The sequel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and set shortly after the events in the first book, The Marvellous Land of Oz follows the adventures of a young boy named Tip, who, for as long as he can remember, has been under the guardianship of a witch named Mombi in the Land of Oz. One night he plans his escape to the Emerald City, stealing Mombi’s powder of life. Along the way he meets with our old friends the Scarecrow and Tin Woodman as well as making some new ones such as Jack Pumpkinhead, the Wooden Sawhorse, the Highly Magnified Woggle-Bug, and the amazing Gump. Can they escape Mombi and make it to the Emerald City?

A fantastical tale of endless imagination, The Marvellous Land of Oz is as exciting and endearing today as it was when first published over eighty years ago.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 120

Publication Date: 25-01-2013

Be inspired by the courage of this hard-working Southland farmer who led the First Commando Fiji Guerrillas in World War II. My parents were an exceptional couple. Their characters and influence in the local community, the farming world and in a much wider sphere were significant. My father’s contribution to the war effort in the Solomon Islands, and the well-deserved Silver Star awarded to him by the Americans, is a unique story that you will not find in many of the war histories. My mother also made a huge impact in her community and was awarded a QSM for her work. ~DICK TRIPP A more enjoyable glimpse into the life and times of one of this community’s cornerstone families I haven’t ever experienced. ~Tracy Hicks, Gore District Mayor What better way do we have to learn other than from those who have gone before us. ~Ian (Inky) Tulloch, former Mayor of Gore District What an interesting and unique book this is! It combines two things that New Zealand readers love: tales of how our back country was tamed, and action adventures of our modest war heroes. ~Dr Bob Robinson, Laidlaw College

Bind: paperback

Pages: 86

Dimensions: 148 x 210 mm

Publication Date: 15-03-2019

I was filled with the growing hope that my door to freedom lay through the Ouija. And first and foremost in pursuance of my plan, I aimed at inveigling the Commandant into the spiritualist circle and making him the instrument of my escape. The news that there existed a buried treasure which the Turks were seeking gave me an idea of how to do it…

Captured during the First World War, Lieutenant E.H. Jones (a Welsh officer in the Indian Army) and Lieutenant C.W. Hill (an Australian serving in the R.A.F.) were prisoners of war at the Yozgad prison camp in Turkey.
Duty-bound as officers to attempt escape, Jones sensed that what had previously been the harmless fun of fooling around with a homemade Ouija board could be turned into something much more productive. Playing on the credulous nature of their captors, Hill and Jones weave an incredibly elaborate plot, hatched to plan their escape. Acting as mediums for the Ouija board, they attempted to convince their captors that they were gradually descending into insanity – which, had it been true, would have seen them repatriated.
A true story of bravery, dedication and extreme hardship, this book is a fascinating insight account of a daring escapade, a narrative that deserves to be brought back into the public eye.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 160

Publication Date: 26-04-2013

A moving and insightful biography of the later years of classic British author E.M. Forster's life. \n Tim Leggatt knew E.M. Forster for the last half of his life, decades after the last of his acclaimed novels was published, and in this memoir he draws on the unpublished correspondence he held with Forster over this period, as well as journals of their travels together, Forster's own confidential diary and his Commonplace Book. 'In Forster's declining years,' Leggatt writes, 'his thoughts often concerned sex and his health, his increasing blindness and deafness, his hospital visits, all of which led him to think about death and how he would meet it and how others did. But this was not as gloomy as it may well sound. 'He was much concerned about the world's growing population and in this country about the disappearance of the countryside. I have also included many of his sharp and attractive descriptions of people and scenes, those of a very perceptive and thoughtful writer.'

Pages: 120

In his novels Dickens presents a series of unrivalled portraits of women, young and old. From Little Nell to Miss Havisham, these girls and women speak to us today, making us laugh and sometimes cry. The popular British actress Miriam Margolyes will be touring the world in 2012, the bicentenary of Dickens birth, with a one-woman show about Dickens' women, and this book accompanies the show by building on the script and expanding to include many more of the female characters Dickens described and analysed so astutely in his novels. The countries to be visited are Australia, New Zealand, the USA and India. 'Mrs Pipchin was a marvellous ill-favoured, ill-conditioned old lady, of a stooping figure, with a mottled face, like bad marble, a hook nose, and a hard grey eye, that looked as if it might have been hammered at on an anvil without sustaining any injury.'

Pages: 120

Dimensions: 122 x 190 x 13 mm

Publication Date: 01-11-2011

Sold over 600,000 copies in Europe!

A strange murder in an idyllic French seaside village, a major family tragedy, and a puzzling secret await Commissioner Dupin in this captivating who-dunit thriller. At the Central Hotel in Pont Aven, Brittany, 91-year-old manager Pierre-Louis Pennec is found murdered. Police commissioner George Dupin and his team takes on the investigation and narrow the list of suspects down to five people, including the manager of a rival hotel, a longtime friend of the victim, and a wealthy art historian. Further incidents--first a break-in, then another mysterious death--muddy the waters yet more. As Commissioner Dupin delves further and further into the lives of the victim and the suspects, he uncovers a web of secrecy and criminality that belies the village's idyllic image. A surprise hit in its original German, this book introduces readers to the enigmatic Commissioner Dupin, an idiosyncratic penguin lover and Parisian-born caffeine junkie who resents his superiors--and is equally resented in return. It is a book so atmospheric readers will immediately want to wander through the village's narrow alleyways, breathe in the Atlantic air, and smile at the Breton peculiarities. Spellbinding, subtle, and smart, this crime novel is peppered with cryptic humour and surprising twists.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 13-04-2014

12 Years a Slave, soon to be a huge new Hollywood film (February 2014 release), is the harrowing true story of Solomon Northup who was kidnapped and sold into slavery, enduring unimaginable degradation and abuse until his rescue twelve years later.
Tricked by two men offering him a job as a musician in New York State in 1841, Solomon Northup was drugged and kidnapped. His life in jeopardy, he was forced to assume a new name and fake past. Taken to Louisiana on a disease-ridden plague ship, he was initially sold to a cotton planter. In the twelve years that follow he is sold to many different owners who treat him with varying levels of savagery; forced labour, scant food and numerous beatings are his regular fare. Against all odds, Northup eventually succeeds in contacting a sympathetic party and manages to get word to his family. The ensuing rescue and legal cases are no less shocking and intriguing than the rest of the tale. Northup's meticulous first-hand recordings of slave life provide a true-life testament to tremendous courage and tenacity in the face of unfathomable injustice. A new film premiering in 2014, featuring Brad Pitt and Benedict Cumberbatch, and directed by Steve McQueen, is sure to introduce this amazing story to a new audience.

Bind: paperback

Pages: 300

Publication Date: 17-01-2014

For over a century rugby has been New Zealand’s national game, an obsession that has helped define a small country and mould its people – Maori and Pakeha Having a Ball looks at the triumphs and disasters, the amateur code that morphed into the professional era, the game at the local park and internationals in huge arenas, as well as rugby’s effect on the national psyche and the agendas of politicians. It is a story brilliantly told in a short introduction and through the perceptive, telling and funny insights of New Zealand’s leading cartoonists. From earlier generations, there are cartoons by Trevor Lloyd, Sir Gordon Minhinnick, Sid Scales, Neville Colvin, Eric Heath and Nevile Lodge. Today’s award-winning cartoonists include Peter Bromhead, Bob Brockie, Chris Slane, Murray Ball, Murray Webb, Garrick Tremain and Tom Scott. Foreword by David Kirk, captain of the All Black team that won the inaugural World Rugby Cup in 1987. Having a Ball also includes a timeline of important dates in NZ’s rugby history and short profiles of the contributing cartoonists.

Pages: 96

Publication Date: 01-05-2011

There is increasing enthusiasm for using native plants in gardens throughout New Zealand. This book is aimed at helping gardeners and landscaping professionals to select and care for native ground cover plants in order to create low-maintenance, good-looking and sustainable gardens. As with other forms of gardening, ground cover planting is most successful and satisfying when thoughtfully planned, with plants chosen to fit the design objectives and scale of the area to be planted. Hasty, ill-informed choices aimed solely at easy care can result in gardens that need to be removed a few years later because the area has become overgrown or the plants are unsuitable for the site. The authors show how a carefully considered use of New Zealand native plants as ground cover can reduce maintenance in gardens of all sizes while creating an aesthetically pleasing environment. They suggest suitable ground cover plants, based not only on the species but also on the continuing development of the range of hybrids and cultivars that are now available to gardeners. Accompanied by more than 100 colour photographs, these suggestions will help with your plant selection. The book also covers important topics for preparing the ground, such as: What is a ground cover plant? Designing your garden Propagating New Zealand native ground cover plants Ground preparation - weeds, cultivation and herbicides

Bind: paperback

Pages: 108

Dimensions: 210 x 250 mm

Publication Date: 20-11-2014

Now with new cover design jacket. Victoria Square, that green and peaceful oasis in the centre of Christchurch, has a special claim to fame: it is the only city square in the world with a river running through it. And it has a rich and varied history, starting in 1850 when, as Christchurch's Market Place, it was the centre of commerce in the fledgling settlement. Before long it was home to little wooden shops, busy hotels and flourishing businesses, and to the city's law courts. Much later it was the site of the splendid town hall. There have been many changes over the years, by far the most drastic those that followed the major earthquakes of 2010 ad 2011. All the buildings on the square's eastern side, and most of those to the south, were demolished, along with the eye-catching tourist hotel that had occupied its north-west corner from 1988. Until the earthquakes Victoria Square was regarded as the most successful urban space in New Zealand, and even in Australasia, and that admired layout, dating from the 1980s, survives, though it may yet be modified as the city rebuilds. This lively and entertaining book, illustrated with 250 photographs, many never before published, is written by an author with a deep knowledge of and love for his city. It is a fascinating architectural survey of a unique civic space but, much more than that, it is the story of a place and its people, of protests and processions, of concerts and dances, of festivals and fights, of busy department stores, of hotels and tourists, of judges and courtrooms. Geoffrey Rice brings to life many of the stories and events connected with Victoria Square and the colourful personalities who have lived and worked there for over a century and a half.

Bind: hardback

Pages: 328

Dimensions: 210 x 260 mm

Publication Date: 20-11-2014