Non Fiction

16 August 2010

Everything banana! It is not too much to say that this fruit has changed human history profoundly. Prehistoric migrations can be traced by the similarity of words used for banana in vastly separate regions. It is, and has been, the staple food of East Africa, eaten at every meal; failure of the... More..

16 August 2010

How do you carry on living when fifty members of your family have been murdered in a modern day genocide? This is the experience of the author, Mary K Blewitt, a Rwandan who escaped the genocide of 1994 because she was living in the UK at the time. Rwanda was cut off from the rest of the world for... More..

16 August 2010

You could enjoy this book for the fabulous photographs alone. Beautiful full page portraits of mammals, birds, frogs... Each photograph accompanies a description of a recent finding in zoology, botany or ecology. Whole new species have been discovered, and behaviours that amazed or delighted me,... More..

16 August 2010

Wesley the owl is a remarkable story of an owl and his saviour. Stacey adopts an owl chick with a damaged wing that means that he wouldn't thrive in the wild. She knows this is a long-term commitment as barn owls can live for 15 years or more. Wesley (as she names him) and Stacey become dependent... More..

29 July 2010

No one knows much about William Shakespeare apart from the fact he was a great playwright. Even his official portrait may be of another person! Not many records remain of Shakespeare and many are believed to have been lost in the Great Fire of London in 1666. His plays are so diverse – comedy,... More..

24 June 2010

Bad birdwatching is just noticing the birds around you without being too obsessive about it. It is British/American but the principles apply world-wide. I liked the self-depreciating humour, the 'shortcuts' one can take to identify birds, and concepts such as 'avian plankton'. CO More..

24 March 2010

Not cobbled together in an afternoon, these treehouses. They are beautifully crafted and built with sensitivity to the trees that they inhabit. Sparse poetic words and glorious photographs and line drawings from various angles, seasons and times. cao More..

24 March 2010

The dog of the title is Jim, a whippet who accompanies Terry and Monica on their retirement adventure. They travel on the rivers and canals of England, across the Channel and on through France on their narrowboat. They are gregarious and observant; Terry has a nice turn of phrase. It is a joy to... More..

12 February 2010

A love story with feathers. Rory watches birds, first with the lovely JJ whom he seeks to impress with his knowledge of Latin names, and later with his wife, Tori. He draws our attention to the common yet remarkable British birds and describes them and their lifestyles with humour. CAO More..

29 January 2010

“Pragmatism, humour, stubborn bloody-mindedness – what else does a woman need to carry her through the ups and downs of her life's work?" This book describes and analyses the lives of five significant New Zealand women, through in-depth interviews with historian and biographer Deborah Shepard.... More..

23 December 2009

The autobiography of a father who lost his eldest daughter in the Elim School tragedy while on an outdoor pursuit adventure. This book depicts events Andy has faced during his life and how he dealt with them, finding treasures amidst the darkness. It shows what he has accomplished and given to... More..

16 December 2009

Iain Sinclair's book is like an investigation. People are tracked down: Roland Camberton to Herne Hill, Jean-Luc Godard to St John's Wood. Things are connected: Lauriston Road and Julie Christie; the German Hospital and Joseph Conrad. Stories are recovered: the Labyrinth on Dalston Lane; Astrid... More..

16 December 2009

Imagine this. You are a country boy and just eighteen. The war has been raging for two years and because of your age, you have not been eligible for enlistment. Your mates, older by a few months are joining up and disappearing to the great adventure across the world in Europe...Will Davies travels... More..

9 December 2009

This is a story of thirteen women who live in Venture, California and collaboratively buy a diamond necklace. This not only brings a little magic into their own lives and others they come into contact with, but also has a major effect on the community. The necklace symbolises different things to... More..

4 December 2009

I have spent a lifetime reading widely in my search for what makes the world wag and why. Every now and again I come across a book that takes me to a whole new level. Jolt Challenge, I am delighted to say, is one of those. I am into my second reading of it and have registered to do the course... More..

4 December 2009

Alexis Soyer was a brilliant man – famous in his time as an inventor (of culinary aids and relish recipes) and as a philanthropist (he set up soup kitchens, innovations of the time in famine-struck Ireland and transformed British army catering during the Crimean war). At the same time, unlikely as... More..

4 December 2009

Having lived in the Middle East as a child, I have come to realize that culture is encapsulated in food. This book is a fantastic example of this, with famous recipes of Persian dishes from all over Iran. Also featured, is a list of Iranian festivities, and a well designed glossary which translates... More..

23 November 2009

A wonderful delicious book with beautiful photographs to match. The recipes are easy to follow, authentic and great to eat.JM More..

19 November 2009

Based on her own experience of grief, Mary Polce-Lynch shows us how to write a last communication such as a letter to a loved one - healing final words that give a sense of closure.JM More..

12 November 2009

Mike Parker is a map addict of the first order, from early days ensconsed in the back seat of his grandparents' car dictating directions, to more recent encounters with GPS. His enthusiasm for maps is infectious. You will never look at a map of Scotland showing the Mull of Kintrye with a straight... More..

16 October 2009

The author moves from Washington to Kiribati for two years, imagining a tropical paradise. The reality is, however, somewhat different: no sewage disposal system, almost non-existent healthcare, and a diet of fish, relieved only by sporadic deliveries of out of date tinned corned beef. The island... More..

13 October 2009

Using mainly British, French, and American sources, the author examines how the Orient (principally Egypt and Palestine) has been represented in the West since the end of the eighteenth century, and how that representation has been constructed. His method is especially interesting because he... More..

12 October 2009

There are shelves of memoirs about overcoming the death of a parent, childhood abuse, rape, drug addiction, miscarriage, alcoholism, hustling, gangbanging, near-death injuries, drug dealing, prostitution, or homelessness. Cupcake Brown survived all these things before she'd even turned twenty. And... More..

12 October 2009

If you enjoy reading a nature/memoir style of book and you have a love of birds, then this is the one for you. As is oftten the case, one stray bird led to many more, with all their strange habits, along with the many ways of trying to fit in with the rest of the family. This story is told with... More..

12 October 2009

If you are a fan of David Jason’s acting in the BBC series ‘Only Fools and Horses,’ ‘Open All Hours’ and ‘Darling Buds of May’ amongst others, you will enjoy reading this biography. Right from his early childhood this brilliant comedian made people laugh, his successful career culminating with his... More..

23 September 2009

Heritage week .. now there's an occasion we can all feel ambivalent about. Just to throw a historian in among the pigeons, try James Belich. He's a punchy fellow and it's well worth priming yourself for the book by listening to his interview with Kim Hill. He "fingers" the settlement boom as... More..

21 September 2009

With an introduction by Richard Ingrams (Private Eye) this is a collection of opinions, prejudices and rants about modern life and all its (in)conveniences, aimed at baby-boomers. No gadget is spared, no public service ignored, no lapse in manners forgiven. Individually, the pieces are amusing,... More..

21 September 2009

Robbie Coltrane, Scottish star of Harry Potter and Cracker, hires a classic Jaguar car and decides to travel from London to Glasgow avoiding all motorways and A-roads and traveling only on B-roads. His journey takes him through villages and towns that have retained their unique identity, where he... More..

21 September 2009

Sullivan McLeod grew up in Margaret River, Western Australia, and has always surfed. Having completed the obligatory OE, he decides to enter the surfing World Championships, just to see if he could compete against some of his idols. He starts off with good intentions, but is frequently waylaid by... More..

21 September 2009

This book’s sub-title, How William Lever cleaned up the world, provides only a hint of how one extraordinary man used his personal fortune to influence and change society by practical measures founded on far-sighted beliefs. William Lever set about providing men, women and children with fresh air,... More..

9 September 2009

A true and moving portrait of the love and courage of a family. A forty year old single mother is bringing up her one year old daughter and caring for her eighty year old father who has Alzheimer’s disease. As she watches in awe, her child’s memory grows and expands daily, but she also mourns her... More..

9 September 2009

Please note the sub-title: this is not a book about how to care for your lawn but about the social impact the lawnmower has had on people. It pokes gentle fun at the strange notion of trying to produce a uniform, monocultural landscape out of something as rampant as grass. The development of the... More..

7 September 2009

These anecdotes of growing up in the 1960s and 70s have a resonance even now. David Sedaris will make you laugh out loud with his offbeat family antics. The hilariously painful rites of passage that he describes will remind you how childhood and adolescence shapes all of us. MC More..

21 August 2009

Written as a catalogue for the exhibition held at Gus Fisher Gallery in Auckland, and the National Portrait Gallery in Wellington in 2008/2009, this book observes a wide scope of leadership within New Zealand, from Queen Victoria to Sir Edmund Hillary. This beautifully illustrated catalogue... More..

20 August 2009

The author walks around London following the path of the M25. You get to see what's at the edges of the city - Waltham Abbey, Government research institutions, disused asylums, exclusive housing, Martian death rays, industrial estates, Carfax, shopping malls. A series of local histories connected... More..

19 August 2009

Award-winning journalist Sally Sara takes us on a journey of discovery through Africa, interviewing twelve very different African women. The women speak very openly and honestly about their lives and the horrors they have endured through times of war and famine. A thoroughly engaging and... More..

19 August 2009

This is an entertaining, unauthorized, account of the history of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In his introduction, Michael Gross describes the Metropolitan as a, 'huge alchemical experiment, turning the worst of man's attributes - extravagance, lust, gluttony, acquisitiveness, envy, avarice,... More..

3 August 2009

Does the world need yet another book on Shakespeare? Yes, if it is by Bill Bryson. This is a compendium of all the facts known about Shakespeare (not actually a great many), and various conjectures that scholars and nut-cases have come up with over the years. Obsessive research, and some... More..

3 August 2009

I loved this book and the array of tempting recipes. It is presented in a totally different format to the usual Australian Woman’s Weekly recipe books and I found the photographs stunning. There is temptation on every page and having one recipe per page with the photograph on the adjacent page is a... More..

3 August 2009

This book contains anecdotes and curious information on a range of forty well-known songs and their composers, from ‘For he’s a jolly good fellow’ and ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star’ to ‘Amazing Grace’ and ‘Yesterday’. Their origins make an interesting read although some histories are over... More..

3 August 2009

The first memoir from a woman born and raised in South Darfur is a powerful account of the horrors of the genocide in Sudan. A compelling account of Halima’s determination to survive and her passion to defend her people.P.O. More..

3 August 2009

Dawn French invites us into her most personal relationships in the format of letters written to, among others, her mum and dad, her husband, her daughter and her friend Jennifer Saunders, the ‘Dear Fatty’ of the title. A warm and funny book which reveals the surprising life behind the smile.P.O. More..

3 August 2009

The story shares the joys and humour of everyday life during the mid-life years woman face. A light easy read guaranteed to lift your spirits.Polly More..

3 August 2009

A heart warming story of Ben Mee and his family buying a zoo that has been closed down. None of them have any expertise in running a zoo, so they learn and lived to tell a story full of interesting animal facts, having to deal with bureaucracy, and heart aching human drama. H.B. More..

17 July 2009

This is a non-fiction book about the ongoing conflict in Palestine. Apart from being easy to read, it manages to put both points of view in a clear and fair way so that all through the book the reader is able to compare the impact of what’s happening as experienced by both the Palestinians and the... More..

7 July 2009

Gregory has been 'ordered' to bring his beloved dalmation JP to the south of France so that JP can father a new litter of puppies. He complies, travelling light with JP tucked in front of him on a motor scooter! A light, fun read for lovers of dogs and France.cao More..

7 July 2009

This North Shore resident is a psychotherapist with many years experience working with dreams and their interpretation. She has been both teacher and practitioner and run dream workshops in New Zealand for many years. In this work she outlines the nature and range of dreams and their role in... More..

7 July 2009

Anyone who loves home cooking will love this collection of New Zealand baking favourites. Illustrated with original recipes and accompanied with commentaries on the history of the different recipes. Hard to resist Montana Book Award finalist. The author was a curator at the Auckland Art Gallery... More..