Searching for Charlie: In Pursuit of the Real Charles Upham VC and Bar by Tom Scott

$49.99 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

Captain Charles Hazlitt Upham is the only combat soldier ever to win the Victoria Cross twice. His acts of bravery in World War II meant he probably deserved six more.   The mystery of how a reserved, modest, slightly built farm valuer from New Zealand, could be so ferocious and fearless in battle has intrigued and fascinated Tom Scott ever since he read about Charles Upham as a schoolboy. ‘Searching for Charlie’ is his epic quest to unravel the “real” Charles Upham. ...Show more

An Exquisite Legacy: The Work and Art of New Zealand Naturalist G.V. Hudson by George Gibbs

$59.99 NZD

Category: NZ Non Fiction

The biography of one of New Zealand's greatest naturalist-artists, G. V.Hudson. George Hudson, 1867-1946, was one of New Zealand's pioneer naturalists, who devoted his life to collecting and describing the New Zealand insect fauna. He amassed what is probably the largest collection of New Zealand insec ts, now housed at Te Papa. Hudson also wrote seven books on insect fauna between 1898 and 1946, each illustrated in colour with immaculate paintings of the specimens, a total of over 3100 paintings, mainly focused on months and butterflies. An Exquisite Legacy is a biography of Hudson, written by his grandson Dr George Gibbs, himself a prominent entomologist. Gibbs outlines the life of this naturalist and artist, whose dedication and output was truly remarkable. Hudson remained an amateur naturalist his whole life, but his contribution to our knowledge about the New Zealand insect world is of enduring significance, while his artistic legacy, built up over nearly seven decades, is truly remarkable. This extensive collection of exquisite illustrations is without parallel in New Zealand. Beautifully illustrated throughout, this biography of George Hudson is the first chance for most people to see his exquisite artwork. Up until now, his books have been valuable collectors' items unavailable to most people. A foreword by Courtney Johnston, Chief Executive of Te Papa Tongarewa, provided in recognition of the importance of this book, and the significance of the Hudson Collection at Te Papa. ...Show more

Zen Heart: What I've Learned from Animals and Life by Mark Vette

$40.00 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

A cheeky baboon, a cockatoo sending a heading dog out to round up sheep, a family of pukekos crossing the road, a dog saying 'bugger', an octopus taking a photo. Think of an ad you love, or a New Zealand-made movie, and if it has an animal in it chances are Mark Vette was behind it. He's trained almost every species you can think of. But the famous animal behaviourist and trainer who captured global attention with 'Dogs Who Drive Cars' and 'Dogs Who Fly Planes' is not just an animal maestro. He's a long-time Buddhist, who brings to his relationships with animals a true emotional bond, enormous respect, and the sure knowledge that we humans are just one piece of this great, interconnected puzzle we call Life on Earth. This is his story, and the stories of the animals he has worked with over the decades. From a classic Kiwi childhood of outdoor activities and sport, with plenty of time on the farm, through a growing conviction that killing animals wasn't for him, to his embracing of Buddhism and his developing work with animals of all kinds, Mark's life and beliefs unfold in a thoroughly relatable way - with jaw-dropping and laugh-out-loud moments thrown in. ...Show more

Colouring My Soul by Kat Maxwell

$25.00 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

"I write because I find it cleansing. Writing stories is easier for me than regaling them, setting them down on paper makes sure their content doesn’t get mixed up when someone else repeats them. "I write because my stories bruise my brain until they’re written. They fell out of my fingers one day after I had been nostalgic remembering my childhood and my aunties, my nanny and my koro, and all my cousins." ...Show more

Sir Bob Charles - The Biography by Geoff Saunders

$59.99 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

**For Booktrade purchases only** 'Sir Bob Charles – The Biography’ is the first comprehensive biography of Sir Bob Charles. His story begins in working-class rural New Zealand. In 1960 he embarked upon a career that no New Zealander had chosen before – that of a full-time touring professional golfer. Th e pressure was on the young Kiwi golfer as he took off around the world, with £350 in travellers’ cheques to fund his new career. If he did not play well enough his cash would run out and he would be back in Christchurch as a teller for the National Bank of New Zealand. That prospect alone spurred his success. The book is an account of his 50 years touring the world with his golf clubs. The reader will encounter the key characters in the story who supported the young golfer on his way to the very top of his sport. You will meet Ivor and Phyl Charles, his wife Verity, mentor Ian Cromb and his agent Mark McCormack. There are over 150 stunning photos in the book, many from the Charles family’s own collection. Combined with the narrative the images provide the complete picture of a notable New Zealand life. Bob Charles competed in the ‘’golden age’’ of professional golf in the 1960s and 1970s. He played with, and at times defeated, each member of the ‘’Big Three’’.The televising of golf from the early 1960s created an explosion in enthusiasm for the game. During this period, he acquired the title of the ‘’best putter in the world’’ in the eyes of both journalists and fellow competitors. His senior career delivered another 20 years of success in the game he loved. For the first 10 years on the Senior PGA Tour from 1986 he became the man to beat. The book chronicles the success of Bob Charles as a golfer - but there is more to the man than that. With his 1999 knighthood and his elevation to the Order of New Zealand in 2011 he has been honoured not only for his success as a golfer but also for the way he has lived his life. His enduring and happy marriage to Verity and the closeness of his relationship to his children and grandchildren form an important part of the story. Verity’s contribution to his career was enormous as Bob was able to travel the world, focusing solely on competing and succeeding at the highest level in his sport. Sir Bob Charles – The Biography is an in-depth study of the life and times of this great New Zealand sportsman. “Sir Bob Charles - the greatest Kiwi golfer of all. I may be accused of bias in describing the left-hander as the best New Zealand golfer of all. If we look at his record that lasted more than 50 years, I believe there is no argument.’’ Bob Glading. New Zealand Open Champion 1946, 1947. Writing for The Cut magazine, 2008. ...Show more

The Dolphin by Ben Lowings

$75.00 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

The Truths We Hold: An American Journey by Kamala Harris

$40.00 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

A New York Times bestseller From one of America's most inspiring political leaders, a book about the core truths that unite us, and the long struggle to discern what those truths are and how best to act upon them, in her own life and across the life of our country. Senator Kamala Harris's commitment to speaking truth is informed by her upbringing. The daughter of immigrants, she was raised in an Oakland, California community that cared deeply about social justice; her parents--an esteemed economist from Jamaica and an admired cancer researcher from India--met as activists in the civil rights movement when they were graduate students at Berkeley. Growing up, Harris herself never hid her passion for justice, and when she became a prosecutor out of law school, a deputy district attorney, she quickly established herself as one of the most innovative change agents in American law enforcement. She progressed rapidly to become the elected District Attorney for San Francisco, and then the chief law enforcement officer of the state of California as a whole. Known for bringing a voice to the voiceless, she took on the big banks during the foreclosure crisis, winning a historic settlement for California's working families. Her hallmarks were applying a holistic, data-driven approach to many of California's thorniest issues, always eschewing stale "tough on crime" rhetoric as presenting a series of false choices. Neither "tough" nor "soft" but smart on crime became her mantra. Being smart means learning the truths that can make us better as a community, and supporting those truths with all our might. That has been the pole star that guided Harris to a transformational career as the top law enforcement official in California, and it is guiding her now as a transformational United States Senator, grappling with an array of complex issues that affect her state, our country, and the world, from health care and the new economy to immigration, national security, the opioid crisis, and accelerating inequality. By reckoning with the big challenges we face together, drawing on the hard-won wisdom and insight from her own career and the work of those who have most inspired her, Kamala Harris offers in THE TRUTHS WE HOLD a master class in problem solving, in crisis management, and leadership in challenging times. Through the arc of her own life, on into the great work of our day, she communicates a vision of shared struggle, shared purpose, and shared values. In a book rich in many home truths, not least is that a relatively small number of people work very hard to convince a great many of us that we have less in common than we actually do, but it falls to us to look past them and get on with the good work of living our common truth. When we do, our shared effort will continue to sustain us and this great nation, now and in the years to come. ...Show more

Letters of Denis Glover by Sarah Shieff (editor)

$79.95 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

Oh Christ, a bloody ½ witted student, for purposes of an essay, has just come in to ask me what I and Baxter write verse for, and if we mean what we say, or is there something deeper; could we write better verse in England, or here; or do the critics and professors just read a lot into what’s said that isn’t there? So much. And I have been very rude indeed. – Letter to John Reece Cole, 16 August 1949 Nothing about this excerpt from a letter by Denis Glover will surprise anyone who knows him by reputation. He – and his letters – could be witty, intelligent, alarmingly frank and frequently highly entertaining. A widely admired poet, honoured naval commander, gifted printer and typographer, Denis Glover was founder of the Caxton Press in Christchurch. For 15 years from 1935 he directed a publishing programme that did much to define New Zealand literature for its day, and for much of the rest of the century. His literary work was suspended for war service in the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy, during which he earned a DSC for his activities in the Normandy landings. But he was also a serial philanderer and prodigious drinker, and his private life increasingly disintegrated around him, more and more publicly. And yet his energy as a correspondent appeared never to wane, and almost to the end he confided openly, prolifically and entertainingly to hundreds of acquaintances and confidants. In this magnificent volume Sarah Shieff presents around 500 of Glover’s letters to around 110 people, drawn from an archive of nearly 3000 letters to over 430 recipients. Many now recall Glover as little more than a misogynistic old fart, a court jester. These letters should give readers the opportunity to revise – or at least complicate – those dismissive categorisations. ...Show more

Billy Apple: Life/Work by .Christina Barton

$75.00 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

A major study of New Zealand’s most internationally significant living artist. Billy Apple (born Barrie Bates in Auckland, 1935) is New Zealand’s most internationally significant living artist and a pioneer of pop and conceptual art. At the Royal College of Art in London from 1959–62, Apple studied with key contemporaries – notably David Hockney – and staged one of the earliest solo exhibitions in the new ‘pop’ art after changing his name, in 1962, to ‘Billy Apple’. In 1964 he moved to New York. There, he worked as an art director, developed his art, exhibited extensively with leading artists (notably in the 1964 American Supermarket exhibition with Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns and others), and established one of the first alternative art spaces – ‘Apple’ – which hosted some of the new ephemeral activities that enlivened the New York scene in the 1970s. He returned to live in New Zealand in 1990 where he continues to produce his particular brand of conceptual art. Apple’s work is held in permanent collections from the Tate to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. This is the first substantial book on Billy Apple’s career. Based on over a decade of research all over the world and unprecedented access to Apple’s own archive, Billy Apple®: Life/Work chronicles an extraordinary sixty-year career and the art scenes that have sustained it in London, New York and Auckland. The book includes more than 200 illustrations in colour, with a generous selection of reproductions of Apple’s works as well as other illustrative material. Christina Barton is the director of the Adam Art Gallery Te Pātaka Toi at Victoria University of Wellington, where she has taught art history since 1995. She is a respected art historian, writer and curator who has worked at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. She has curated numerous exhibitions, including the major Billy Apple retrospective at Auckland Art Gallery in 2015. Her writing has been published widely, and she has contributed as an editor of journals Antic and Reading Room, and volumes including the collected art writings of Wystan Curnow. ...Show more

Stop the Clock - A Memoir on Ageing with Dignity, Grace and Humour by Gordon McLauchlan

$29.99 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

The best way to learn anything is by doing it - this is a maxim that goes back to Aristotle. Gordon McLauchlan agrees. He has concluded that the only way of learning how to manage growing old is by growing old. He doesn't believe that wisdom is necessarily a concomitant of old age but suggests that, whi le there is no fool like an old fool, it is also true that there is no sage like an old sage. Borrowing quotes from philosophers and writers collected in a Commonplace Book over more than sixty years, Gordon traces his own ascent into the eighties. Ascent, he insists, not descent as so many politicians and economists would claim as they discuss the concerns of the ageing the way parents sometimes speak to each other about their children in the same room. ...Show more

Ripiro Beach - A Memoir of Life after Near Death by Caroline Barron

$34.99 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs

Does DNA write our destinies? Or do the hands that nurture triumph over nature? What is it that determines who we really are? Caroline Barron's father never found his birth mother. After he dies suddenly on her twentieth birthday, Caroline develops an insidious fear of her own untimely death. When she n early bleeds out on an operating table during childbirth, it almost seems her greatest fear is justified. Emerging from the experience a changed woman, Caroline spends the next six years poring over her family history in an attempt to make sense of her inexplicable rage. The family secrets she unearths threaten to destabilise her identity and carefully built life, eventually leading her to Northland's rugged Ripiro Beach, where past and present dramatically collide. Ripiro Beach is a beautifully written, relentlessly honest memoir about one woman's determination to gather the threads of a life that has come undone. ...Show more

Know Your Place by Golriz Ghahraman

$39.99 NZD

Category: NZ Biographies & Memoirs | Reading Level: near fine

The story of a child refugee who faced her fears, found her home and accidentally made history When she was just nine, Golriz Ghahraman and her parents were forced to flee their home in Iran. After a terrifying and uncertain journey, they landed in Auckland where they were able to seek asylum and - ult imately - create a new life. In this open and intimate account, Ghahraman talks about making a home in Aotearoa New Zealand, her work as a human rights lawyer, her United Nations missions, and how she became the first refugee to be elected to the New Zealand Parliament. Passionate and unflinching, Know Your Place is a story about breaking barriers, and the daily challenges of prejudice that shape the lives of women and minorities. At its heart, it's about overcoming fear, about family, and about finding a place to belong. ...Show more