Ōtepoti He Puna Auaha, Dunedin UNESCO City of Literature

Neil Grant Master Potter Peter Stupples, Pamphlaterre Publications, 2021

This beautiful locally produced book is a wonderful archive of one of Dunedin’s famous potters and tutors, Neil Grant.

Full of the most gorgeous photos of decades of work (photography by Thomas Lord), this book is a testament to the passion, drive, dedication and a love of clay that has revealed a powerhouse of both domestic and decorative ceramics.

Throughout his long career, Neil Grant was always looking to extend his work and immersed himself fully in this world of discovery. This glossy book is filled with a sumptuous array of earthenware and some of the most glorious glazes that virtually jump from the page. You just want to touch them! I remember when Dunedin’s George Street was full of ceramics shops where ‘Don’t Touch’ signs were on display.

Peter Stupples provides a comprehensive study of Neil Grant’s career and the huge inspiration and guidance he provided to many students during his 40-year teaching career at Otago Polytechnic Dunedin School of Art. Highly recommended.

Irish Women’s Speeches Voices that Rocked the System, Sonja Tiernan

This extensive body of work provides a history by printing thirty-three inspiring speeches by women of Ireland from the nineteenth century to present day. This fascinating study is the first publication dedicated to Irish women’s speeches, and we get to read and appreciate how Irish women contributed to modern Irish society and to global development.

Contained in the book are rallying cries for trade union action, denunciations of apartheid, calls for independence, unionism, peace and gender equality, and many more familiar themes that women have fought for.

Prior to each speech, the reader is treated to background information about the woman’s life together with time and place scene setting. A marvellous achievement providing fascinating insights into the struggles women faced and how they worked to overcome them. Although not of Irish descent I really appreciated and admired the fortitude and determination of the women which Sonja Tiernan has chosen to expose!

Mary’s Boy, Jean-Jacques and other stories Vincent O’Sullivan

It took me ages to read this book and the reason for this is it is so compelling. In two parts the stories at the start of the book draw you in and tease until a dark surprise is revealed. These short stories are all very different and in each, there is that moment when the heart strings are tugged. “The Walkers” set in Dunedin, is an especially moving piece of writing.

The second part of the book is devoted to ‘Mary’s Boy, Jean-Jacques’. O’Sullivan’s novella picks up the story of Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein stranded on an ice-raft and vanishing into graceful oblivion in the Arctic. How would things turn out if……

This is an amazing story: time, place, people, purpose all expertly drawn to create a gothic imagining that never feels like it couldn’t have been part of the original story. Cleverly conceived all the elements of a gothic masterpiece are here, and the writing is haunting and beautiful. This book has received a lot of attention and it is all well deserved. Very highly recommended!!!

The Heretic Liam McIlvanney

This second instalment featuring DI Duncan McCormack is sure to be popular with the legions of fans who remember The Quaker. No surprises that there are multiple crimes to be investigated and personal and professional relationships navigated in pursuit of the truth. Add to the mix a vast array of characters you would expect from a gritty, top class piece of detective fiction. No-one is above suspicion.

McCormack is investigating a series of murders that seem at first to be the result of random bouts of violence among Glasgow’s poor and destitute. Always up against it, inheriting the work that no-one else wants and having to go to new depths to uncover the truth, he has access to Glasgow’s underground network gangs that many of his colleagues do not. Added to this his own secret that he guards carefully and that takes him places and introduces him to people that prove essential to his investigations.

Set in 1975 Glasgow, the descriptions of time and place form a marvellous setting for everything that takes place, good and bad. Murder, mayhem corruption, greed, intrigue, it is all here to devour!

Japanese Gardens Athol Parks

Published in 2022 by City Walks this is a little treasure. Nicely written the author provides some intimate insights into life and custom in Japan where he and his Japanese wife lived for 15 months.

This gentle read explores the philosophies around gardening and farming in Japan. The careful planning concept of ‘framing’ that takes place when shaping gardens and careful attention to detail are explored as is the ‘nature worship’ of Bonsai.

Full of many little gems into traditional Japanese beliefs and practices, this small travelogue is sure to appeal to many. Bound by Dutybound, Dunedin, the simplicity and style of manufacture is a perfect tactile complement to the subject.

Anzac Nations: The Legacy of Gallipoli in New Zealand and Australia 1965 – 2015 Rowan Light

Published by Otago University Press, this book by Rowan Light explores what the Anzac legacy means and how it celebrates ‘the best characteristics of Australians and New Zealanders when they work side by side in the face of adversity’. Further that this experience forever etched in our national identity linking ‘Australian and New Zealand citizens across the world in a national spirit, founded on the shingle of Anzac Cove.’

We are all witness to the increasing numbers of people who commemorate this important day of loss here and in Australia and beyond, and the increasing numbers of New Zealand and Australian visitors who make a pilgrimage to the Gallipoli peninsula, a place where the ‘sordid reality of death in war’ is never forgotten.

In Anzac Nations, Light brings together stories and evidence from both sides of the Tasman, offering a sweeping panorama of memory that includes writers and filmmakers, protestors and prime ministers, and public audiences who have come to see Anzac Day as their own.

The author also explores the many differences between our two nations and the writing style makes it accessible for anyone to read. A nice touch is a Glossary of Abbreviations and a Glossary of te reo Māori at the end. Highly recommended!