New Zealand Books

More than a biography of Harry 'Breaker' Morant, which it is, this book is a fairly good history of a little written about aspect of the Boer War. Most of the British command were fresh from their India campaign where the enemy was comparatively under equipped and poorly lead. The British were not really up to the reality of well lead, well organized, well equipped and highly motivated Boer guerrilla fighters. It was unfortunate that many of the British failures were blamed on the Australian volunteers. That said it is fairly easily understood why and how it was that Morrant and Handcock were courts marshalled and executed.
The author mixes in fictional conversation and events which at first I found a bit disturbing but I quickly adjusted and actually came to welcome them.
The book lacks an index, which I really detest and some more editing would have been welcome as sometimes it is difficult figuring out 'who said what.'
The book can be had at a more reasonable price (including shipping) from 'down under' rather than from 'The States.'

From the jacket: "Back home, as she sorts out her deceased mother's estate, Margaret Harris reflects on her time in India as mistress to a Maharajah. But there are many things that she has to confront in the present - her bullying lawyer, the aggressive neighbor, and the spectre of her faile relationship with her mother."
If you like a good Shonagh Koea book then this is another one for you.

This book is available in paperback as "Japan's Greatest Victory / Britain's Greatest Defeat." Just click on Tsuji's name and the alternative title should come up.

I was doing a report and Everest and Hillary and this book was perfect! If you wanna know about Edmund Hillary, a hero, then read this book!

My grandfather was on the second U.S. mission to the south pole and I was hoping to find a crew manifest. It wasn't included in this book, but for those collecting such historic treasures this is a good addition to the library.

Originally written as two stories, "The Soldiers Story" details the first major conflict for Australian forces in Vietnam : The battle of Xa Long Tan, August 1966. The political climate in Australia, the attitudes of young soldiers fired up by stories of heroism of past conflicts serve only to highlight the significance of this battle in Australia's military history. We are treated to an exciting blow by blow description of the battle and the courage, heroism and tenacity of men fighting for their lives. Burstall narrates the Battle in the Long Tan rubber plantation with a soldiers eye and tacticians mind.

In the second half of the book, "A soldiers return" Burstall changes pace and direction quite noticeably. In the first installment, Burstall gives the distinct impression that he was all warrior: Kill 'em before they kill you!However in the second part of the book, he returns to Vietnam 25 years later to interview the men of the VC regiment and that fought the battle and civilians who were directly affected by the activities of soldiers in the Australian sector. This was not pretty. In this story we discover that the battle meant little to the Vietnamese armed forces, that the losses they incurred were far less than Australia's official records state and that the Australian Army committed atrocities and made life hell for the Civilian population of that ravaged country.

This story is significant to historians who like their facts straight. To those of us who know the facts and regret them, it is a harrowing piece of literature that tarnishes our history and takes away any sense of hope that we as a people conducted ourselves with dignity in a most unpopular war.

I admire you for your telling your story, Mr. Burstall. I also admire your courage in confronting your demons and returning to Vietnam to give us the other side of the story. However for the sake of those that were willing to fight and the families of those that died, I wish you hadn't written it.

What an unusual life in those times, how marvellously told. A must for those interested in a life full of awakenings to all levels of life, childhood, teens, leaving the apron strings of home and an academic life. Loved the descriptive 'sea voyage' Melbourne to the "homeland", England, something we will never experience. A autobiography along with the best.

This is an academic text, mostly, not one of those picture type books. Vamplex looks critically at the role of sport in Australia, and why Australians are so interested in it to start with. He deals with sex, race, class and the history from the start of various sporting contests of all types, from individual to team, and also those including animals. Very interesting.

Claudia Orange grasps the sense of a displaced people in her book about the Maori after the Treaty of Waitunga. Unlike some other authors, who paint a sugar-coated view of the aboriginals, Ms. Orange tells it like it is. There has been an injustice over the history of New Zealand, and it still needs to be resolved. This author seems to want to set forth the facts, and enlightened viewpoint from a nation of people whose authors seem only to want to protect the staus-quo. I look forward to studying other books by Claudia Orange as I prepare my novel manuscript about a protgonist Maori who rises to great prominence so that he can help return his homeland to its rightful owners.

Dr. Gerald Menefee

This is probably a bit of a cheat, because to be totally honest the market for this book is probably about 20 people across the world. However, as I am just starting a research MA on Australia's defence relationship with Great Britain in the immediate post WW1 period, any help would be gratefully received!

The book is pretty much the only one covering its subject, but thankfully is actually written in English, rather than academic speak. At the risk of revealing my complete daggishness, I almost enjoy reading the book.

Anyway - buy it if you are one of the demented few. If you're not but just interested in what went on 80 years ago, borrow it from a library.