New Zealand/Aotearoa Recent Picks

May 2009

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Know Your New Zealand Native Plants by Lawrie Metcalf.
"New Zealand has a unique and attractive native plant life that is of interest to everyone from gardeners and trampers to students of botany and ecology. In "Know Your New Zealand Native Plants", Lawrie Metcalf introduces a selection of the most interesting, iconic and important New Zealand plants, spanning latitudes from subtropical to temperate, and altitudes from sea level to alpine mountaintop, describing their natural history and distinguishing features. This title joins New Holland's hugely successful "Know Your..." series, of which the first two titles - "Birds" and "Trees" - both reprinted twice within two years of their release. Written for a family readership and with the novice in mind, the text of "Know Your..." titles is light and easy in tone, with simple language, and is accompanied by full-page, full-colour portrait photographs." (Synopsis, www.amazon.co.uk)

Wool To Weta: transforming New Zealand's culture and economy by Paul Callaghan.
"Victoria University physicist Paul Callaghan has given a series of public lectures around New Zealand, sponsored by the David and Genevieve Becroft Foundation and the Royal Society of New Zealand, entitled 'Beyond the Farm and the Theme Park'. The lectures have been on the subject of sustainable wealth generation and culture change. Callaghan argues that if New Zealand keeps relying on tourism and farming we will fall all the way to the bottom of OECD rankings pretty quickly. What's the alternative? He argues that New Zealand's future lies in emerging industries based on science, technology, and intellectual property exemplified by companies like WETA, Fisher and Paykel Healthcare etc. Callaghan has interviewed a number of New Zealanders involved in wealth generation through science-based business, in economic thinking and leadership, in investment and in education and philanthropy. Where does New Zealand's competitive advantage lie? What should we make of the key roles of tourism and farming in the economy? Is new business development likely to come out of those sectors or from outside them? What role should government play in science and economic development? How does the culture of New Zealanders align with our possible economic futures? The interviewees have different answers to these questions and Callaghan has a strong point of view." (synopsis, www.amazon.co.uk)

Fast Talking PI by Selina Tusitala Marsh.
"Touching on the poets community, ancestry, influences, and history, this debut collection of poetry lives up to the meaning behind the artists namewriter of tales. The featured verse is sensuous but strong, using lush imagery, clear rhythms, and repetitions to power it forward. With a unique Pacific lyricism, this compendium is structured in three sections that showcase different strengths, from personal poems and political and historical verse to those already destined to become classics. Fighting against historical injustices and exploring the ideas of identity and storyespecially those associated with theafakasior half-caste experience in a postcolonial worldthis compilation will gratify fans of poetry everywhere." (synopsis, Global Books In Print)

Afghans, Barbecues & Chocolate Fish: The ABC of Kiwi Food by Jane Hingston.
"A lot can be told about a country from its cuisine, and New Zealand is no exception. From traditional Maori cuisine, to immigrant influences to modern Kiwi tucker, this small but chocka book gives you the A to Z on New Zealand food. It contains not only the food Kiwis love (or have loved in the past), but also recipes for some of our favourite dishes, introductions to some of our most famous food personalities, and shows the part food plays in our everyday customs and celebrations. This Kiwi culinary compendium will appeal to both New Zealanders and visitors to our shores. Topics covered include: the history of our well-known brands such as Vogel's, Marmite and Weet-bix, the tall tales that surround the origins of goodies like Lamingtons and Neenish Tarts, the low-down on Kiwi culinary traditions such as Christmas, birthday parties, Sunday roast and 'ladies a plate'; and a fun collection of 'did-you-know?' facts - New Zealanders eat 7 million servings of hot chips a week, crayfish can migrate hundreds of kilometres, hokey pokey is New Zealand's third most popular ice-cream, we eat nearly 2 million Jelly Tips a year." (synopsis, Global Books In Print)

A Short History of New Zealand (2009 edition) by Gordon McLauchlan.
"This highly regarded book has been in print since 2004 and has proved popular with tourists, students and ordinary New Zealanders as a lively and reliable short history of New Zealand. It has proved a handy and succinct alternative to bigger books such as Michael King's The Penguin History of New Zealand. The timeline at the end of the book has proved particularly popular. Gordon McLauchlan has been assiduously reading New Zealand history, biography and fiction for more than fifty years. He knows New Zealand as intimately and affectionately as anyone alive and has set out in this updated edition of A Short History of New Zealand to provide for the general reader an historical narrative that is personal and colourful, and stamped with the authority of a lifetime of deep interest. This revised edition includes events since the turn of the twenty-first century, including the results of the 2008 General Election." (Synopsus, Global Books In Print)

Chance Is A Fine Thing: a memoir by writer, mountaineer, campaigner, explorer and historian by Philip Temple.
"'The stories that I think worth telling are of how, as a young man, I left home on the other side of the world half a century ago and took the chance to become a New Zealander. More, of becoming a New Zealand writer now able to look back over 50 years and relate not only what happened to me, of how I grew up, but also something of how the country has grown and changed. It is about my developing relationship with my country and some of its people.' As Philip Temple explains in his preface, this is about his life and the country he chose to call home. His memoir shows how he came about this decision, how he left England at a young age, and how he came to explore and love this country, scaling its mountains and writing its stories. New Zealand has always pulled him back, despite adventures overseas, exploring previously unknown regions of the world, sailing in exciting waters, trailing through Europe, and a long love affair with Berlin. Despite all this, New Zealand became and remains his country. In an honest and remarkably diverse appraisal of his life, he reveals his personal and professional relationships, including his search for his father, the failure of his marriage, difficult times working for the Listener, and his campaigning for MMP. It is also a fascinating account of how he has made a living as a full-time writer. Compelling, thoughtful and moving, this is an important view of the last fifty years." (synopsis, Global Books In Print)

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