climbing pair came to within 300ft of the summit on May 26th, but were forced to turn back after experiencing oxygen problems. Two days later New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, a Nepali Sherpa, made a second assault, reaching the summit at 11:30 am on May 29th via the South Col Route. The Royal Geographical Society’s extensive archives contain an astonishingly detailed and intimate record of the unsuccessful expeditions in the 1920s and 1930s, and the landmark 1953 expedition, with many fascinating and beautiful images captured by the photographers who accompanied the climbing teams.” (Syndetics summary)

Comicfest 2015 roundup – the podcasts!

Sadly Comicfest is over for another year, but you can relive it right here! We mentioned in our last post that you could listen to podcasts of the panel discussions on Mixcloud, but we thought it would be good to have them all here on the blog too, for your convenience. We had a great turnout to the panels, and some exciting discussion came out of them, thanks to the input of our fantastic Comicfest guests. Have a listen below!

Thursday 30th April 2015: Cartoons to comics: Sharon Murdoch, Toby Morris, Cory Mathis, Tim Bollinger & Melinda Johnston

Friday 1st May 2015: Panel: On NZ comics with Jonathan King, Tim Gibson, Matt Emery and Tim Bollinger

Saturday 2nd May 2015: New Zealand Women’s Comics with the editors of Three Words – Rae Joyce, Indira Neville and Sarah Laing, with Matt Emery

The New Zealand Collection Presents – This Week In History: 17th – 23rd May

The Kingitanga movement was established in 1858 due to concerns among some central North Island Māori tribes of alienation of Māori land and to give Māori leadership an equal status to that of the English monarchy. Korokī Te Rata Mahuta Tāwhiao Pōtatau Te Wherowhero was the fifth king. This week’s selected topic comes from the Today in History page at nzhistory.net.nz. The New Zealand Collection is located on the second floor of The Central Library. Each week we feature topics in the This Week in History display in the NZ Collection and using available databases and the library collections to illustrate and provide additional information.

18 May 1966: The Death of the Māori King Korokī

Korokī
King Koroki Te Rata Mahuta Tawhiao Potatau Te Wherowhero and others. Ref: PAColl-0671-01. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22908707

Korokī (pictured above in the centre) was the eldest son of Te Rata, the fourth Māori king. Te Rata died in 1933 and although Koroki felt unprepared to take his father’s place and felt the people were too poor to afford to support a king, he was however crowned on 8 October 1933. His feeling of being unprepared meant he made sure his successors were well educated and better prepared for the role than he had been.

Coat of Arms
Carved door, and door surround, including the coat of arms for the Maori kings (Te Paki o Matariki) at the Turongo House, Turanga-waewae, Ngaruawahia. Godber, Albert Percy, 1875-1949 :Collection of albums, prints and negatives. Ref: APG-1501-1/4-G. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22801383

This photo shows a welcoming Haka performed before Korokī makes an official speech. You can listen to Korokī making a speech here.

Mahina-a-rangi
Haka and action song being performed at Mahina-a-rangi meeting house, Turangawaewae marae, Ngaruawhahia. Original photographic prints and postcards from file print collection, Box 2. Ref: PAColl-5584-28. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22454670

You can read an article about the tangihana (funeral) of Korokī from the National Library website of the digitised journal Te Ao Hou here. The website describes the journal below;

Te Ao Hou was published from 1952 to 1976 by the Māori Affairs Department in New Zealand Aotearoa. According to its first editorial, Te Ao Hou aimed “to provide interesting and informative reading for Maori homes … like a marae on paper, where all questions of interest to the Maori can be discussed.

The journal can be accessed from the Māori Resources page via the Rauemi link on the Wellington Libraries website.

King Karokī's carved house
Creator unknown : Photograph of King Koroki’s carved house at Ngaruawahia. Ref: PAColl-9376. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22334266

Here are some of the books held in the library collection about people of note in the Kingitanga.

Koroki, my king.
“A collection of memories of King Koroki, the fifth Maori king. These memoirs have been offered by the people of Waikato” — ” The story is written at the request of Te Arikihui Te Atairangikaahu. It is to commemorate the reign of her father, King Korokī, and to acknowledge the effort and sacrifice of his people” (Inside Cover)

Syndetics book coverTe Kingitanga : the people of the Maori King movement : essays from, The dictionary of New Zealand biography / foreword by Sir Robert Te Kotahi Mahuta, introduction by Angela Ballara.
“These biographies of fourteen Kingitanga leaders, from Potatau to Te Rata, tell the story of the movement in its first century. Te Kingitanga documents the struggle with colonial authority, the confiscation of over a million acres, the establishment of the aukati (the King’s boundary), the period of self-imposed isolation in which the principles of the kingdom were developed, the refusal to compromise, and the efforts to regain what was lost. This history records also the resurgence of the movement in the twentieth century.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverKing Pōtatau : an account of the life of Pōtatau Te Wherowhero the first Māori king / Pei Te Hurinui.
“This book details the background to the Kingitanga and also tells the story of the first king, Potatau Te Wherowhero. It details all the momentous events of Te Wherowhero’s life from around 1775 to his death in 1860, including his status as Lord of the Waikato and the famous battles and conflicts with other tribes, his raising up as the First Maori King, and Mana Motuhake, the Maori Kingship, set apart as the symbol of the spiritual and cultural life of the Maori. Pei Te Hurinui’s biography of King Potatau tells this story in a Maori voice employing waiata, poetry and whakapapa as well as prose text in English and English translations so that the book is accessible to both Maori language speakers and those with no knowledge of Maori.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverThe Maori king / John Eldon Gorst ; edited with an introduction by K.O. Arvidson.
The Māori King has long been recognised as a masterpiece of nineteenth-century New Zealand Literature. E.H. McCormick thought it pre-eminent among works on the wars of the 1860s, while Keith Sinclair considered it ‘the very best of nineteenth century account of life among the Māori’ M.P.K. Sorrenson has described it as ‘one of the classics of New Zealand Literature’.” (Inside Cover)

For added interest you can head to the Times Digital Archive which can be accessed from our newspapers page from the collection of databases at My Gateway on the library website to read a letter Gorst sent to the times that was published on the 24th December 1863. And you can read a biography of John Gorst here.

Tamihana the kingmaker / by L.S. Rickard.
From the preface it reads “It was while I was reading the new edition of Sir John Gorst’s ‘The Māori King’ that I realised that Wiremu Tamihana was one of the most remarkable men in our history and also one of its least known. In spite of the important part he took in the affairs of the 1850s and 1860s, he occupies few lines in most history books…..This work is an attempt to redress the balance.”

Te Puea : a life / Michael King.
Te Puea Herangi, whom Professor John Pocock identified as ‘possibly the most influencial women in our political history’, wanted an honest biography of her turbulent life.” (Abridged back cover)

Kia maumahara : Waitangi 175 : “He iwi tahi tatou”

What a year this is for anniversaries. For many of us, top of the list is the 175 year celebration of the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi

Te Tiriti reached Te Whanganui-a-Tara with Henry Williams in April, 1840 but our whānau deliberated for 10 days on its pros and cons before committing tohu to paper on 29 April (and 4/5 May at Queen Charlotte Sound).

Waitangi 175

On Thursday 21 May from 1-2pm at Wellington Central Library, there will be a free lunchtime kōrero : Edwina Hughes, of Peace Movement Aotearoa and Dr Carwyn Jones (Ngāti Kahungunu and Aitanga-a-Māhaki), senior lecturer in law at Victoria University, will offer their thoughts on Visions for Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Nau mai, haere mai ki tō tātou whare : Come, join us for this free talk.

ComicFest 2015 is over. Thanks everyone!

2015 was our second year hosting a ComicFest extravaganza at the Central Library to coincide with Free Comic Book Day on Saturday the 2nd of May. Building on our previous year’s success, there was an impressive line-up of high calibre guests for our comics workshops, discussion panels and presentations. Thank you to all who came to take part in our drawing workshops, cosplay and manga competitions, and came to listen to comic artists, curators and historians.

A big thank you for the wonderful help and sponsorship from the NZ Book Council, Alexander Turnbull Library, NZ ComicCon, Pikitia Press, Unity Books and Weta Cave; and to GRAPHIC Comics who sponsored over 1000 comics on Free Comic Book Day.

To revisit these three great days, have a browse through our ComicFest 2015 photo galleries on our Flickr page. You can also listen or re-listen to the discussions that are now available as podcasts on Mixcloud.

Here is a small selection of images from the events :

The New Zealand Collection Presents: This Week in History 3rd – 9th May

For generations of New Zealanders ‘The School Journals’ have been part of our literacy journey. I have vivid memories of my class each being handed a journal and taking turns reading a paragraph out loud. I would run my finger along the words as others read so I would be ready for my turn. There was always such excitement when the teacher announced “turn to the play on page 12” and then we would all be anxiously waiting and hoping to get a part to read.

School Journal 1975

The stories talked about New Zealand places and people, the poems evoked New Zealand scenery and experiences and sometimes the stories and poems had art work by children. This week’s selected topic comes from the Today in History page at nzhistory.net.nz. The New Zealand Collection is located on the second floor of The Central Library. Each week we feature topics in the This Week in History display in the NZ Collection and using available databases and the library collections to illustrate and provide additional information. This week’s topic;

9 May 1907 The First School Journal published

In May 1907 New Zealand pupils were for the first time able to read a schoolbook published in their own country. The quarterly School Journal was initiated by Inspector-General of Schools George Hogben as a free publication containing information on history, geography and civics. This was a cheaper option than publishing several separate textbooks. Until 1939, when a School Publications Branch was formed, the School Journal was the Department of Education’s sole publication for children.

Wellington Central Library holds a collection of New Zealand School Journals in our Magazine Stack dating back to the 1907 bound copy.

Journals 1907

The School Journal was published by Learning Media for the Ministry of Education from 1993 until 2013, when it moved to a private publisher, Lift Education. Believed to be the longest-running serial publication for children in the world, the Journal continues to provide seven- to 13-year-olds with reading material that is relevant to their lives. Around 750,000 copies of the School Journal are published annually in four parts.

They can also now be read online here at the Ministry of Education’s TKI website.

Margaret Mahy’s first book, A Lion in the Meadow, was published in 1969 but this story was first published in a New Zealand School Journal. We hold a copy of this journal in our rare books collection A lion in the meadow, and other stories and poems / [stories by Margaret Mahy ; pictures by Jill McDonald].. We also have a recent edition of this early reader classic in our children’s collection.

Syndetics book coverA lion in the meadow / Margaret Mahy ; illustrated by Jenny Williams.
“A new Early Reader edition of this classic story from the hugely popular and award-winning Margaret Mahy When the little boy tells his mother he has seen a big, roaring, yellow, whiskery lion in the meadow, she decides to make up a story for him too and gives him a matchbox with a tiny dragon inside.” (Syndetics summary)

To celebrate the School Journal 100 year anniversary in 2007 Learning Media published the beautiful ‘A Nest of Singing Birds’, a browse of this book is sure to evoke memories of classroom and childhood.

Syndetics book coverA nest of singing birds : 100 years of the New Zealand school journal / [by Gregory O’Brien]
“A NEST OF SINGING BIRDS: 100 YEARS OF THE NEW ZEALAND SCHOOL JOURNAL by Gregory O’Brien celebrates, in lively words and gorgeous images, the publication that over the last hundred years has shaped New Zealanders – and the luminaries of New Zealand arts and letters who have featured in it.” (Syndetics summary)

Many of New Zealand’s foremost authors and illustrators have had their work published in the School Journal over the past century. They include Rita Angus, James K. Baxter, Alistair Campbell, Russell Clark, Jack Lasenby and E. Mervyn Taylor.

Here are some examples of what these artists and writers have gone on to produce or had written about them.

Syndetics book coverMāori boy : a memoir of childhood / Witi Ihimaera.
“This is the first volume of Witi Ihimaera’s enthralling memoir, packed with stories from the formative years of this much-loved writer. Witi Ihimaera is a consummate storyteller – one critic calling him one of our ‘finest and most memorable’. Some of his best stories, however, are about his own life. This honest, stirring work tells of the family and community into which Ihimaera was born, of his early life in rural New Zealand, of family secrets, of facing anguish and challenges, and of laughter and love. As Ihimaera recounts the myths that formed his early imagination, he also reveals the experiences from real life that wriggled into his fiction. Alive with an inventive, stimulating narrative and vividly portrayed relatives, this memoir is engrossing, entertaining and moving, but, more than this, it is also a vital record of what it means to grow up Maori.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverChappy
“A literary milestone: Patricia Grace’sfirst novel in ten years. Uprooted from his privileged European life and sent to New Zealand to sort himself out, twenty-one-year-old Daniel pieces together the history of his Maori family. As his relatives revisit their past, Daniel learns of a remarkable love story between his Maori grandmother Oriwia and his Japanese grandfather Chappy. The more Daniel hears about his deceased grandfather, the more intriguing – and elusive – Chappy becomes. In this touching portrayal of family life, acclaimed writer Patricia Grace explores racial intolerance, cross-cultural conflicts and the universal desire to belong. Spanning several decades and several continents and set against the backdrop of a changing New Zealand, Chappy is a compelling story of enduring love.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverRita Angus : life & vision / edited by William McAloon & Jill Trevelyan.
“This exquisite full-colour catalogue explores the life and work of Rita Angus (1908#150;70), one of New Zealand’s best-loved artists and her legacy of art in New Zealand. It features magnificent reproductions of every artwork in the exhibition, from iconic landscapes and portraits like Cass and Rutu to work never before seen in public. Includes essays from well-known writers, critics, and art historians.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverBaxter basics / James K. Baxter.
“In 1954 James K Baxter became a teacher and began writing poems for children. Here for the first time in one volume are the Baxter Basics – a New Zealand classic. BAXTER BASICS were originally published in 1979 as six poems in separate booklets: Rain, I’m a Tree, The Tree House, The Seagull, The Ships and The Firemen. They remain some of the finest examples of children’s poetry produced in this country. With their delightful original illustrations by the celebrated Lynley Dodd, Judith Trevelyan, Dawn Johnston and Ernest Papps this volume is a must have for kiwi kids and adults alike.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverJames K. Baxter : poems / by James K. Baxter ; selected and introduced by Sam Hunt.
“Including 50 poems by revered New Zealand poet and social activist James K. Baxter, this unique and accessibly sized collection offers an insider’s view of the man and his work from his longtime friend and fellow poet Sam Hunt. With a range of familiar and lesser-known poems dating from 1945 to 1972, and a substantial essay by Hunt, this compilation offers a fresh and very personal look at the work of an extraordinarily influential poet.” (Syndetics summary)

Syndetics book coverNga tau ki muri = Our future / Ans Westra.
“This timely and visionary new book includes 137 Westra photographs of the New Zealand landscape, with text contributions from Hone Tuwhare, Russel Norman, Brian Turner, David Eggleton and David Lange, who wrote a short piece for Ans as part of an unreaslied book project in 1987. Well known for her iconic black and white documentation of Maori culture, Ans Westra is also known for her colour works, which show concern for New Zealand’s destiny, “an island exploited by various waves of settlement”. Shot with Ans’ trusty Rolleiflex camera, the sometimes damning images in Our Future have been made over the last 20 years. “The purpose of the book is to give a directive to the country, an awareness of things changed and lost within its short history. If we don’t plan for the long term and keep taking stop-gap measures, we leave very little behind. Instead of becoming like the rest of the world, this beautiful place should become a shining example of hope for survival in a newly balanced environment. Ans Westra.” (Syndetics summary)