Freedom to Read - A Centennial History of Dunedin Public Library by Mary Ronnie

$50.00 NZD

Category: Regional

DoP 2008, Dunedin 185x245mm / 412pp Softcover with flaps A history of the Dunedin Public Library. "In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Dunedin seemed to have it all: a sizeable and growing population, commercial pre-eminence, enviable architecture and New Zealand's first uni versity. Strangely however, it was the only major city in the country without a public library." With humour and affection former city Librarian Mary Ronnie takes us through the buildings, the personalities, the collection, the controversies and the dedication that, from its earliest days, have made Dunedin Public Library one of New Zealand's most comprehensive and respected. ...Show more

Pukewa Waihi by Don Lockwood (ed)

$50.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: near fine

Price to be confirmed. A history of gold mining in the Waihi district. Pukewa Waihi is the Maori name for the hill also known as Martha in the town's centre. Martha Mone became the richest hard-rock gold and silver mine in New Zealand. It closed in 1952, reopened in 1987 as an opencast mine and is due t o close for the last time in 2007. ...Show more

Lost Christchurch by John Wilson

$16.00 NZD

Category: Architecture | Reading Level: good

Empire City - Wellington Becomes the Capital of New Zealand by John E Martin

$40.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: very good

Empire City: Wellington Becomes the Capital of New Zealand takes Wellington from the first encounter between Māori and the New Zealand Company in Te Whanganui-a-Tara in 1839 to its becoming the Empire City by the 1870s. It tells the story that began with a small and fragile New Zealand Company Pākehā se ttlement relying only on whaling and racked by earthquakes. The story is how Wellington created a durable economic base and became a thriving political and commercial centre and the capital of New Zealand. With a prospering rural hinterland, an energetic mercantile community and an expanding port, and the administrative structure of central government, Wellington in the 1870s could look forward with confidence to its future as Empire City – the central nexus of the country and the local nexus of empire. Empire City brings the story of Wellington to life, from the invasions of iwi from further north in the early 1800s and uneasy coexistence of different iwi to the purchase of land by the New Zealand Company and the beginnings of Pākehā settlement. Whaling was replaced by pastoralism, the mercantile community rose to prominence, and a viable town with a polyglot population was established. The tales are wide-ranging and compelling, from politicians butting heads, to merchants prospering and others going bankrupt, to earthquakes and shipwrecks, Māori endeavouring to keep the peace or resisting the depredations of Pākehā settlement, the impact of the military in town, the citizenry’s establishment of a variety of social institutions and their enjoyment of diverse entertainments and sports, tales of the distressed and unfortunate underclass as exposed in court, and prisoners escaping from gaol. For its long-term future Wellington needed to secure a rural hinterland but it was hemmed in by rugged hills and heavy bush and the lack of land further north. The war that erupted in 1846 consolidated British sovereignty, purchases of land in Wairarapa and the west coast and the extension of roading helped the town gain a stronger economic footing, while its commercial sector developed apace. Gaining its own provincial government allowed a voice for Wellington and the long campaign began for it to become the capital. Political deadlock and the involvement of the lower North Island in the wars for a time hindered the town’s development and its agitation to become the capital, but in 1865 what had been a long-held dream became a reality. Wellington had truly become the Empire City. In the contributions made by Māori, the New Zealand Company, early Pākehā settlers, merchants, shopkeepers, working people, worthy and less worthy citizens alike, together with a host of institutions and organisations, we appreciate how Wellington came to be from such unpromising beginnings. This diverse, rich and turbulent story is the key to understanding Wellington’s status as the capital of New Zealand. ...Show more

True Tales of the Chatham Islands by Don Armitage (ed.)

$25.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: very good

Central by Arno Gastieger; Philip Temple

$20.00 NZD

Category: New Zealand | Reading Level: very good

Shortlistd for the 2004 Montana NZ Book Awards,Illustrative section.Central Otago, a dramatic landscape of big skies, waving tussock and sweeping mountain vistas, occupies a special place in the minds and hearts of everyone who goes there. Rich in myth and history, Central Otago always seems to be evolv ing. From the gold rushes of the nineteenth century through to the 'new gold' of tourism and wine-making, this region appears to be constantly adapting and changing. But the extraordinary landscape remains the same, never losing its power to excite the senses.Arno Gasteiger's photographs, taken across a variety of seasons, capture many of the constant and sometimes inconstant elements that make up this unique part of New Zealand. Dunedin author Philip Temple describes the history and development of an area he loves to explore.Philip Temple has been exploring Central Otago for forty years. It has featured in several of his many novels, non-fiction books and guides. He has won a number of fellowships and awards for his work, most recently the Montana Book Award for Biography and the 2003 Creative New Zealand Berlin Writer's Residency.Arno Gasteiger was born in Austria and now lives with his family in Auckland. A former New Zealand Geographic photographer, Gasteiger has exhibited in Australia, New Zealand, Austria and Germany. He has been awarded the Cathay Pacific Photographer of the Year and the American Express Photographer of the Year awards and many of his works are held in collections in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Gasteiger has a special interest in the landscape of Central Otago. ...Show more

The Clarence: People and Places of Waiau Toa by Tim Fulton

$45.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: near fine

In The Clarence: People and Places of Waiau Toa, rural journalist Tim Fulton explores more than 200 kilometres of mountains, rivers and valleys bordering Canterbury and Marlborough. With its headwaters above Lake Tennyson, the Clarence has connected people for more than 800 years, from highly organised Maori settlements at the Pacific mouth to up-country trails through Molesworth and Clarence Reserve. The Clarence is vast, sparsely populated country - a wilderness carved out by earthquakes and the thrust of steep mountain ranges. People who work this rugged country understand that no one truly 'breaks in' the Clarence. It's always a wild place, spiked with danger for those who take it for granted. It's also country that breeds and nurtures incredible characters, like the musterers who keep coming to these stations for seasonal work until their legs, hips and backs can give no more. For these men and women, the grandeur and solitude of the back country is an addiction. The Clarence: People and Places of Waiau Toa captures the breathtaking majesty of this rugged region and the epic stories it holds. ...Show more

Hut and Headland by Lucy Cranwell; John La Roche

$20.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: very good

The Residents - Made in Wellington by Lucy Revill

$30.00 NZD

Category: New Zealand | Reading Level: near fine

For five years, Lucy Revill interviewed and photographed Wellingtonians on her blog, The Residents. The experience taught her about her hometown of P?neke, its resilience, and how people's personal style and values are reflected in their private spaces. The Residents: Made in Wellington is the culminati on of this project. This coffee-table book shares 38 inspiring stories about how people - some prominent, some unsung heroes - have been shaped by life in the capital. With rare vulnerability, they allow Lucy into their homes, businesses and studios, giving a behind-the-scenes look at how they live and work in food, fashion, arts, small business and more. The book features Fat Freddy's Drop's Chris 'Mu' Faiumu, twentyseven names' Anjali Burnett and Rachel Easting, Eboni Waitere of Huia Publishers, Sophie Kasoylides of The Greek Food Truck, Vijay Parbhu of Dixon Street Shoe Repairs, and Monique Fiso of Hiakai, amongst many others. ...Show more

Wises Photomaps Auckland & Gulf

$30.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: very good

Life on a Five Pound Note by Evelyn Hosken

$15.00 NZD

Category: Biography | Reading Level: good-very good

Land of Streams - Life in the Waimea County Province of Nelson 1876-1976 by Kenneth Gregory

$20.00 NZD

Category: Regional | Reading Level: very good