Author(s): Heather Heberley

NZ Non Fiction

It is the story of her father-in-law, Charlie Heberley, himself the descendant of one of New Zealand's very first whalers, Captain James "Worser" Heberley who whaled out of Tory Channel in the 1830s.
The story of Charlie and his mates is of a breed of men - rough, tough, and sustained by a code of honour - who will never be seen again.
Long before his death in 2000, Charlie Heberley became a fervent conservationist, blasting those countries which still persist in unbridled whaling under the guise of "research". But, in his time, Charlie was an acknowledged leader in this rough, tough and dangerous occupation.
Charlie married Ruby Guard, the descendent of John Guard who was the first white child to be born in the South Island, and they made their home at Okukari in Tory Channel, the farming-fishing base where Heather Heberley and her family live. Here, from "the first house on the right in the South Island", Heather has set all or part of all her books of adventure by sea and land, and her remarkable family's chronicles.

This is a rattling good story, written with humour, respect and perception, another chronicle in the lives of one of New Zealand's foremost families.