New Zealand Books

Good adventure novel. Interesting characters, especially the "human" ones. I thought the hero, Malcolm, was too good to be true, too "saintly" to be real. The ending leaves you hanging though. I hadn't known when I started reading this book, that it is really Book 1 of a two-part story. Make sure you can get hold of the second book "The Marquis' Secret" before you started reading "The Fisherman's Lady".

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"The Fisherman's Lady" and its sequel "The Marquis Secret" are available in a single volume, "Malcom".

This and "The Highlander's Last Song" are among his best.

An excellent gift for a University lecturer or a politicians wife.

MacDonald inspired men like Tolkien, Lewis and Chesterton. If you like tension between characters you can't beat MacDonald. The man was a genius.

Enjoy.

This book was my introduction to George MacDonald's adult fiction, and I think his best! Don't miss the sequel, The Marqui's Secret. As a child I grew up reading C.S. Lewis, John White and MacDonald's writings and developed a love for the keen insights and deep thoughts in MacDonald's novels as well as his inspirational books. Interestingly, he was the spiritual and literary mentor for both Lewis and Tolkein. They are not a lightweight romances like modern authors tend to write, but classic love story both men and women read and enjoy.

Excellent reading! This was my introduction to George MacDonald's books. Not a soppy romance as today's authors tend to write, but even one that men would enjoy reading for leisure! As I am a GREAT fan of C.S.Lewis' and Tolkien's writings, I was fascinated to find that both these author's drew a lot of their inspiration from MacDonald's writings. I have since read "The Princess & the Goblin", "The Princess & Curdie", "The Golden Key", and "The Light Princess". My husband is currently reading Phantastes and we have also bought Lilith, still to be read. I look forward to getting "The Marquis' Secret" if I can, as I really would like to follow the full story!!

I HATE abridgements. How dare Phillips assume that Christian readers, or any other readers, can't read a 400 page book. I just finished a contemporary novel of 933 pages. Because Phillips chose to cut about half of the book, what we have is a series of disjointed scenes with no clear transitions between them.

What is left after Phillip's butchery is charming, enjoyable, great fun, and clearly writing of a very high order. Macdonald provides interesting characters, deft plotting, a fascinating picture of 19th cent Scotland, and useful moral reflection. If he was not of the very first rank of writers, he was not very far below it. There some respects in which I find Macdonald to be superior to other Victorian writers, for expample, his understanding of the responsibilities of rank, and his refusal to sentimentalize his women characters.

Unfortunately, Phillips did not get the point. The original novel, to judge from the excellence of the half Phillips left us, was much more than a "Christian romance", it was a Christian work of art. Phillip's condescending assumption that Christians cannot read and respond to Christian literature as art, not just as tract, is unsufferable. Does he wish to spoon feed the Bible to us as well? This is particularly upsetting to me, because most of Macdonald's adult novels are out of print, and virtually unobtainable in their entirety.

David Morgan has written a fascinating book on the history of the Mongols and Genghis Khan. The book provides an overview of the government, religion, and politics of the Mongolian Empire and provides a very good start to understanding the Mongols. This is an excellent source to learn about one of the greatest military and social leaders in history, and is recommended for anyone who seeks a greater understanding of role of the Mongols in world history.

Morgan writes an academic book of 13th century Mongolian history, culture and building of their societal infrastructure in 1986. Avoiding the titillating slash, burn, rape and pillage aspects of their conquests, a popular depiction of the Mongolian Yellow Horde, his scholarly topics give an insider's view of Medieval Mongolian society, politics, warfare, taxation, communications, laws, and adoption of conquered peoples' technology, culture and religion.

The first illustration is a 2-page spread, Map 1 (of 3 maps) of The Mongol Empire (pxii-xiii) providing an eye-catching beginning, which stretches from Korea to Italy, and emphasizes a central grayed patch of the subjugated Middle East south of the Black to the Aral Seas. The book includes 33 b&w illustrations about 1/2-1 page each, 12 pgs of references, and a 12 pg index in the original 1986 edition (reviewed). The second edition appears to be a briefly re-edited original and adding a final Chapter 9, "The Mongol Empire since 1985," about 20+ pages, unread.

It is amazing that they did this all on horseback, an indigenous part of 13th century Mongolian culture. Siberian and Mongolian peoples have a non-materialistic culture reflecting the resource-limited landlocked region. It is amazing that this was a family-owned enterprise and its Fall was exacerbated by not building a firmer and broader governmental base of infrastructural strength and succession. For example this period included a new adoption of a written formalization of the Mongolian language (p10) (like Arabic) and conversion from a Shamanistic religion towards Islam (p44). Included is the dispersal of Mongolian bloodlines (Chap6) begetting the Cossack, Tatar and Turkic peoples and expansion of the Islamic and Moslem religions adopted from Persia in modern-day Iran.

Morgan's book is a very good read that will broaden and deepen one's understanding on how the Asiatic Mongols created a vast empire, which enslaved more than half of the world's population, during a fundamentally important century in world history. His book's admitted limitation (p6) is his lack of fluency in Eurasian and Middle Eastern languages, so he is inherently limited to English translations and their biases.

Thus his book is limited to compiling previously published works, unfortunately not really getting inside the heads of the Mongolian leadership and uncovering and interpreting the whys and wherefores of their culture and motivation. Even after perusing the 6th Century BC Chinese Sun Tzu, "The Art of War," one is still left with an unsatisfied curiosity and understanding. Perhaps a more intimate multicultural, multidisciplinary anthology on this topic will be researched and written in the future.

The Rest of the Story

The 13th century was an exciting Renaissance era of the High Middle Ages in Medieval Europe. Innovative examples were the start of non-secular universities of higher learning and adoption of the magnetic compass, gunpowder, and printing on paper technologies. Surgical medicine and mechanical clocks was invented at the time and engineers started harnessing super-human/animal power using windmills, belts and gears with machinery. Gothic art and architecture was started at this time with building fortified castles for protection and roads for trade, not war (Roman).

Later in the 14th Century, Eurasia's Black Plague killed off half of its population, a wasting systemic immune disease caused by bacterium in fleas spread by rodent hosts, originally carried by the Mongolians (p133). The spread of this disease was exacerbated by long periods of war, climatic change, crop failures and subsequent famine in conquered China and Europe. This self-limiting event effectively ended the Mongolian empire.

Even with fast horses and a nomadic society with armies of half million (p88) and their supply lines, it is hard to imagine crossing the formidable cold, high deserts of current Central Asia. Serious consideration of recent work in Palaeo-Climatology is needed to believe a century of successful Mongolian conquest. Unbeknownst to the author, a much more favorable lush grass steppes existed 700-800 years ago. Now referred as the Medieval Warm Period, the geologic record in Northern Europe coincides with a peak in solar activity named the Medieval Maximum (1100-1250). Also there is a fundamental Milankovitch theory on cyclic climatic change due to the earth's eccentric orbit and tilt wobble.

The climatological Jet Stream across Central Asia follows a southeasterly direction from the Eurasian Arctic towards the Mongolia and Tibetan plateaus, bringing much more rain to the Middle East and Central Asia, further enhancing the nomadic life style and encouraging imperialism. Palaeoclimatolgists have shown that Central Asia, the Caspian Sea region and Altai Mountain range had "a milder, less continental climate with more precipitation approximately from the 9th to 12th centuries" by analyzing sediment cores in Lake Baikal, the deepest and largest lake in Eurasia, just north of the Old Silk Road in Siberian Russia.

Additionally, NE China was wetter during the Medieval Warm Period upon analyzing pollen cores in the Maili Bog in NE China's (Manchuria) Jilin mountainous province, indicating more monsoon rains during that 200-year period. Thus conclusively palaeoclimatogists have shown that a warmer and wetter climate existed in 13th Century Eurasia thus facilitating a great surge in a hungry, mobile Mongolian population and resulted in conquest, imperialism and world domination.

And the palaeoclimatological Little Ice Age starting in the 14th Century effectively ended the Mongolian Empire precipiated by Europe's Great Famine of 1315-1317.

From teaching in the UK, Morgan emigrated to the States and is now the senior member of a staff of three in Middle Eastern History. He has been Professor of History and Religious Studies (Islam), U Wisconsin, Madison since 1999. He was recruited to grow its Middle East studies program, the smallest part of the Dept of History, College of L&S. He was Director of Middle East Studies, 2002-6, with research interests in the history of Iran and Islamic Central Asia. With a Middle East History section having 1 TA and 5 grad students, even with the CIA's current emphasis on growing America's understanding of Middle East's language, ideology and culture, only a small dent is being prepared at U Wisconsin. BA 1966, Oxford; PhD 1977 U London, thesis: Mongols in Iran; on faculty of U London's African and Oriental Studies program for 24 yrs.

In the wake of Jack Weatherford's extremely popular "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World," I'm guessing interest in Genghis Khan and his Mongolian Empire is reaching new heights. I must admit that I, too, was introduced into the fascinating world of the Mongolians through Weatherford's bestseller, so I owe him alot for introducing to me what I consider a new passion in life.

Weatherford's work, while being extremely well researched and well written, is extremely revisionist, and gives a very forgiving and optimistic account of Genghis Khan, his predecessors, and their abilities. Weatherford takes great pains to combat the traditional stereotypes of Genghis Khan and the Mongolians as barbaric, mass-murdering hordes. At the same time, I feel that since for many people Weatherford's book will be the very first people read about the Mongols, alot of people will get an impression of the Mongols that is a little too favorable and optimistic, and this is where David Morgan's "The Mongols" comes in.

"The Mongols" is, in a word, sober. On one hand, it definitely breaks away from the precedent set by medieval scholars in viewing Genghis Khan and the Mongols as purely forces of wanton destruction. Whenever Morgan evaluates a primary source, which he does often, he takes great pains to weed out any political motivations to skewer numbers and accounts that existed at the time, of which there were many. This means that Morgan never overestimates Mongol detruction, but he doesn't underestimate it either, which what Weatherford seems to have done, basing his book on select sources. I therefore recommend "The Mongols" as a good, middle-of-the-road source for establishing the historical events of the 12th to 13th century. When reading "The Mongols," one always gets a sense that Morgan is a level-headed, unbiased thinker, which is the perfect type of historian necessary for a period as tumultuous as the years of the Mongolian Empire. It's a good followup to "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World," together the two books give an good picture.

Additionaly, since this book is part of "The Peoples of Europe" collection, this book includes a special focus on the Mongols interactions with Europe, including both direct interaction in the invasions of Russia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe, and indirect interactions in the forms of the emmisaries, missionaries, merchants, and diplomats that were excanged between the East and the West. Much to my surprise, being a part of "The Peoples of Europe" series did not exclude a very thorough and extensive coverage of Mongol activity in Persia, Central Asia, and China, so when viewed as a whole, Morgan's work is still a very complete coverage.

David Morgan's hisory of the Mongols is a "must read" for anyone serioussly interested in Mongolian history and culture. This is a well written, highly readable and comprehensive study of the largest empire the world has ever seen.

Morgan's book is easily the best introduction to one of the more interesting peoples of history. It's as much an account of the historiography of Mongol studies as it is a study of the Mongol people, as Morgan details the extant sources available to modern scholars for the subject. This is important, given the scope of the Mongol empire, which at its peak reached from China to Hungary, encompassing all that was in between. Such breadth of conquest places great demands on historians, limiting anybody who is not a polyglot of the languages of the era to base their study on the region in which they specialize and translations of the other languages. A student of Persian, Morgan makes an excellent case for the quality of the sources in that language.

Still, the lack of a written Mongolian language (not developed until the reign of Chingiz Khan) means that much of the history of the empire is lost to us, and that what does exist is produced by outsiders. Nevertheless, Morgan does a first-rate job of describing its expansion and operation. He explains that the Mongols owed their incredible success to their use of mounted warriors, a natural role for a nomadic people. This heavy use of horses both gave them and also limited their conquests: Morgan theorizes that inadequate pastureland may have been a critical factor in the withdrawal of Mongol invaders from both Hungary in 1242 and Syria in 1260. But the most revealing factor of the importance of the Mongol army in its historical achievements lay in the overthrow of Mongol rule; it was in the areas where the Mongols were able to maintain their nomadic lifestyles (and thus their military advantage) that Mongol control proved most enduring. In all, Morgan provides a good, concise overview of a fascinating subject.

Miles Franklin wrote this novel when she was 18 - her language and humour are fantastic. Interesting view back into the good old days. The lady does have a few outlandish ideas for a "liberated" woman. I did enjoy this novel, wondered how much the author borrowed from her own life - since she was an unmarried writer. Definitely worth the time, I plan on reading the sequel.

I love this book. There it is, right out in the open.

Sybylla is so headstrong, so determined that I read right through the book in a matter of days. It's fun to see a young woman in the 19th century yearn so much for independence and her own destiny. That the book was considered shocking is an understatement - Franklin stipulated that the book not be reprinted until a decade after her death.

Sybylla has no illusions about life and love - she's watched her father go from a strong man she adored to an alcoholic, seen her mother become cold and bitter. Sybylla, more than anything, is convinced that she will have a brilliant career. Some hope comes early when she goes to live with her grandmother, but that ends abruptly and Sybylla learns some more hard lessons.

The book isn't gloomy, despite the sad realities of Sybylla's life in the bush. It's one of the most enjoyable books about young women out of the era. Sybylla's is no Anne of Green Gables, but she's just as enjoyable and fun to read. Of note is the very well-made 1979 film adaptation that only disappoints as we are not privy to Sybylla's thoughts which is most of the joy of the book.

I'm not exactly sure, but I think that MF wrote this book when she was still fairly young (16 or 17), and it sends shivers down my spine to think of a young girl with such energy and pride so long ago. This is a story about a girl in Australia end of the 19th century, and what happens to her when she visits other families and places and the decisions she makes. Some of the decisions she makes seem to be fairly self-destructive, and it's interesting to think about why she made them - too young to know better, too scared, not able to compromise. The heroine is a very strong character, flawed but understandable. I really, really like this book (incidentally, my ex-boyfriend found it almost unreadable). I think of it as relating to feminism; but that's just my bias. It's actually just a good yarn.

Hmm. Australian women have their own history. Is this interesting to anyone other than myself?

This book is a bit like a grown-up Little House in the Prairie but set in 19th century outback Australia rather than the Wild West of the US.

This is a story of a young, spirited woman who rebels against convention and the desire of her relatives that she marry the wealthy, and (it has to be said) highly desirable, local squatter (swoon! swoon!). Unlike Laura Ingalls, Sybilla chooses the road less travelled and refuses to marry. She follows her dreams instead.

What makes this book so remarkable is that it was written 100 years ago yet the voice of the narrator is so fresh. The book is funny and inspiring. I first read it when I was a teenager and my love for it has never diminished. If you cannot read the novel, try to see the film with Judy Davis and Sam Neill which brings the book wonderfully to life. The movie is as much of an Australian classic as the book.

Career or marriage?

My Brilliant Career is a wonderful novel that arose amidst the swarm of hop-and-skippity poems of Henry Lawson and the doggerel style of Banjo Patterson (and written by a woman as well!!)
It follows the story of a girl growing up and challenging the iron clad conventions of the 19th century society, spanning from deep poverty out woop-woop (Aussie talk for nowhere) to the dizzying heights of Sydney with the 'squattocracy'.
Sibella grows up in a typically large Australian family amidst the outback and she is sent to 'be groomed', to live with her aunt and grandmother, the genteel ladies of society. We are immersed into Sibella's head, feeling her frustration, embarrassment and happiness shine through the chapters. The few illustrations dotted amongst the novel also doesn't hamper our imagination of the character, done in sweepingly soft brush strokes that give us Sibella's essence rather than confining us (as is usual) to the one face.
She must decide between the (very temptingly handsome) rich man who courts her, and who she too loves very much. Yet if she chooses him, it signals the end of a serious career as a writer. So what would you do? More importantly, what does Sibella do? Read it and you'll find out for yourself!

So is a book about a well known person who is evil and hurts countless people a good read because he was famous and rich?

Life isn't a tabloid. Success isn't about wealth, power, and fame.

The book is a stunning gem on par with Marcel Pagnol's "My Father's Glory" or perhaps rather tindged with a speckling of Le Clezio's "Mondo".

Sometimes the most powerful stories are also about the most simple ordinary people.

"Romulus, My Father" is to literature what Ray Davies songs are to popular music; a crafted story about real people dealing with real issues, believeable and true; little bits and pieces of moody rainy afternoons and sunny summer holidays at the seaside that are woven together just perfectly.

Now go escape to your world of fantasy books and leave the real literature to people who are trying to learn about life, love, and reality, rather then escape it.

A lawyer . . . figures.

THANK YOU.

THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY

Romulus, My Father is about how a kindhearted and truthful man taught his son the meaning of life and its values, what to expect and what to feel. He gave he's son a chance to witness first hand through his life about friendship and the joy of life. The self-respect and self-gratification of being able to work. Romulus teaches his son of passion, infidelity and in the end how to cope with mental illness as a man. Setting a true example by being able to survive the true hardship of living and working in a foreign country.

"Romulus, my Father" is a brilliant story!
This book has encouraged me to read and enjoy books.

Through this book we learn the of the hard time Romulus has gone through in his life, these are real life situations and is a clear perspective on a world that shuns imagrants.

A top read, i highly encourage you to read it!

Review by ~Mad Max~
Aged 15

Raimond Gaita tells his father's story with such love for him and the people in their lives. He shows how a child can love the people in his life and find the good in these people in spite of the circumstances and trials that often surrounded them. He showed the strength and kindness of his father as well as that of Hora, his father's friend, and many others in their community. He also shows, without evident bitterness, the illness and weakness with which some were afflicted. This author drew me in so well, in the end, I was moved to tears.

Raimond Gaita's fine book is a swansong for a much loved father, an ordinary, struggling immigrant faced with the harsh reality of living in an invironment of deep myopic mistrust. This book is hugely revelatory for a son, a daughter, or loved one of any number of immigrants to Australia, and a must read for those who are looking for the real Australia, a land made by the legacy of 200 years of immigrantion, a land of harsh conditions, a rugged country and a population as much intollerant and racist as it is wonderous and diverse. The rural image of the dry scorched earth sits in the psyche of the reader as does a sons love for the father who although named Romulus was a Remus in many ways, a battler and underdog to the end.

As most of the other reviews already state, it is overall a wonderful book. The characters are interesting and the story moves forward making you want to know what comes next. The only critique I have is that I felt that towards the end it just all got a bit cluttered. It felt to me like the author was trying to resolve EVERYTHING in a few pages. To me the end was rushed. But I did overall enjoy reading it and would recommend it to others.

I really wanted to like this book, based on other people's opinions of how good it is. Unfortunately, the characters leave me cold, I don't care why one of them is mute--the whole Amazon/rubber thing disinterests me (I was hoping that would change). 75 pages were enough for me. I recommend "Away" and "The Dive From Clausen's Pier," both page-turners.

Wow! I just finished the last page, and that was the word that came out of my mouth. For a first novel, this author should be proud. This is an incredible story of one man's harrowing journey through the intense Amazon jungle to pursue his dream, collecting rare and unidentified butterflies. As you begin the story, you think this is going to be the main theme, a group of male naturalists battling the sweltering heat and bombardment of stinging and biting insects extraordinaire, enduring all hardships to capture their prized specimens. But oh how wrong that assumption is. This story starts slow, and rather meandering, increasingly getting eerier and eerier, the suspense building quietly and with a level of intensity that has the reader constantly on the edge. It soon becomes apparent that there is more than meets the eye out there for our hero Thomas, in a jungle ripe with not just the flora and fauna these men seek. We find much much more than colorful butterflies and howling monkeys. Oh yes,..mischief, mayhem, mysterious and monstrous acts unravel. I liked the back and forth strategy that the author puts in place by alternating what is happening both in Brazil for Thomas, and back in England with his lonely wife Sophia. It sets the pace to keep the suspense and allows both characters stories to become interesting. If you are tired of the same old plot lines and mundane novels that you pitch half way through, try this innovative and creative debut. You will not be disappointed. It's writing style finely crafted, and plot well rounded in story line and character depth. Bravo!

Nouveau riche Brazilian rubber barons throw away money on the frivolous things like sending their soiled clothing to Europe for cleaning. They treat their pets like royalty and their employees as expendable slaves discarded if unable to perform the horrific field work. Anyone who objects to the abusive maltreatment is killed.

In 1904 English naturalist Thomas Edgar comes to Brazil in search of a rumored new butterfly species. Several months later, he comes home, a shell of his former enthusiastic self. Although outwardly she shows her spouse little emotion beyond welcoming him home, his wife Sophie, horrified by the scars all over Thomas' body and his withdrawal, needs to know what happened to her silent her idealistic husband because she plans to heal him with her love.

THE SOUND OF BUTTERFLIES is a fantastic historical tale that provides a vivid light on a cruel Dickensian period in Brazil. The story line moves back and forth between January 1904 in Brazil and May 1904 in England connected by a journal, letters and the perspectives of what happened to the naturalist from that of his wife and himself. Adding to the fascination of this powerful early twentieth century character study is the parable of searching for the perfect specimen in a world of cruelty, abuse and imperfection. Rachael King provides a somber glimpse of inhumane treatment and its aftermath on one person and his spouse that still resonates today in a world of genocide, ethnic cleansing and rationalized rendition.

Harriet Klausner

For some reason I wasn't expecting this to be a historical novel when I picked it up, but I was quickly drawn into the period it recreates. I definitely was captivated by the story of Thomas' search for a fabled butterfly (and the recognition and security it would bring him) and the story of Sophia's search to discover why her husband returned from Brasil a mute.

I was equally captured by how skillfully the author explored the growing autonomy of women in turn of the century England.

All the reviewers comment on the skill and beauty of the language so rather than talk about that I'll just point in their direction and wait for Rachael King's next novel to be published.

Percy Cerutty was certainly an energetic and entertaining character who took his own near death experiences into an extraordinary fitness life style transferring into a fitness coach, a highly competent masters runner and a successful yet erratic coach. He strikes me as being as Australian version of the late great Yankee coach Casey Stengel who although a competent coach, was also a great entertainer and showman made famous for his wise cracks. Cerutty was as famous for some of as his antics and his often conflicting abrasive style as well as his unique coaching that encompassed capturing an animalistic form of competitive spirit, efficiency of running form and off track running. Sims captures Cerutty with his unique lifestyle set up by his long-term illnesses that almost killed him until he underwent a dietary change and exercise. Once a promising miler, Sims describes Cerutty as an unusually successful over 40s runner who competently ran marathons into his early 50s and remained a physical specimen all his life. The exciting part of the book is Cerutty's coaching of the Australian greats Landy, Macmillan and Les Perry. Of course, the career high point is his protégée Herb Elliot going undefeated in the mile/1500 through the fantastic 1960 Olympic dominating 1500 victory. The fascinating part of the book is Cerutty's personality that could be overly forthright and abrasive such as explaining to Roger Bannister why his form was inefficient and then conducting a demonstration. His low point is bad mouthing Landy after Landy ran one of the fastest miles in the world with a break through run, assuming that Landy was soaking up the glory on his own to reporters, causing a severance that never completely healed. Another unusual moment was accepting a so called expert's theory on the importance of warming up in double sweats that was tried right before an Olympic final probably costing Macmillan a medal. The training is not quite as detailed as one would like but Sims captures the overall program that consisted of weight workouts, dune running to endure beyond the lactate threshold, off track training allowing more physical freedom and living the life of a "stotan". His training compound on the Portsea was Spartan like in its unique seaside location but appears to have been a great get away from standardized training or intervals three times a week that was a 1950's rage promoted by a coaching rival. Often rejected by the Australian Olympic committee, Cerutty was a unique and hard character that emerged with Elliott as his great success. Quite a unique story and person captured well by Sims along with some great detail on the Olympics of that period. As a distance runner, Cerutty makes you appreciate the opportunity to get to a park and enjoy an off road run.

Cerutty was definitely an extraordinary character, but "maker of champions" or any other such label is very generous. Specifically, his antics drove Landy away, which led to Landy actually developing his own training and Cerutty then taking the credit for making the world's fastest man. In other words, he was kinda sleazy.

This fascinating biography of the legendary Australian track coach Percy Cerutty, based on his cache of personal writings and interviews with his inner circle, portrays a visionary thinker whose fusion of philosophical, biomechanical, naturalistic, nutritional and motivational theories into a "Stotan" approach to athletics and living remains as compelling today as it was during the peak of his popularity in the 1950s and 1960s.

While Cerutty's coaching relationships with milers John Landy and Herb Elliot have been examined in a number of other works, this book sheds new light on the turbulent childhood, adolescent and early adult years that forged his volatile temperament and laid the groundwork for his theories. What emerges is a picture of complex man with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and curiosity for his environment, which led to a number of groundbreaking theories that won admiration from many. To its credit, the book's even-handed dissection of Cerutty's character gives equal shrift to his manic-depressive tendencies, self-destructive behavior, and the inflammatory outbursts that soured many friendships and spawned a large contingent of detractors. Graem Sims also captures the tension between Cerutty's strong drive to profit from his theories and his refusal to affiliate himself with individuals or projects that offended his Stotan principles.

The book probably won't silence those who view Cerutty as a charlatan who just happened to become associated with talented young men bound for athletic glory with or without his assistance. But it reinforces my conviction that this enigmatic fellow, who ran sand dunes, moved heavy weights and ran six-minute miles well into his sixties, was one of the most important thinkers in the history of athletics. His emphasis on doing things the natural way and disdain for modern trappings and conveniences are particularly meaningful in light of the doping scandals currently rocking the sports world.

-Kevin Joseph, author of "The Champion Maker"

To know Percy Cerutty was to be castigated, scorned and sometimes to question your very existence. Cerutty's goading of athletes would hardly have survived this litigious age. Yet as a runner at his Portsea International Athletics Centre in the sixties, I was drawn to the sheer force of his personality, his originality in research and running, his discourses and attitudes in philosophy, the extraordinary way he almost floated over the ground as he ran, and his lectures at "the circus", the small sandy circle where he held his audience in awe. Cerutty had a simple test of "manliness" and propensity to succeed - if you could survive Portsea and his outbursts, then you could survive most things. Many didn't, but others went on to become world champions in running, cycling, and other sports, and I was privileged to meet some of them. Cerutty coined the term "stotans" deriving it from the greek ancients of "Stoics" and "Spartans."

Graem Sims has researched Percy Cerutty's life very thoroughly and written a long overdue book; a task I had once contemplated myself. In keeping with current storytelling fashions, he starts at the end (of Percy's life), but then traces his entire history. Cerutty really lived two lives; one up to the age of 44 when his health had been devastated by smoking, physical inactivity and early pneumonia and poor diet, and he was given less than two years to live, and the second beginning with his recognition of his need to survive, and embracement of new rules for living, eating and working. To this he added his prolific background of reading in all subjects from theology to science, and his extra-ordinary capacity to experiment and research movement and fitness from first principles. Graem's book provided fascinating insights into aspects of Percy's life that I had not known. While he includes numerous stories of Cerutty's famed biting comments and cantankerous nature, he does not dwell on them in a sensationalist way; rather he explores the whole rich canvas of Cerutty's life and its directions. Many of Cerutty's antics, for example, were deliberate attempts at publicity to attract people and an income to his athletics centre; the sheer diversity of his ambitions and his complex character however often become self-destructive. There are character and biographical sketches of many people who were connected or disconnected with Cerutty, at a time when Australian middle distance runners held world stage, and reproductions of numerous photos including the earliest shacks at Portsea, many from a cache of suitcases unopened for a quarter-century. Cerutty was a model of independent and unbiased research - Graem's biography includes the development of Cerutty's ideas on movement from studying the motion of horses for hours; methodologies which had more in common with the great scientists of the renaissance than the deductive processes in modern laboratories.

This book is not just for Cerutty aficionados and athletes; as a personality, philosopher and scientist, he makes a fascinating subject for anyone interested in the subject of what makes us tick, physically, mentally and emotionally. Much of what he said and did half a century ago is highly relevant to the current era of cloning, bio-ethics and the passion for computerised simulations which take the place of real life. Graem has provided a well-balanced biography of a man who had us eating raw foods and oatmeal decades before the term muesli was heard in Australia, moving heavy weights twenty years before gyms and fitness regimes were embraced by more than dedicated athletes, and a holistic approach to life and ethics that preceded the rise of eastern philosophies into western thinking. A book that I couldn't put down, and highly recommended

Those who have met him would realize that something has been ignited within them. Regardless of whether those people agree or disagree with him. Their latent wildness is awakened and their fighting instinct is switched on. They become independent as a human being who decides their own path and who does not rely on others.

He would have achieved many successes if only he had played things better. But in the face of success, success almost always ran away. He was indeed the doomed type. It could be said it was inevitable. A person should not be controlled by another. Cerutty expressed this ideal both intentionally and unintentionally.

Irrespective of the class or the position of the people he was with, he continued to be himself. He lived his life on his own initiative and responsibility without belonging to any group.
He followed his inner voice right through to the end, no matter what others said. He was just Cerutty to the very end.

Cerutty - a man who pursued the truth, who chose solitude and finely honed his sensibility. He kept on expressing through his body what the joy of living and freedom are. His powerful message still appeals to us even now, 30 years after his death.

So, what's the difference to the '99 edition ? Well, not much... The pro's : - 127 new vineries included and still written in the same Parker'ish style

The con's : - still no vintage charts (neither regional nor individually, which is a shame) - Also a listing (classification) of the best producers would be nice

It would also be nice to have some sort of description of the various regions, (eg for advise of where to get the best varietals/grapestyles)

Some pictures (labels) would be nice also, by the way..

But, nevertheless...this is still a good book, so if you need those updates (like I do !) , then you gotta have this issue.

Final word: I give this book 5 stars, basically because there's no competition - there's still room for some improvements...

Being an avid 'winey', and an Australian, I was excited to receive the bible on Antipodeon wines. Well I was a little disappointed; If you are thoroughly versed with the regions in Aus and NZ, then this is perfect for you; But being 8 years removed from my country, I discovered that the lack of info on specific regions was a negative for this publication. I find Hugh Johnson's guide a far more useful tool(although he does not reference the wineries as thoroughly).

an essential travel and buying guide for oz wines. arranged alphabetically by producer but wish there was also an index by region. for that purpose check out the pocket-sized wines of australia by the same author

This wine is a good guide for those interested in Australia & New Zealand wine. I do have two quibbles: Mr. Halliday does not seem to always specify when a particular wine is available in the US, and the index is a mess. All the wines are indexed according to the region they're from - so you can't just look up Hunter's, Allan Scott or Cloudy Bay in the index UNLESS you know what region they're from! I feel this second quibble is actually a somewhat serious problem that should be adjusted in future editions. Otherwise, a great sourcebook.

James Halliday has done it again. This is still THE bible of AU/NZ wineinformation. In this new 2001 edition, we finally (a long time wish) see a rating of the best AU & NZ producers of various grapes (eg CS, CS blends, Shiraz's, etc). Some vintage information is also included now. Again, even more producers are included (than the previous year) and the books seems to grow and grow.. I still would like some label-photos, although..

Verdict: a 'must buy' for anyone who wants a thorough overview of the best wines/producers/vintages/etc of Australia and New Zealand...

i was touched by this supernatural romance. it was written with heart and i believe that the only downside is there is no sequel.
the book is trully supernatural in its own way.

I love this book! It combines romance and the supernatural with the tale of a young girl trying to come to terms with the fact that she's almost an adult. Add a sick brother and a mysterious boy-witch named Sorensen Carlisle, with a dash of family discord, and a touch of fantastic imagery and wording, and you have this book. The more you read it, the better it becomes

This is a fantastic book combining elements of mystery, suspense, and romance with a touch of magic. You cannot help but relate to both of the main characters as you get swept up in their adventure of recovering a little brother and coming to terms with who they are.

Mahy did a very good job on expressing a teen girl's feelings. She had to decide for her own life or her little brother's. A book packed with different emotions and has a good point.The I got was that you are and will be yourself and nobody is going to change that. Laura is a girl like every other, but with different thoughts and feelings!!!

The book the Changeover is a great. It is very well written; Margaret Mahy did an excellent job! In this book Laura Chant's little brother has been marked by an evil Lemure named Carmody Braque. Braque slowly sucks Jacko's life out of him and no one knows what the is really wrong with Jacko except Laura. In a desperate attempt Laura asks Sorry Carlisle, a witch, for help. Now, the only way to save Jacko is for Laura to go through a changeover and become a witch. She then must mark Carmody Braque before it's too late! Will she be able to save Jacko? Read this book and find out.

The late Sarah Murgatroyd has written a well researched and poignant account of this tragic expedition. Though l hesitate to use the word expedition, as it was poorly led and planned, perhaps a mad rush in the bush is a better description. Many times as a child l used to gaze at the statue of Burke and Wills, (Melbourne is my home town), when l visited the Museum and wondered how they died and why was that statue there. My schoolbooks portrayed them as tragic heroes, but l felt sorry for John King as these books seemed to minimize his achievement of survival

This book finally gives King the credit he deserves for his amazing survival and the tenacious ability he displayed to achieve this. Unfortunately his health was broken by the experience and he suffered much mental angiush for the remainder of his short life. This anguish, l suspect, derived from the charade he was forced to be a part of upon his return to Melbourne.

He was very critical of the Exploration Committee on the way back to Melbourne after his rescue but was stunned by the reception he received in Victoria on the way back to Melbourne where he was lauded as some type of hero. It was just too much for this quiet and unassuming man. He had to play along and hold his true thoughts about the Exploration Committee to himself. He was up against too much public emotion and powerful interests to upset the applecart, l also believe he felt very guilty about his survival.

This book captures the vastness and emptiness of the Australian interior and yet also describes the beauty of the outback. I have lived in the outback myself while working at remote weather stations. The description of the climate, landscape and vegetation of the part of the outback that the expedition traversed is concise and correct.

This book also gives an account of the expeditions of the explorer; the very able and resourceful John Macdouall Stuart and gives him the credit he richly deserves as a an explorer and a surveyor.

Like the trek it describes, 'Dig Tree' is almost successful. There's no denying that a lot of research went into this book, and in some ways, that's what holds it back. It's almost like Ms Murgatroyd is afraid to leave anything out.
The book also has too many editorial gaffes--wrong tenses, left out words--they're minor, but annoying. Whether or not they are the author's is beside the point, they should have been caught.
I'd certainly keep this on my Burke & Wills shelf--but the classic for me is Alan Moorehead's 'Cooper's Creek.'
Although I doubt Moorehead had access to all that Murgatroyd did, he still manages to tell the story with a great deal more panache.

The book describes the (unfortunate) journey of Burke and Wills and gives a good overview of other explorers of Australia. The author has a great ability to recreate mid-19th century Australian life and views. Overall, this is a superbly researched book that captivates the reader.

An excellent read that both informs and entertains. Ideal for anyone who has interest in Australia, Australian history or exploration. It may not be that interesting for those without these interests

Sarah Murgatroyd does a terrific job of assembling a compelling story of a doomed expedition across Australia. She carefully pulls together pieces from diaries, old news accounts, and official records, and even throws in insights into human and camel physiology when necessary.

The story moves along with interesting characters and sometimes heartbreaking events. Importantly, Murgatroyd grounds everything in historical research, giving her account valuable credibility.

If there's a weakness in this book it is only because the author does so well bringing the reader close to the events. You want the book to go one further step and recreate the conversations among the explorers, but of course it cannot do that.

This is a great book for anyone interested in adventure or Australian history.

Australia's desolate interior evokes much legend. Dominating the legends are the traverses of European explorers in the region. Among these legends, that of Burke and Wills retains a lofty status, one Sarah Murgatroyd may have forever toppled. She has given the tradition of explorer heroics a strenuous airing with this book. Few reputations are left unsmirched, but her real assault centres on the incompetence of the expedition's leader, Robert O'Hara Burke.

The author relates how Burke left Melbourne, Victoria, in 1860 with several ambitions, muddled instructions and devoid of capabilities to manage the task. Behind his straggling team were a cabal of businessmen intent on extending Victoria's borders. Beyond that, they also hoped to initiate a telegraph line route to Asia, thence to London. In competition with Adelaide to the west, both cities had sponsored expeditions to traverse the continent from south to north. Others had made the attempt, but the travails of crossing a land intolerant of blundering had thwarted them all. Burke was aware of a major competitor in the figure of Charles McDouall Stuart who had nearly succeeded before turning back. Burke, among other things, saw the enterprise as a race - which he intended to win.

Murgatroyed demonstrates how that aspect, among others, doomed the expedition from the beginning. Burke's undue haste led to launching the trek at the worst time of year. He quarreled with subordinates, sacked members of the team and scorned delays occasioned by scientific studies. His fatal error was in dividing the group, ultimately leaving most of his companions behind to make a dash to the northern sea. It was the fragmenting of the expedition that led to conflicting priorities and delays. In the end, not able to actually observe the sea, three survivors of the dash north returned to the rendezvous point to find the word "Dig" carved in a tree. It wasn't enough to save the two leaders surviving the journey.

In analysing Burke's actions, Murgatroyd contrasts them with others, some having set out to rescue the lost venturers. As she points out, the business leaders of Melbourne enhanced the already general view that the only thing considered more "heroic than a successful explorer was a dead one." Melbourne now had two in Burke and his subordinate William Wills. The legend of their heroism was almost manufactured by those who'd sponsored the expedition. The hagiography surrounding the pair has persisted in strength for over a century.

Murgatroyd dispels that idolatry effectively. She cannot be faulted for viewing the past with modern eyes as some are led to do. As a journalist's account, the book is not footnoted, although she provides a good reading list. Her style is open and forthright, keeping the reader close to the events related. She speculates but little, and her judgements are conveyed in sharp contrast. Various persona are portrayed in scathing terms. Even those driven by events escape but narrowly. Her account will dismay some, but none sink into ennui. Her rendition of a complex story makes excellent reading. Her loss to journalism is severe.

If not for anything else he did in his life, this man should be remembered for setting up the first weather forecasting service in England during the middle nineteenth century. That he was the Captain of the "Beagle" when Charles Darwin sailed on it as 'naturalist'; is not half as important as he was the one who set in motion the random currents that caused Darwin to be on the ship for its' full five year plus voyage.

He was a remarkable man who because he was also humble and self-effacing never ended up getting the critical acclaim that his life's work demanded. His five year voyage on the "Beagle" resulted in the most detailed mapping of the South American continent from the Plate to Valpariso, and especially the area around Cape Horn and the Straits of Magellan. So detailed were his maps that they were used for over 100 years.

During the voyage, he also determined all of the meridians and set-up their places on maps by which other sailors were able to determine their place anywhere on the earth at any time. Later, he devised a system by which ships could be signaled at sea that a major storm was brewing created the "gale warning" system. His work on meteorology was the first to use telegraphy to coordinate the capture of weather statistics so that information could be printed in newspapers the same day. He also devised the first two day weather forecasting, including the coining of the word 'forecast'.

The story of his life and accomplishments is well written, and well documented, besides being entertainingly presented. Great Biography.

This work, by John and Mary Gribbin, combines a deep respect for Robert FitzRoy and his achievements with sound research. The end result is a book that is accessible to anyone with an interest in this complex and multi-faceted man.

Described by Charles Darwin as being 'A very extraordinary person', Robert FitzRoy served Britain as a naval captain (most famously as Captain of HMS Beagle), as a Governor of New Zealand, and in the field of weather forecasting.

While covering the voyages of HMS Beagle, this book provides information on FitzRoy's governorship of New Zealand as well as his achievements in weather forecasting. Along the way, we obtain glimpses of the struggle between a greater understanding of science and a deep innate religious conservatism. Robert FitzRoy tragically took his own life a few months before his 60th birthday.

A fascinating book about a fascinating man.

Highly recommended

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

I got this book because I am playing Fitzroy in Timberlake Wertenbakers play After Darwin. It has a wealth of information on the good Captain and enabled me to find a pathway into his mind that would not have had otherwise. The combination of excepts from the Narrative, Sullivan and Usborne's journals, and the record of Darwin himself paint an honorable picture that Fitroy would have been happy with. The recounting of the loss of a ship to the Fuegians on the voage preceeding Darwin is particuary interesting.

The father of weather forecasts and explorer of South America. Robert FitzRoy will be remembered by me. This book tells us about a great British aristocrat who gave more than he took. I love Patrick O'Brian and this could have been his but it is real story about a real person. FitzRoy was a remarkable man who history has pushed back to the shadows and labeled Darwin's Captain. FitzRoy, whose family is descended from Charles II, becomes a beloved British Man-o-war Captain, explorer, politician and eventual Vice Admiral. Mr. Gribbin gives us a picture of one of the last explorers and scientific innovators who charts South America, tries to support native rights in New Zealand and gives the world weather forecasting, yet is forgotten. His end did not justify his life. He was an amazing man who deserved more. He was faithful to his family, his country and religion. A good man and a great read.

The figure of Fitzroy lurks in the background of the Darwin saga and it is actually quite refreshing to draw him out on this score, both because of the interest in his life and work on its own terms and also for the light it throws on Darwin's early explorations in biology. Fitzroy's achievements in weather forecasting are little known, and his contribution to Darwin's education no doubt proceeds indirectly from the context of disciplined and meticulous scientific work in the Beagle's prime mission.