Blog Archives
Plotting outside the rules, Kim Worthington
The Bright Side of my Condition Charlotte Randall Penguin, $30.00, ISBN 9780143570660 Charlotte Randall’s many strengths don’t, in general, extend to the provision of compelling plots. Tellingly, in an interview, she states, “I don’t really believe in ‘stories’ ”, and…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Charlotte Randall, Issue 105, Kim Worthington, Penguin Books
Posted in Fiction, Literature, Review
Posted in Fiction, Literature, Review
Reconsidering a juvenile critique, Jock Phillips
“I think I am becoming a New Zealander”: Letters of J C Beaglehole Tim Beaglehole (ed) Victoria University Press, $80.00, ISBN 9780864739025 For someone such as myself, this is an engrossing book. I had met J C Beaglehole (his preferred…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Issue 105, J C Beaglehole, Jock Phillips, Tim Beaglehole, Victoria University Press
Posted in Letters, Non-fiction, Review
Posted in Letters, Non-fiction, Review
Lordania revisited, Laurie Atkinson
Three Plays Robert Lord (Phillip Mann ed) Playmarket, $30.00, ISBN 9780908607464 The playwright Robert Lord died in Dunedin on January 7th, 1992. His last play, Joyful and Triumphant, was premiered seven weeks later at Circa Theatre on February 20th as…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Issue 105, Laurie Atkinson, Phillip Mann, Playmarket, Robert Lord
Posted in Literature, Plays, Review
Posted in Literature, Plays, Review
Mishmash history, Nepia Mahuika
Beyond Betrayal, Trouble in the Promised Land – Restoring the Mission to Maori Keith Newman Penguin, $45.00, ISBN 9780143570516 Most Maori I know have a different view of the past to the nation-building rhetoric that inhabits the majority of mainstream…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Issue 105, Keith Newman, Nepia Mahuika, Penguin Books
Posted in History, Māori, Non-fiction, Review
Posted in History, Māori, Non-fiction, Review
National theatrics, John Callen
Playmarket 40: 40 Years of Playwriting in New Zealand Laurie Atkinson (ed) Playmarket, $40.00, ISBN 9780908607457 Ask an actor or director to speak at a function or write something about theatre, and there’s a good chance they’ll presume it’s themselves…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Issue 105, John Callen, Laurie Atkinson, Playmarket
Posted in History, Literature, Plays, Review
Posted in History, Literature, Plays, Review
New seeds for old, Kathryn Walls
The Mijo Tree Janet Frame (Deidre Copeland illus) Penguin, $25.00, ISBN 9780143569428 A Book is a Book Jenny Bornholdt (Sarah Wilkins illus) Gecko Press, $25.00, ISBN 9781877579929 Dunger Joy Cowley Gecko Press, $20.00, ISBN 9781977579462 Janet Frame sent the typescript…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Deidre Copeland, Gecko Press, Issue 105, Janet Frame, Jenny Bornholdt, Joy Cowley, Kathryn Walls, Penguin Books, Sarah Wilkins
Posted in Children, Fiction, Literature, Review
Posted in Children, Fiction, Literature, Review
Constant uncertainty, Dougal McNeill
Journals 1938-1945 Charles Brasch Margaret Scott (transcriber), Andrew Parsloe (annotator) Otago University Press, $60.00, ISBN 9781877372841 Enduring Legacy, the Hocken Library’s 2003 exhibition marking the release of Charles Brasch’s papers from their embargo, was subtitled “patron, poet and collector”. Brasch…
Tagged with: Andrew Parsloe, Autumn 2014, Charles Brasch, Dougal McNeill, Issue 105, Margaret Scott
Posted in Essays, Non-fiction, Poetry, Review
Posted in Essays, Non-fiction, Poetry, Review
Compelling mental health, Charles Hornabrook
New Zealand’s Mental Health Act in Practice John Dawson and Kris Gledhill (eds) Victoria University Press, $50.00, ISBN 9780864739049 This book, released to coincide with the 21st birthday of the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act of 1992 (MHCAT…
Tagged with: Autumn 2014, Dr Charles Hornabrook, Issue 105, John Dawson, Kris Gledhill, Victoria University Press
Posted in Non-fiction, Politics & Law, Review
Posted in Non-fiction, Politics & Law, Review
Finding the poetry, Michael Hulse
Gleam Sarah Broom Auckland University Press, $25.00, ISBN 9781869407704 The Baker’s Thumbprint Paula Green Seraph Press, $25.00, ISBN 9780473236311 Family Songbook John Newton Victoria University Press, $25.00, ISBN 9780864738394 Enough Louise Wallace Victoria University Press, $25.00, ISBN 9780864739131 The sad…
Tagged with: Auckland University Press, Autumn 2014, Issue 105, John Newton, Louise Wallace, Michael Hulse, Paula Green, Sarah Broom, Seraph Press, Victoria University Press
Posted in Literature, Poetry, Review
Posted in Literature, Poetry, Review