New Zealand (504)

Dumont d'Urville : Explorer & Polymath

ISBN: 9781877578700

Author: Edward Duyker    Publisher: Otago University Press

Explorer Jules-Sebastien-Cesar Dumont d'Urville (1790-1842) is sometimes called France's Captain Cook. Born less than a year after the beginning of the French R...


Explorer Jules-Sebastien-Cesar Dumont d'Urville (1790-1842) is sometimes called France's Captain Cook. Born less than a year after the beginning of the French Revolution, he lived through turbulent times. He was an erudite polymath: a maritime explorer fascinated by botany, entomology, ethnography and the diverse languages of the world. As a young ensign he was decorated for his pivotal part in France's acquisition of the famous Venus de Milo.

D'Urville's voyages and writings meshed with an emergent French colonial impulse in the Pacific. In this magnificent biography Edward Duyker reveals that d'Urville had secret orders to search for the site for a potential French penal colony in Australia. He also effectively helped to precipitate pre-emptive British settlement on several parts of the Australian coast. D'Urville visited New Zealand in 1824, 1827 and 1840. This wide-ranging survey examines his scientific contribution, including the plants and animals he collected, and his conceptualisation of the peoples of the Pacific: it was he who first coined the terms Melanesia and Micronesia.

D'Urville helped to confirm the fate of the missing French explorer Laperouse, took Charles X into exile after the Revolution of 1830, and crowned his navigational achievements with two pioneering Antarctic descents.

Edward Duyker has used primary documents that have long been overlooked by other historians. He dispels many myths and errors about this daring explorer of the age of sail and offers his readers grand adventure and surprising drama and pathos.


Bind: hardback


Pages: 664


Dimensions: 170 x 245 mm


Publication Date: 15-09-2014


Tags: Biography   History   New Zealand
$70.00
White Ghosts, Yellow Peril

ISBN: 9781877578656

Author: Stevan Eldred-Grigg    Publisher: Otago University Press

White Ghosts, Yellow Peril is the first book ever to explore all sides of the relationship between China and New Zealand, and the peoples of China and New Zeala...


White Ghosts, Yellow Peril is the first book ever to explore all sides of the relationship between China and New Zealand, and the peoples of China and New Zealand, during the whole of the seven or so generations after they initially came into contact.

The Qing Empire and its successor states from 1790 to 1950 were vast, complex and torn by conflict. New Zealand, meanwhile, grew into a small, prosperous, orderly province of Europe. Not until now has anyone told the story of the links and tensions between the two countries during those years so broadly and so thoroughly.

The reader keen to know about this relationship will find in this book a highly readable portrait of the lives, thoughts and feelings of Chinese who came to New Zealand and New Zealanders who went to China, along with a scholarly but stimulating discussion of race relations, government, diplomacy, war, literature and the arts.

White Ghosts, Yellow Peril for some years to come will be the key general text in the field of the early history of New Zealand and China.


Bind: paperback


Pages: 384


Dimensions: 195 x 255 mm


Publication Date: 15-09-2014


Tags: History   New Zealand
$55.00
Annie's War

ISBN: 9781877578755

Author: Susanna Montgomerie Norris    Publisher: Otago University Press

Annie's War is a remarkable book. There have been many published collections of soldiers' diaries and letters from the First World War, but never a first-hand a...


Annie's War is a remarkable book. There have been many published collections of soldiers' diaries and letters from the First World War, but never a first-hand account of one New Zealand family's life in England during these challenging and frightening years.

When her sons, Oswald and Seton, decided they wanted to serve as pilots, which meant enlisting in Britain, Annie Montgomerie decreed that the whole family would go too. So from 1916 to 1919 they lived in London, facing Zeppelin attacks, giving hospitality to young New Zealand friends who left to fight (and sometimes never came back), watching Oswald and Seton go off to war, and suffering in the influenza epidemic.

Through all this Annie kept a diary, in which she recorded her deep love and concern for her family, her hatred of the war, her forthright, amusing an proudly Kiwi views on the English and myriad fascinating details about wartime London life. Annie's granddaughter, Susanna Montgomerie Norris, has transcribed and edited this extraordinary account, along with many letters and diary excerpts from her pilot father, Seton. Richly illustrated with contemporary photographs and other memorabilia, Annie's War offers a unique and compelling view of a crucial time in world history.


Bind: paperback


Pages: 256


Dimensions: 175 x 228 mm


Publication Date: 10-11-2014


Tags: History   Military   New Zealand
$45.00
Boots 'n' All

ISBN: 9780473281021

Author: Tony Walsh    Publisher: Tony And Noreen Walsh

Boots 'n' All is a compelling read that continues in the footsteps of the popular first book by author Tony Walsh, The Black Singlet Brigade.
From the val...


Boots 'n' All is a compelling read that continues in the footsteps of the popular first book by author Tony Walsh, The Black Singlet Brigade.
From the valleys of Te Urewera to the hinterlands of the South Island, and across to the red, dusty lands of Australia, these stories weave through a landscape of adventure and amusement, populated by larger-than-life characters. These were men and women who lived whole-heartedly their back-country existence and were ready to jump into ;life at any moment, boots and all.
Within the chapters of this book - from the hilarious "I'm Shot" to the poignant "Epitaph to a Friend" - a tale unfolds; a record of one man's hunting adventures and encounters with some real but unusual people in the remoter parts of New Zealand.


Bind: paperback


Publication Date: 20-05-2014


$24.99
Kitchens : The New Zealand Kitchen in the 20th Century

ISBN: 9781877578373

Author: Helen Leach    Publisher: Otago University Press

‘You could say that the 1930s saw the highpoint of Macaroni Cheese.’

‘New Zealand kitchens of the late twentieth century became increasingly s...


‘You could say that the 1930s saw the highpoint of Macaroni Cheese.’

‘New Zealand kitchens of the late twentieth century became increasingly spacious, as the average number of household members declined.’

This engrossing history of the domestic kitchen covers 10 decades that saw our culinary

traditions accommodate extraordinary changes in technology and the irresistible process of globalisation. Each chapter surveys the external influences on households and their kitchens, samples the dishes prepared during the decade, and discusses the structure of meals. A study of kitchen equipment and design then closes each chapter, cumulatively revealing more innovation in these aspects than in what we ate.

Kitchens is the culmination of a 10-year research and writing project by anthropologist

Helen Leach, supported by the Marsden Fund of the Royal Society of New Zealand, focusing on the material culture of cooking by New Zealanders living in the past two centuries. The project has led to the publication of From Kai to Kiwi Kitchen (2010), The Pavlova Story (with Mary Browne, 2008), The Twelve Cakes of Christmas (with Mary Browne and Raelene Inglis, 2011) and this book.


Bind: hardback


Pages: 264


Dimensions: 215 x 285 mm


Publication Date: 20-11-2014


Tags: History   New Zealand
$49.95
Grace Joel : An Impressionist Portrait

ISBN: 9781877578861

Author: Joel Schiff    Publisher: Otago University Press

Dunedin-born artist Grace Joel (1864–1924) exhibited to acclaim in London and Paris, yet she and her art are relatively unknown today.

Joel excel...


Dunedin-born artist Grace Joel (1864–1924) exhibited to acclaim in London and Paris, yet she and her art are relatively unknown today.

Joel excelled at portraiture and mother and child studies, and was skilled in portraying

the nude. She received her artistic training in Melbourne, and lived for the mature years of

her career in London, where her work appeared at the prestigious Royal Academy, as well as the Paris Salon and the Royal Scottish Academy. She also held a number of solo exhibitions at prominent venues in Australasian, English and European cities. Today she is claimed by New Zealand, Australia and Britain.

One possible reason why Joel’s work has not remained visible is that few details of her

personal life survive. Only three letters have been found, and they reveal little of the person who wrote them. Undaunted, author Joel (no relation) Schiff has pulled together from the words of her contemporaries, various newspaper accounts, scraps in other historical archives and close study of her extant paintings a portrayal of this talented woman that is as intimate and engaging as her work. He also sets Grace Joel and her work in the times in which she lived, and the artistic communities of which she was a part.


Bind: paperback


Pages: 244


Dimensions: 200 x 270 mm


Publication Date: 10-12-2014


$50.00
Andrew Nicholson : Focused

ISBN: 9781909471580

Author: Andrew Nicholson    Publisher: Raceform Ltd

Andrew Nicholson is one of the world's leading event riders. He rode in his first Olympics aged 23 in Los Angeles in 1984, and has represented his native New Ze...


Andrew Nicholson is one of the world's leading event riders. He rode in his first Olympics aged 23 in Los Angeles in 1984, and has represented his native New Zealand in six Olympic Games and six world championships, winning medals of every colour. Andrew is respected and admired by his peers and sporting fans as a brilliant rider and competitor. At the age of 54 he is at the peak of his powers and, with the best team of horses he has ever had, is focused on winning one of the very few prizes to elude him an individual gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. This book tells the story of the boy from a farm in New Zealand who came to Britain as a raw 18-year-old and conquered one of the most demanding sports in the world. Illustrated with superb photographs of Andrew's career and life with horses, it reveals how he got to the top and how hard he still strives to up his game. We discover the personalities of his top horses, and the secrets he has learnt in his 35 years as a horseman. Foreword by Captain Mark Phillips.


Bind: paperback


Pages: 160


Dimensions: 189 x 246 mm


Publication Date: 28-08-2014


$45.00 $5.00
Fauna of New Zealand 71 : Fanniidae

ISBN: 9780478347456

Author: M Cecilia Dominguez    Publisher: Manaaki Whenua Press

Fanniids are a small family of flies that are known mainly because many of the species are associated with humans and are of medical and forensic importance. Mo...


Fanniids are a small family of flies that are known mainly because many of the species are associated with humans and are of medical and forensic importance. Most of the species of Fanniidae have been described from the Holarctic region, but recently many new species have been described from the Neotropical region. The Fanniidae are inhabitants of forested areas, and are relatively rare in open landscapes. Males of almost all species form swarms in shaded areas and females may be attracted to decaying organic matter and excrement. Fanniidae can be most readily distinguished from other calyptrate flies found in New Zealand by the shape of the subcostal vein, which runs straight in its apical half, without any sinuous bend.


Bind: paperback


Pages: 91


Dimensions: 180 x 242 mm


Publication Date: 29-07-2014


$49.00
Canterbury Foothills & Forests : A Walking and Tramping Guide

ISBN: 9781927145579

Author: Pat Barrett    Publisher: Canterbury University Press

This new edition of Pat Barrett's popular guide to walking excursions in the greater Canterbury region adds Lewis Pass National Reserve and Western Arthur's Pas...


This new edition of Pat Barrett's popular guide to walking excursions in the greater Canterbury region adds Lewis Pass National Reserve and Western Arthur's Pass National Park to the areas included in the first edition, and also covers additional areas of Te Kahui Kaupeka and Hakatere Conservation Parks that are now accessible to the public.

The book has a comprehensive introduction, with advice for planning your trip, and provides some background on landscape and climate, flora and fauna, and a brief history of the Canterbury foothills. Pat's personal accounts of some of his favourite walks and climbs will inspire even 'armchair trampers' to get out and enjoy the natural splendour of this magnificent region.

Canterbury Foothills & Forests includes walks and tramps suitable for a range of fitness levels; families with children and the moderately fit will enjoy the many short walks along well-marked tracks, and there are harder trips for those who aspire to the challenge of a climb and the views gained from the tops of some of the higher summits.

The walks and climbs are organised by region: Rangitata region, Ashburton Lakes and Rakaia Valley, Waimakariri Plains region, Waimakariri Basin and Arthur's Pass National Park, and the Lewis Pass region.

The handy-sized guide is illustrated with Pat's inspiring photographs and includes 17 new full-colour maps.

Useful features include:

Walk Times

Walk Grades (from Easy to Hard+)

Standard access information, including phone numbers for landowners where applicable

Details for the best route available

The particular natural attractions of a track/peak

Notes on the weather, terrain and equipment you should carry


Bind: paperback


Pages: 296


Dimensions: 148 x 210 mm


Publication Date: 20-11-2014


$39.99
Tuatara

ISBN: 9781927145449

Author: Alison Cree    Publisher: Canterbury University Press

Pick up virtually any textbook on vertebrate evolution and you will find mention of the curious reptile known as tuatara (Sphenodon). The special evolutionary s...


Pick up virtually any textbook on vertebrate evolution and you will find mention of the curious reptile known as tuatara (Sphenodon). The special evolutionary status of tuatara as the last of the rhynchocephalians - one of the four orders of living reptiles - is unquestioned. Wild members of the sole living species are now restricted to a few dozen remote islands around the New Zealand coast, where for several centuries they have been observed and studied by humans. But are tuatara really unchanged 'living fossils', or close relatives of dinosaurs, as sometimes portrayed?

This is the first detailed monograph for decades about this enigmatic reptile, and the first to be illustrated in colour throughout. The evolution, natural history and conservation of tuatara are covered in comprehensive detail, providing a valuable resource for the specialist yet in a style accessible to a wide readership. The special place of tuatara in Maori and popular culture is also considered. Tuatara have survived alongside humans for more than 700 years, though with their numbers much reduced; what are their future prospects in a globally changing world?


Bind: hardback


Pages: 600


Dimensions: 190 x 258 mm


Publication Date: 20-08-2014


$89.99 $39.99
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