New Zealand Books

I found this a fascinating look at colonial life, with much excellent firsthand information. A valuable and interesting work!

I had the priviledge of reading this book while being taught by the author. Prof. Terrill was my Australian Society and Politics Professor in 2003 at the University of Texas @ Austin. He was a very dry lecturer yet I could never turn away. The depth of his knowledge was never-ending. The subject was made great by him. The book is even more exciting than the stories and events he told in class. I hope to see and hear more from him in the future. Now I'm planning to go to Autralia in the future. All I can say after reading this book and taking Terrill's class is Australia Rocks!

There is a cattle station - Barra Creek - in the wild Gulf country of North West Queensland of Australia on a tributary of the crocodile-infested Norman River.

Sally Mitchel impulsively takes a job as a governess at Barra Creek. Hundreds of miles from any town and no contact except the mail plane, The Flying Doctor and the School of the Air. The children have to use every day as there is no school except by radio and home tutoring by the governess.

Her boss is overpowering John Monroe and his strict and proper wife Lorna. John Monroe late at night often wanders down to the aboriginal stockmans camp to join them for drinks around a camp fire. The white women are told to never come near at night time, as its not safe.

Sally sleeps on the verandah in the unbearable heat with the three young boys. The boys put a snake in her shoes, play awful pranks on her to scare her away in the beginning.It used to work scaring off all the other governesses. But Sally is determined to stay she has nowhere else to go.

The challenges of her three charges, wild stockmen, the heat and the wet, a great passion, cattle musters all fade compared to a great loss and a gruesome death.

An Outback Family Saga you won't be able to stop thinking about when you are finished. This story would make a wonderful movie.

With the controversy that surrounds Australian and US involvement in Vietnam one approaches any book about that conflict with trepidation.
There are too many people with agendas to push, even more so than most other wars.

So I was pleasantly surprised by this book about Long Tan, a battle that is little known outside Australia (though its anniversary is Australian Vietnam Veterans Day) but which demonstrated the courage and ability of the Aussies didn't end with WW2. It demonstrates a sense of balance about the controversial events. and doesn't fail to criticise people and practices where the commanders feel this justified. The book also debunks some of the revisionism, notably that promoted by the Vietnamese themselves, regarding NVA number and casualties and whole ambush question.

Also covered in some depth is the legacy of Vietnam to the Australians who fought there, many of them conscripts, and the vexed question of medals awarded and not awarded.

A good read, not just for Australians and those interested in the Vietnam war.

"Before your kids drive you crazy" is a book by Nigel Latta which addresses the issues that many parents face with the complexities of raising children and wanting to do the best.

The preface "Never mind the kids... save yourself!" is Nigel Latta's reminder to all parents that you are more likely to raise a balanced, happy child if you yourself are not crazy. His advice - you must stay sane at all costs! He tells us how we might achieve this with thoughtful advice on the main problems areas that parents face.

The chapters are:
The Rules
Inside Little People's Brains
Sleep
Eating
Number Ones and Number Twos
Naughty Little Boys and Girls
Keeping Safe
Putting it All Together
Driving Home on Night

Nick Latta's style makes you laugh with his honest comments and advice. I was chuckling as I read despite the fact I felt desperate and at a loss when I bought the book. He empowers parents to take control when the situation feels completely out of control and he does this with gentle humour.

This is an amusing, well written and helpful book.

This book covers basic but interesting issues of Australian studies. At the same time, this is a good introduction of Aus society. This book is insightful not only researchers but also general readers.
Her way of writing is quite simple but adequate. Although my English is second language, I did not face any difficulty in reading this.
Good companion for studies, commuting etc...

When Being Pakeha by Dr. Michael King was first published in 1985, it was acclaimed as being the first serious analysis of what it meant to be a non-Maori New Zealander. "The message is that being Pakeha is worth no more or less than being Maori. Maori and Pakeha are both indigenous to New Zealand. His claim that it was basically alright to be Pakeha, first aired in the mid-1980s, was then very courageous, given a political climate where Pakeha were increasingly encouraged to feel guilty about the sins of their forefathers," states Professor Howe.

Part memoir, part apologia and part celebration of a country and its peoples, Being Pakeha is an exciting and controversial journey into the hinterland of the national psyche by New Zealand's most respected writer of history and biography.

An often moving account of the lives of a group of young mountaineers at Mount Cook in the 60s and 70s. This autobiographical book can be enjoyed on two levels: at one level, the reader can read about the lives of those who struggled so hard to make a living out of doing what they loved - climbing - and at another level, the author's reflections on what mountaineering means to those who are involved. Anyone who climbs, who knows someone who climbs, or struggles to understand the rationale behind this activity in the light of the recent disasters on Everest, will find this book deeply rewarding.

This is one of the best guides I have ever found to any country!

It is first and foremost an excellent guide to birdwatching localities all around New Zealand. Rather than just describing the essential sites for twitchers rushing around the country to tick off all endemics as quickly as possible, this book tells you what birds are to be seen in just about any corner of this spectacularly beautiful land. It even mentions what other wildlife, if any, is to be seen besides birds at the same spots.

It also has a useful photographic guide to the birds of New Zealand, giving both essential identification info and multiple site recommendations for each species both on North and South Island where relevant. While this part of the book is no substitute for a comprehensive and light field guide to birds, it does cover most species of interest, including most endemics.

Anyone interested in the fauna of New Zealand should buy a copy - while it seems hard to get here, the book is still readily available on Amazon's UK site, or in New Zealand itself.

This is a terrific book. Read in conjunction with John Birmingham's 'Leviathan: an unauthorised biography of Sydney', you will get more than a working knowledge of how and why Sydney is like it is.

Flannery has written an introductory essay 'The andstone City', which gives a good overview. The bulk of the book is an anthology of voices from the earliest days to late 19th century -from Captain James Cook to Mark Twain, Aboriginal women, and British governors.

2000 saw a plethora of books on Sydney, as it hosted the Olympic Games. This is one of the best.