New Zealand

Music-lovers love lists, and this Top 100 from Radio New Zealand's highly respected music guru Nick Bollinger will not disappoint. As his legions of fans know, Bollinger's taste is eclectic: he's as likely to give space to the Axemen as to Bic Runga. His choices come accompanied by some of the most entertaining writing about music and musicians you're ever likely to read.

We all know about jandals, jaffas and hokey pokey ice cream, but how many of us also remember the underarm bowling incident, the Topp Twins, Telethon and Thingee's eye popping out on TV? This is Kiwiana and pop culture for the younger generation, those who grew up with at least one channel of TV (and then two! And then in colour!). Drawing on the popular C4 TV series (the channel's highest-ever...

Visiting New Zealand? Embarking on a road trip? Want to know where to send the visiting rellies? This 2nd edition of 1001 Best Things To See and Do in New Zealand should be your travel bible. It includes both the obvious places to visit - Sky Tower, Whakarewarewa, Te Papa, Larnach's Castle - and the quirky and not-so-well-known things to see and do - the world's largest totara tree, Wairoa Maori...

The AA ran the high-profile 101 Must-do Weekends campaign all through 2008, with several feature articles in NZ Woman's Weekly, Directions magazine and The New Zealand Herald. This book is a fresh take on the campaign, with 101 great suggested weekends away in different parts of the country, divided into 10 broad themes. Whether you're into history and culture, or prefer to concentrate on food...

'A City Possessed' is a strong, compelling and shocking story about one of New Zealand's most high-profile criminal cases - a story of child abuse allegations, gender politics and the law. In detailing the events and debates leading up to and surrounding the Christchurch Civic Creche case, Lynley Hood shows how such a case could happen, and why. Her penetrating analysis of the social and legal...

The fifth New Zealand title in this internationally acclaimed series of compact, easy-to-use guides which is the ideal car glovebox, pocket or backpack reference for anyone with an interest in natural history. A Photographic Guide to New Zealand Seashells covers 165 common and a few rarer species of molluscs one is most likely to encounter on New Zealand seashores. Each is treated with colour...

The country's longest-standing scenic book, 'A Portrait of New Zealand' depicts the landscapes of the North and South Islands in over 200 photographs. The book was first published in 1982 in two separate volumes, with the combined edition published in 1988 and reprinted every year since. This new edition contains the same well-loved images but has been given new colour reproduction throughout in...

This highly regarded book has been in print since 2004 and has proved popular with tourists, students and ordinary New Zealanders as a lively and reliable short history of New Zealand. It has proved a handy and succinct alternative to bigger books such as Michael King's The Penguin History of New Zealand. The timeline at the end of the book has proved particularly popular. Gordon McLauchlan has...

The streets of Auckland seem increasingly busy, but not too far beyond them lie expanses of spectacular coastline and undisturbed bush, much of which has been snapped up by the Auckland Regional Council and preserved for us all to enjoy. Visitors and residents alike will love this useful little book, which gives a first-hand account of each and every one of the ARC's 20 parks ? opening times,...

Certain images, art objects and art styles have embedded themselves in the consciousness of many New Zealanders. But why and how have they become part of our visual vocabulary? Oliver Stead has had the difficult task of not only selecting 40 of these iconic works but putting them into a context of New Zealand art history.

Sam Hunt's life as a poet and performer has always strayed far off the straight and narrow, more akin to following a series of winding backroads that have led to places and people away from the mainstream. As a child, Hunt was surrounded by 'a lot of words, a lot of poems,' and from the age of eight, he knew he wanted to live the life of a poet. His parents and grandparents were his earliest...

The bestselling team of Fernyhough and Bougen (The Road to Castle Hill: A High Country Love Story ) are back with a wonderful book for children that's bound to become a classic. It is the true story of Ben and Mark Smith, aged eight and six, who live with their parents Richard and Sheri on Mount White Station, near Arthurs Pass, one of the biggest and most remote stations in the South Island - 45...

Roads, bridges, dams, railway viaducts, tunnels ...New Zealand is full of amazing feats of engineering. Our number-eight wire mentality has brought about some incredible engineering solutions to create structures and systems to wonder at, from the Manapouri underground power station to Burt Munro's famous Indian motorcycle. Who designed these amazing things? How were they built? What innovative...

The shed is a place where men can find sanctuary from the demands of everyday life, and is one of the remaining untouched bastions of maleness. With Blokes, Jokes and Sheds, Chris Slane takes an affectionate and humorous look at this enduring icon of blokedom. Featuring sheds and their owner-occupiers, Blokes, Jokes and Sheds goes some way to uncovering mysteries of what sheds mean to men. There...

This book is a study of Crown Maori land policy and practice in the period 1869-1929, from the establishment of the Native Land Court power until the cessation by Gordon Coates of large-scale Crown purchasing. In the intervening period virtually the main function of the Native Department was to purchase Maori land, and, to the extent that the New Zealand state had a Maori policy, the focus was on...

Austin Somerset, Morris Minor, Standard Vanguard, Ford Prefect, Vauxhall Wyvern, Jowett Javelin, Hillman Super Minx ...names redolent of the heyday of British car manufacturing, and for a great many of us representative of the cars we grew up with. From dated-looking Forty-niner Fords and Chevy Fleetlines, to the 'otherwordly' Forward Look Chryslers; from the chastened lines of mid-60s Ramblers,...

Participation in the sport of rock climbing has exploded in New Zealand in recent decades, and New Zealanders and visitors alike flock to the diverse range of crags and alpline cliffs that are found all over the country. Rock climbing is now taught in virtually all outdoor recreation courses, and the interest in the sport is also reflected in the many indoor climbing walls that have sprung up in...

Classic Tramping in New Zealand is a beautifully photographed and sensitively written tribute to fourteen of New Zealand's finest tramping trips. This revised and updated edition now includes superb Bird's Eye maps that show each route in three dimensions and two new tramps: the Frew Saddle-Toaroha Saddle and the Northwest Ruahine Range. The featured tracks are: Tararua Peaks, Hollyford...

The North Island has a spectacular and varied coastline, from the perfect curves of its golden and black-sand beaches to the dog-toothed skyline of its storm-battered headlands, volcanic brows and rocky cliffs. Palm-fringed lagoons, island-studded bays and tranquil tidal flats add to the unique brew that makes the North Island coast such a magnet for walkers. Marios Gavalas has travelled all...

Al Brown explores the connection Kiwis have with their coasts. As he travels our stunning and varied coastline he visits iconic landmarks, meets colourful characters and hears rich tales from past and present. Each chapter covers a different stretch of coast - Red Rocks to Pencarrow (Wellington), Hot Water Beach to Whitianga (Coromandel), Cape Brett to Rocky Point (Bay of Islands), Mokau to New...

Crikey! Talk about Kiwiana collects a truckload of Kiwiana and tells the stories behind the objects, events and people that have defined New Zealand popular culture. Crikey! is a colourful, nostalgic and fun history of the New Zealand way of life. From corker grub and glad rags to the wop-wops and the shaky isles, this is a 'visual feast' of Kiwi delights.

Be Mine Tonight, Outlook for Thursday, Loyal, Whaling, Slice of Heaven, Welcome Home - these are only some of the remarkable songs that have framed Dave Dobbyn's long career and made him one of New Zealand's most enduring and best-loved musicians. While generations of New Zealanders have grown up with his music, his songs have never been collected together and published in written form before....

Day walks are one of the most popular recreational activities in New Zealand, enjoyed by both New Zealanders and overseas visitors alike. In 2006 nearly half a million tourists completed either a half-day bush walk or a full day of trekking or tramping. This is not surprising given New Zealand hosts a highly accessible network of conservation and reserve areas, offering everything from leisurely...

Experience the best of the country. This full-colour guide does the work for you - Lonely Planet's trademark expertise cuts straight to the must-see highlights of the country so no matter what your time frame or budget, you won't miss the best bits. This guide has all you need to experience the best of New Zealand. From the Upper North Island with Rotorua’s geysers and Maori culture, Waitomo’s...

During the nineteenth century the Urewera was a remote but enticing wilderness except for the Maori who lived there, for them it was a sheltering homeland. In 1866-67 large areas were taken by confiscation or forced cession.At the end of the fighting in 1872 the Urewera became an autonomous district, governed by its own leaders. In 1921-22 the Urewera Native Reserve was abolished in law. This...

Peter Janssen introduces more than 250 North Island short walks with a difference. They are grouped by region, and each can be accomplished within the span of a couple of hours (and some much less), putting them well within the grasp of most people. What's more, all of them have a memorable highlight as their destination, whether it's a spectacular feature of the natural landscape, an historic...

There are only a few places in the Pacific - not to say the world - where you can don your pack and tramping boots and get really, thrillingly up close and personal with an active volcano, and New Zealand's North Island is one of them. Glenys Robertson's guide book tells you all you need to know about getting out and about among nature's explosive landscapes, whether you're after an easy family...

Its call sign was Fernleaf Cairo, and between 1939 and 1946, around 76,000 Kiwis of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force passed through Maadi Camp. Around 17 kilometres south of Cairo, the camp appeared almost overnight, as this country's permanent overseas base during World War Two. By 1945 the camp had tar-sealed roads, two cinemas, an open-air amphitheatre, canteens, bars, chapels,...

Al Brown is the acclaimed Wellington chef and owner of Logan Brown - one of Wellington's top restaurants. He's also one of the stars of 'Hunger for the Wild' and author of the successful cookbook of the same name, which has sold over 14,000 copies. Brownie is a passionate man - he has loved fishing since he was a little nipper growing up and going fishing with his dad in the holidays, and he...

Grow It, Cook It is the must-have book for everyone who loves the idea of growing fruit and vegetables from their own garden and turning them into healthy and delicious meals for themselves and their families. Packed full of recipes, Grow It, Cook It is an inspiring book for those with little time and space for a garden, as well as those who already love growing their own produce, but need a...

This highly informative guide is written for tourists, outdoors enthusiasts, divers, conservationists, students and scientists - anyone with an interest in New Zealand's rich marine ecology. There are currently over 30 marine reserves, managed by the Department of Conservation, dotted around the coastlines of mainland New Zealand and its island groups. With their strict no-fish policy these...

Helen Clark led the Labour Party for 15 years, resurrecting it from the rifts of Rogernomics before becoming one of New Zealand's most successful Prime Ministers. Her term as Prime Minister lasted nine years. In 2006 Forbes magazine listed her as the 20th most powerful woman in the world. Clark's time in politics stretches from the anti-war protests of 1968 through the rise of feminism,...

High Misadventure explores the dark face of climbing in New Zealand - the times when a slip or a poor decision can lead to tragedy. Climber/journalist Paul Hersey takes eight incidents from among the many of recent decades, and explores the critical factors behind them. Among the incidents he covers are the deaths of five climbers when the Three Johns Hut blew away in 1977, the 1990 loss of six...

How We Saw The War will retell to a new generation of New Zealanders how their mothers and grandmothers learned where their loved ones were and what they were doing during World War II. It will republish newspaper stories from the time which reported on the activities of New Zealand soldiers in the Middle East and the Pacific, North Africa and Italy; in the air and at sea. From Michael Joseph...

Anne Thorp is the sparkling hostess of the winning Kai Ora cooking shows on Maori Television and The Food Channel and her swish Herne Bay and Pakiri homes have been featured in most of New Zealand's glossy magazines. Her specialty is taking our indigenous foods (from snapper and crayfish to kina, oysters and more exotic shellfish) and cooking them simply and quickly in a modern manner that...

Do you speak Nu Zild? Over 150 years we have developed our own unique take on the English language. And it's not just about fush and chups. Rather it's about the often hilarious and sometime downright baffling New Zealandisms we use in all sorts of situations, and for all types of pastimes and passions. In KIWI SPEAK, the top-selling author of CRICKET SPEAK and RUGBY SPEAK eavesdrops at the...

Many of us dream of escaping from everyday life, tossing a few possessions in a backpack and travelling light in far-off lands. Andrew Stevenson did more than dream: he packed his rucksack and went. Andrews destination was New Zealand..

In 2003 New Holland published An A-Z of Kiwi Fact & Folklore, a fully revised edition of the best-selling New Zealand Traditions and Folklore (itself first published in 1993), covering more than 700 updated anecdotes, ideas and traditions that we share as New Zealanders and which help make us unique. This new title distils the folklore element into an attractive, entertaining and affordable...

New Zealand has a unique and attractive native plant life that is of interest to everyone from gardeners and trampers to students of botany and ecology. In Know Your New Zealand Native Plants Lawrie Metcalf introduces a selection of the most interesting, iconic and important New Zealand plants, spanning latitudes from subtropical to temperate, and altitudes from sea level to alpine mountaintop,...

New Zealand was supposed to be a model society at the end of the world, a utopia for 'men and women of good character' who were willing to work hard for a better life. And, for most, so it proved. But this book is about the others - the misfits, the swindlers, the fallen women, the love rats, the escaped convicts, the hoaxers, the charlatans, the highwaymen, the mass murderers - from the earliest...

In 1893, wearing white camellias meant you supported women’s right to vote - a red camellia in your lapel signalled the opposite. In 1893 New Zealand became the first country in the world to give women the vote, a milestone of which we are justly proud, but it wasn’t easily achieved. The struggle was protracted and often bitter. The resolve and strength of the women involved were sorely tested,...

Lost in New Zealand is a new release from pre-eminent New Zealand photographer Craig Potton, in the popular New Zealand pictorial genre. In a deliberate move away from the highly commercial photography of the likes of New Zealand Aotearoa, Craig is presenting images from his photo library with a more subtle and sophisticated take on the landscape. Influenced by recent photography trips to Iceland...

Renowned historian Michael King (1945-2004) presents a comprehensive and searching documentary of Maori culture and society, and Maori-Pakeha contact, conflict and co-operation. From the earliest daguerreotype around 1852 to the strong protest images of the 1990s, King records and analyses changes and upheaval in the commentary that is always intelligent and objective. This book leaves the reader...

From Maori moko to Dame Whina Cooper (Te Rarawa) and the 1975 Maori land march, from Rita Angus to Norman Kirk, from Israel to Fiji, Marti Friedlander's photographs have captured the transformation of our lives over the last 50 years. But Friedlander has not simply recorded the places, events, and personalities of recent history. She has brought to her subjects a distinctive eye. Arriving in New...

What are the historical changes through which the modern gay New Zealander has emerged? If he has not always been with us, then who preceded him? A landmark publication, this first-ever New Zealand gay male history combines lively and engaging scholarship with a remarkable collection of images. Chris Brickell tells the evolving story of New Zealand gay men through the lives of clerks, labourers,...

2010 Edition. Revised and Expanded with 85 New Studies What medical research actually says about natural health products and therapies. In a world that's besieged by extravagant claims for an avalanche of natural remedies, who should we believe, and how can we get the information we need to make the right choices? The answers to these and many more questions are in this ground-breaking book. The...

A true story of love in wartime and in peace by one of New Zealand's finest writers. In Crete during the Second World War a wounded Maori Battalion soldier and a young Cretan woman fall in love when the young infantryman is sheltered by her family. After marrying in Crete, Ned and Katina come back to live in New Zealand, settling in the Far North. They live a long, rich and happy life together,...

Discover New Zealand Glimpse Mitre Peak through the mist on majestic Milford Sound Hold your nose and dip your toes in a Rotorua thermal pool Shelter from windy Wellington with the arts crowd in a low-lit lounge bar Enjoy a "hangi" - but stop short of getting a "moko" - on a Maori cultural tour In This Guide: Food & Drink chapter by Lauraine Jacobs, editor of award-winning "Cuisine" magazine You...

Lonely Planet's team of authors has island hopped the Bay of Islands, immersed themselves in Rotorua's proud Maori culture, kayaked Abel Tasman's pristine bays and cruised the magnificent Milford Sound - as well as exploring everything in between. With all that research and more, Lonely Planet New Zealand is your key to the best possible Kiwi experience. Lonely Planet guides are written by...

One of the cornerstones of a civilized democracy is the protection of an individual's civil rights, those freedoms enshrined in law that shield citizens from unwarranted government action, discrimination or repression. New Zealand law, as well as the Bill of Rights, includes a wealth of protection for the individual throughout all areas of people's lives. But this protection can be meaningless...