Portfolio

"Rita Vegas" by Patricia Donovan

Kara te Kākāpō

New Zealand Post Primary Teachers’ Association/Te Wehengarua (PPTA) – Volume One

“Toyota in New Zealand: Making the Toyota Way Our Own”
Volume 1
978-0-473-67969-9
Alistair Davis

New Zealand Post Primary Teachers’ Association/Te Wehengarua (PPTA) – Volume Two

In stores April 4th 2023.

’Southern Celts’ is a collection of interviews of New Zealanders who reflect on their connections to their Irish and Scottish cultural backgrounds. These narratives of individuals and families cover a range of related issues, including doing business, speaking and teaching Scottish and Irish Gaelic, playing music and singing, writing fiction and poetry, making documentaries, carving and sculpture, spirituality and religion, sport, and holding historical narratives of the Scots and Irish in public institutions. Narrators also reflect on their understanding of how people with Scots and Irish backgrounds have related to indigenous Maori over the generations in Aotearoa. As we look to teach more of our own New Zealand histories in schools, these personal narratives offer rich insights for the way ahead.

This lively historical novel is a compelling account of the people, events, and the forces driving them that surrounded the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.

Written by Frances Plumpton, illustrated by Stephanie Thatcher, translated by Darryn Joseph.

Bilingual – English and Maori.

There’s much to discover meandering along a New Zealand beach with small children when the tide is out. This simple bilingual counting book, with watercolour illustrations, features many treasures to encourage their curiosity. Although set at Huia on the Manukau Harbour, many of these shells, creatures and birds can be found on beaches throughout the country.

Tides Out will help children reinforce their counting skills whilst introducing them to the fascinating seashore life on New Zealand beaches.

Within the small suburb of Birkenhead lurks a monster, one the local residents entrust with their recently departed loved ones. He has been inflicting his depraved atrocities unnoticed. But what happens when he turns his attentions to the living?

Maisie Manson lives a typical kiwi life: she works hard at school, enjoys the outdoors, and finally takes off for her big OE. She is having the best time, until a tragic event back home shatters her world and sets off a chain reaction of decisions which lead her on a frightening collision course with the man responsible.

Once the mortuary’s secrets are revealed, life and death in Birkenhead will never be the same.

‘The Secret Life of Number 8’ takes the reader into the heart of a universe in miniature, one that reveals the striking order, complexity, and elegance of the materials that are part of everyday life. This book will appeal to anyone, irrespective of their level of training in science, who is simply curious about why materials behave the way they do.

“7 Dimensions: Children’s Emotional Well-being” introduces a framework designed to help adults make simple sense of the plethora of information available about young people’s feelings, thoughts and ways of responding. Based on up-to-date neuroscience and the positive, interactive approaches that are supported by brain research, the 7 Dimensions framework offers a way to support the emotional well-being of children in their everyday environments, including those who experience significant challenges. Although examples in the book are from the school environment, the 7 Dimensions’ principles are equally relevant for parenting.

The shepherd has been a constant presence in folklore and religion, usually as a symbol of the struggle between the powerful and common people, or as a wise leader. References to the shepherd crop up in stories from around the world and throughout the ages.

Bill Bradford contemplates these connections as he moves from being a herder of sheep to an activist and trade unionist. These poems reflect his love of the animals he worked with, his thirst for social justice, and his concern for the environment.

Drawings by Northland artist Thomas Lauterbach vividly bring the character of animals and people to life.

Letters to Lilburn is a compilation of letter extracts and poems written by expatriate bisexual painter Douglas MacDiarmid to his first great love and long-time friend, New Zealand’s great music composer Douglas Lilburn, between 1944 and 2001.

Letters to Lilburn is a limited-edition hardcover volume – 100 copies for 100 years – to honour a remarkable friendship and bring to light another of MacDiarmid’s passions, his penchant for words.

Written with grace and a luminous intensity, The Collections delivers a startling story about taking control of one’s fate.

Patricia Donovan has created a haunting and compelling narrative that explores the fragility of our social fabric and, ultimately, our humanity.

‘A gritty and hypnotic read.’ –Norman Bilbrough

Creating Space – An Experience of Gender describes the extraordinary work of Jane Prichard, in her own words. It tells how Jane’s advocacy for women and girls in Aotearoa New Zealand began. The book illustrates how Jane established and supported women’s networks.

Afghanistan 1982, a botched CIA operation leaves a young Ali without a family, setting him on an unpredictable path for retribution. What follows is his lifelong, meticulously planned quest for vengeance, from Afghanistan across the globe to New York. Along the way he makes enemies in a Pakistani drug lord, the Mafia, and every law enforcement agency, but finds love through a most unexpected reunion.

This fast-paced novel will keep you on the edge of your seat as you follow the twists and turns of his journey, from an innocent 16-year-old to the most hunted man in America.

No matter how hard she would try, Kara from Kakapo just couldn't quite seem to master the art of flying.

But with optimism, determination and a little creative thinking can Kara still achieve her dream?

Danni is a Wellington based zookeeper and conservationist with a passion for connecting children with animals and the environment.

She has worked in Australia, New Zealand and Madagascar and wants to use her experience to inspire conservation connections through her engaging and educational animal adventure stories.

Life’s pretty okay at the St. Alice home for orphans.

Until someone dastardly decides he wants to ruin everything.

How will Zola and her friends stop him? What’s behind that door? Why is the doctor acting so strangely? Who’s in charge of these kids? And . . . wait, where’s that music coming from?

Hold on tight for action, thrills, laughs, danger, bumps, jumps and extremely poor supervision.

Fascinating, shocking and humourous in equal measure, All Veils Are Off is a revealing account of Heding’s eight years living in Qatar. Entering a world of privilege and opulence, Heding must learn to navigate the tricky ex-pat community, including the cruel antics of ‘Hetta the Horrible.’ As petty domestic politics swirl around her, Heding stares down her fears and faces potentially life-threatening situations; from suicide bombers to crazy drivers, heat stroke, psychopaths and dune bashing.

Written to celebrate the New Zealand Meat Board’s Centenary in 2022, Meeting Change covers the past 25 years of evolution for the organisation and its place in New Zealand’s wider red meat sector. Through a period of volatile political, cultural and economic uncertainty, the sector found a way to pull together strategically to survive and meet the change it faced head on with ingenuity, innovation and, sometimes, number eight wire. It’s a great story, written by people who worked in the sector.

In ‘Navigation: Kupe & Cook’, Kingsley Smith traces the beginnings of travel by boat as man migrated out of Africa and arrived in Sahul: Australia-New Guinea, 50,000 years ago.

“An impressive and valuable contribution to an important area of maritime studies.”

— JOAN DRUETT, author of Tupaia: Captain Cook’s Polynesian Navigator

‘The Key to Unlocking Your Potential’ takes a refreshing approach to making the most of every day at work, especially for those tasked with getting the best from their team, as well as making fascinating and valuable reading for anyone who feels ‘locked’ into their job.

Brett Ashley is a former executive with Woolworths NZ Ltd, who chalked up more than 47 years in the retail industry in both New Zealand and Australia. A butcher by trade, Brett started his meat apprenticeship with Foodtown Supermarkets. He owned and operated a private meat business for five years in the late 1980s, before re-joining the corporate retailer and working there for another 27 years.

The Final Call is a gripping family saga, deftly showing how society’s attitudes to prostitution, gays, lesbians and independent women received a good shake-up in 1970s Auckland.

It is Jen Shieff’s third book, a standalone sequel to The Gentlemen’s Club (2015) and The Vanishing Act (2018), both finalists for a Ngaio Marsh Award.

I Will Make You Passionate About Exercise was written to help people who currently don’t have exercise in their life, fall in love with it.

This book gives you a ten step plan that wisely guides you from where you are now to a place where you’ll be healthier, fitter, leaner, have more energy, and feel great about yourself. You will become an inspiration to your friends, family and the people in your world with the achievements you will experience on this journey.

Get this book now if you want to have a lifetime love of exercise, improve your health, fitness and overall wellbeing.

Published by Little Love.
Publication date: November 10th 2021

ARGH! I’M THE RHYMING PIRATE!
Have a LOOK inside this BOOK
then read it at your LEISURE,
because hidden in the pages
you’ll find loads of Kiwi TREASURE!

Join the pirate and his cheeky companion on a colourful voyage laden with rollicking rhymes and classic kiwiana. Can you spot all the treasures along the way?

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: 16 November 2021

Lucy and Lily’s Granddad is missing and they’re desperate to find him.

But first they must survive a great and unusual adventure filled with brutes in nail-polish, a strange bookshop, a children-eating beast, a huge rock and secret tunnel, a very bad orchestra, rotten tricks, flying chunks of cupcake, a talking fox, vomiting, swords, sneak-walking and someone who really isn’t very nice.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing.
Publication Date: November 1st 2021

Larry the giraffe lives in a zoo, but he’s not like the other giraffes.

Larry is small and soft and cuddly – and he feels different and alone.

One night, with the magic of Matariki, Larry goes off on a journey to find a place where he truly belongs. Along the way he meets a pūkeko, a possum and a duck before he finds a place his heart can call home.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing.
Publication date: November 2021.

Wilbur and his Mama walk Wally dog by the sea. As Wally chases the pine cone and Wilbur’s buggy bounces, the birds begin to appear, firstly chattering and chirping and then gossiping and philosophising.

This is a story of small struggles, small triumphs and really big love.


‘Rebecca and Dan Nash present a world brimming with colour and detail – simply and elegantly – without betraying their love for a good story’

—MARLON WILLIAMS

Celia Seagull perched on the cliff,
eyeing up plastic and watching it drift.

Scanning for pieces to weave through her nest,
she held her beak high and puffed out her chest.

Join Celia Seagull as she gathers plastic pieces from the ocean to build a bigger, better nest. With far too much on her agenda, busy Celia refuses to help sea creatures who are tangled in the scrap.

But when Celia runs into trouble, who will help her?

“A delightful story that speaks to the harm that is caused by the plastic waste that ends up in the sea. The message is clear: we must dispose of plastic safely and help all life in the ocean.”

Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE
Founder - the Jane Goodall Institute
& UN Messenger of Peace

When Lily’s Mum tells her that she wishes she could build a bridge between their two homes, Lily and her dog, Woof, swap stick hunts for bridge hunts and set off in search of a bridge to Australia.

This is a charming and whimsical tale of a little girl, her furry best friend and a big imagination. Kiwis and Koalas is a beautifully illustrated story that will take you on a magical journey around Australia and New Zealand, stopping to sightsee along the way.

These gracious homes – dotted across the sun-drenched uplands of Hawke’s Bay – rose unashamedly from the golden fleeces on the sheep’s backs, to become monuments to our settler heritage. Set in spacious grounds and framed by enormous exotic trees, such as oaks, gums or Norfolk pines, they stand as testament to the dreams of our ancestors who came to this fresh canvas of a country, which already had its own rich Māori culture, with a determination to put their own individualistic mark on the landscape.

You think you know someone. You accept that because you are siblings, raised in the same house in the same town by the same parents, you share a common view of the world, live by an identical set of values. But what if you are wrong?

In Sydney, 2017, in the laid-back suburb of Glebe, Lexi Madison is living her ideal life with her husband Conor. When her older sister Chrissy comes to stay, Lexi’s world starts to unravel as dark family secrets are revealed, and she learns how insidiously truth can be perverted, and that exposing those secrets can drive a person to the brink of murder.

The Madison Gap is a mesmerising and ultimately explosive story of a woman’s awakening. In crisp, stirring prose, Patricia Donovan evokes the angst of family discordance and, as we follow Lexi’s search for understanding, captures exquisitely the disquiet and uncertainty that comes when dreams are challenged by reality.

Published by Little Love
ISBN 978-0-473-52890-4

‘Kowhai first appeared from the golden glow of a beautiful flower . . . and her voice was the rain and the sea and the cry of a bird.’

Follow Kowhai as she discovers a tiny seed’s hope to build a great forest.

‘A beautifully cast tale of hope and resilience.’ – SHAUN TAN

Artwork created by hand cut paper. First exhibited at the Arataki Visitors Centre in 2016

A beautifully illustrated combination of personal stories of alpine adventures over five decades and reflections on the spirituality of the mountain world. From student days till retirement, Ron Hay has found adventure and refreshment of spirit amid the peaks and valleys of the Southern Alps.

“A thoughtful, well-observed contemplation of fifty years of climbs. Written with flair, appreciation for natural grandeur, the joy of shared times and nourishment of spirit imbibed during numinous days in the mountains.”

—ROSS CULLEN, PROMINENT MOUNTAINEER, AUTHOR AND PROFESSOR EMERITUS AT LINCOLN UNIVERSITY

Alyssa is a combat-trained sixteen-year-old from New Zealand. She’s courageous, ambitious, and highly skilled; she needs to be because she’s heading to New York. The city is populated by Marines, rebels, vigilantes, the wealthy elite and the hardworking lower class, entirely cut off from the rest of the world, imprisoned in self-sustaining anarchy. Alyssa can’t wait.

But then, mere days after arriving, she’s kidnapped. Alyssa finds herself trapped amongst strangers who challenge everything she’s been taught, and she doesn’t know how to sift the fact from the fiction. What’s really going on in New York City? Who can she trust?

She wants answers.

But first she needs to survive.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-53237-6

Kia Whakanuia te Whenua is both a celebration and a call to action – to honour our land and to rekindle creative, respectful ways of living with Her.

This Māori-led work presents a rich collection of visual essays, papers, poetry and polemics that challenge the way we think about environment, land and landscape in a changing world: te ao hurihuri. Its aim is to advocate for the land, to oust complacency.

Kia Whakanuia te Whenua seeks to stimulate interdisciplinary thinking and knowledge. It is critical reading for planners, policymakers, students and practitioners in land and water management, and for those who are willing to listen to the land and what it can teach us.

Foreword by Anne Salmond.

Published by Little Love (imprint of Mary Egan Publishing)
ISBN: 9780473522902

Tahi the Tuatara is down in the dumps and no matter what his friend, Roger the Ruru tries, nothing seems to change his mood. It’s not until they answer a cry for help that their journey takes an unexpected turn. Tu Meke Tuatara! is a story about empathy, friendship and discovering that sometimes the best way we can feel better about ourselves, is to help someone else.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-53764-7

The Keto Chef’s Kitchen is an all-round introduction to a low-carb lifestyle, full of wholesome, tasty recipes that are:

• Keto
• Low-carb
• Sugar-free
• Gluten-free
• Diabetes-friendly
• Calorie conscious

Keto doesn’t have to be hard. These nourishing, quality recipes are easy-to-follow and easy-to-cook, and won’t leave you feeling guilty or suffering!

Winner of the prestigious “Best in the World” title for 2nd place in the diet category of the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2022!

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-52257-5

Pet is a dark and humorous short story collection that explores our relationships with children, lovers, and other animals.

In these 18 stories we meet a girl in a standoff with the neighbourhood goose killer, a druggy who turns possums into

pop culture icons, and an emotional support animal gone wild.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-51307-8

In the spirit of Laurie Lee’s As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning, Dougal Rillstone’s memoir is a lyrical mediation on landscape and moving water, with angling at its heart. Upstream on the Mataura is also about the communities the river runs through, the friendships sustained by fly-fishing, and a love of the river and its tributaries. It is memoir writing at its finest.

Rillstone also makes an urgent plea for the guardianship of our rivers saying, ‘Deep down I wanted to speak for the rivers. Say something on their behalf, because while they can speak for themselves, too few are listening,’ says Rillstone.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-54671-7

In 1853, only a lunatic would consider crossing the Syrian desert to see the Roman ruins at Palmyra. Most travellers from Europe rash enough to venture into the desert are never seen again, and a woman considering such a journey, without her husband, is preposterous. When Jane Digby, the Lady Ellenborough, granddaughter of the Earl of Leicester, informs the British Consul in Damascus that this is what she intends to do, he quickly learns she’s a woman who brooks no argument.

In Syria, Jane hopes at last to settle, only to discover a world of recklessness and integrity, of cruelty and desire, where her own passion is stirred more than she ever dared hope for.

The Remarkable Miss Digby is a hauntingly beautiful story of a woman determined to escape the confines of her class and gender, living during a time of religious and cultural upheaval which uncannily mirrors our own.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-53951-1

From country boy to internationally renowned plastic surgeon, from junior medical officer to Lieutenant Colonel in just four years, perfection: the life and times of Sir William Manchester covers a life of achievement and service.

Hailing from small beginnings in rural Waimate, William Manchester became a battalion medical officer with the New Zealand Army in the United Kingdom during World War II. Selected in 1941 to train as a plastic surgeon, serendipitously under the supervision of the great pioneers Gillies, McIndoe, Mowlem and Barron – all New Zealanders – he excelled in this evolving surgical craft.

Published by Little Love

Elaine feels scared of everything, and she doesn’t always know why . . . but she doesn’t want to miss out on all the exciting things her friends get to do. Luckily for Elaine, her best friend Lou is here to help!

The Girl Who Was Scared of Everything is based on debut author and illustrator Emma Pascoe’s personal experiences of anxiety and depression. Originally created as an outlet for her feelings, feedback and encouragement from her friends and family inspired Pascoe to turn her work into a children’s book.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing

Kate’s tiny kitten wants to go outside.

He struggles with the cat flap, annoys a bird . . . and ends upon the wrong side of the fence.

What will Kate do?

The kitten in Bruce Goes Outside is based on a real life cat. The real Bruce was found on the streets of New Zealand when he was just one day old. At first he was a tiny little creature who had to be bottle-fed around the clock, but now he’s big and strong (and a little bit naughty).

Published by Mary Egan Publishing

In Cohousing for Life, architect Robin Allison describes her journey from lonely mother of two in the suburbs to determined driver of the development of New Zealand’s first cohousing community. It is a very personal story of a collective endeavour, a heroic journey of despair and triumph, as the obstacles mount and success at times feels far from certain.

Published by Museday Publications
ISBN 978-0-473-50717-6

How we do dying and death really matters.

This affects not only the one who is dying, but all who are touched by his or her journey. I hope this small book can help in reclaiming our understanding of death as a natural process, and one more affected by our own choices than we may imagine.

“. . . a beautifully scripted collection of stories of those leaving this world as we know it. . .”

– Carol Wales, Companion to the dying

“. . . a gem. . . we gain insight into the world of people approaching death, sometimes with dignity and grace and at other times with defiance. . . ”

– Professor Rod Macleod MNZM, Palliative Care Specialist

“I felt I was ‘there’, experiencing the myriad emotions that accompany the death and dying journey. . .”

– Rev Michele Cherry – Interfaith/Interspiritual Minister

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-49961-7

Former editor Jenny Lynch takes the wraps off the unreported side of life in print, explodes myths, unearths secrets and shows that even on seemingly conservative publications such as the New Zealand Woman’s Weekly things were seldom exactly as they seemed. Her memoir, aptly titled “Under the Covers”, is a revealing account of what went on behind the closed doors of various editorial offices and newsrooms during one of the most colourful periods in magazine and newspaper history.

Peppered with the names of those who have touched the author’s life, including the famous and the fleeting, “Under the Covers” will appeal to everyone who enjoys reading about the ever-changing world of print media.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN 978-0-473-50197-6

Bill Birch was the quiet achiever of New Zealand politics. A trusted lieutenant to Prime Ministers Muldoon, Bolger and Shipley, Birch was at the heart of the action across a turbulent quarter-century of political and social change.

From ‘Think Big’ and the Employment Contracts Act to overhauls of immigration, health, ACC, fiscal management, industry training, electricity markets and producer boards, Birch managed controversial, risky reforms, and much of what he achieved endures today.

Birch’s story, from humble rural Waikato roots to political change-maker, is of an ordinary New Zealander who achieved extraordinary things. He was a legendary workaholic, the ‘doer’ who shunned the limelight and did the hard yards behind much of New Zealand’s economic transformation.

He tells all in Bill Birch – Minister of Everything, written by former staffer and journalist Brad Tattersfield.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-48840-6

Four years, two wars and one most unlikely social enterprise.

Marilyn Garson was an experienced aid professional who created jobs at the edge of war. In 2011, she was invited to move to the Gaza Strip. Friends warned her that nothing worked behind the Gaza blockade. Unable to resist that challenge, Marilyn became the Economic Director of a large NGO programme, leading an ambitious young Palestinian team.

Gaza’s business owners, technology graduates, and job-seekers (facing the highest unemployment on earth) overturned Marilyn’s understanding of aid and justice. Then she volunteered to join the United Nations’ emergency team that would remain inside Gaza through the 2014 war.

Marilyn witnessed first-hand the impact of Israel’s urban assault and massive civilian displacement. The UN was prepared to shelter 35,000 displaced Gazans, but 293,000 arrived. Locked in beneath the bombs, they had nowhere safer to go, and nothing but the United Nations flag and international law to protect them.

Neither Marilyn’s team nor Gaza itself was the same after fifty days of bombardment. But the team was still determined to launch their social enterprise. On her last day, one task remained: Marilyn must tell her Gazan colleagues that she is a Jew.

Published by Barker Fruit Processors Ltd
ISBN: 978-0-473-48883-3

At a time when consumers are looking for more and more connection with the foods they eat, Michael Barker proudly shares the Barker’s of Geraldine journey, the people, the innovations and the philosophies that still guide them.

This is a story of entrepreneurial spirit, creativity, fun, dedication to community and finding a way to bring it all together to build a strong, profitable values-based company. The journey wasn’t always straightforward but the founders never gave up and always empowered those around them to help. It is a 50-year story of relentless innovation, humble tenacity and risk-taking to create a lasting future on the family farm for the brand that means so much to the entire Barker’s team.

Published by Little Love, an imprint of Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-47136-1

Fly a plane or drive a car:
Transport takes us near and far.

Boilers steam and pistons boom.
Start your engines. Whizz! Roar! Zoom!

Want to see a trio of converted Massey Ferguson tractors heading to the South Pole? Ever spied a Trekka in action on a Waikato farm? What about an NZeta scooter zipping past a Four Square?

Ready, Set, Go! is a transport book for Kiwi kids. Featuring ten heritage New Zealand transport items from MOTAT’s collection, this fun read-aloud story also includes amazing facts about our national transport history.

This book is the first in a series of educational books for Kiwi kids by Beck Wheeler and Little Love.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-46997-9

Title text designed by Holly Dunn Design www.hollydunndesign.com

A girl whose mum lives far away sends her a letter with a magic gift inside. But the true magic was inside the girl – all she had to do was believe.

Stardust explores the emotions that come with having a parent in prison and not being able to see them on a regular basis. While the girl and her mum cannot see each other, they find a unique way to feel connected through the sky and stars, which creates a sense of safety and love that allows the girl to focus on positive memories she has of her mum. This book aims to give children hope, and the self-belief that they can achieve their goals and dreams despite the challenges they face.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-47231-3

Meltwater is a homage to the power of storytelling. Of a woman’s unique journey to find her ‘self.’ A journey made difficult by the fact that Elizabeth has thirteen different ‘selves,’ all part of her, all created to bury shocking memories of abuse.

Poignant, cruel, chilling, yet life affirming, written with lyrical, edgy grace.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-47053-1

This novel is an urgent, crushing observation of adaptation and exclusion amidst preparation to settle Antarctica as climate destruction starts to bite. New Zealand in 2048, gateway to the melting continent, is thrust into the centre of the climate crises. Vai Shuster, the Advocate of a tiny, broken island, must find a place for her community in a world that’s not sure it needs the poor.

Published by The Crater Rim
Designed and produced by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-48028-8

THE CRATER RIM LTD is a family-owned boutique winery situated in the rolling hills of Waipara, in the South Island of New Zealand. They grow, make and market limited quantities of terroir-specific wines produced from their own two vineyards and contracted sites in the Canterbury sub-regions of Waipara, Omihi and Banks Peninsula and in Central Otago.

THE CRATER RIM recommend that their wines are enjoyed with a meal that best brings out their flavours and have produced this book so that those that drink their wines may have a range of options to do this.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-46429-5

Twenty-three-year-old Josh Komen is on track to represent New Zealand in running at the next Commonwealth Games when he is diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. In a single moment, the course of his life has changed irrevocably. What follows are years of excrutiating pain, brutal treatments both in New Zealand and Australia, and shocking side-effects that send a young man to the brink of despair and back innumerable times.

Ultimately, it is the enduring love of his close-knit family and friends, the incredible medical professionals who treat him, his spiritual beliefs, and his passion for nature that carry Josh through the hardest of challenges.

The life lessons Josh gathers along the way are an inspiration for us all. This is an incredible story of courage, love and endurance.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-48107-0
Publication Date: September 2019

Des Townson was a yacht designer and boatbuilder responsible for a unique body of work which filled a special niche in New Zealand’s rich boating history. He possessed an analytical mind, an innate feel for sailing boats and a wonderful eye for their visual balance. As an accomplished racing helmsman, he applied his once-in-a-generation set of skills to his creative art. During a five decade long design career he produced some of the most eye-catching, easily handled and well performing maritime craft to ever grace New Zealand waters. The fact he was self-taught and worked almost his entire career alone only intensifies the achievements of this remarkable man.

Published by Andrea Needham Leadership Charitable Trust
ISBN: 978-0-473-46394-6

In this revitalised edition of Workplace Bullyingby ground-breaking New Zealand human resource expert Andrea W. Needham, we take a hard look at a very dubious workplace practice.

If you have ever been the target of a workplace bully or you are a manager wanting to attract and keep the very best people, Workplace Bullying is essential reading.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-46599-5

Continuing ill-health and countless surgeries sent Auckland businessman Dave Burt spiralling down into the depths of despair and hopelessness.

Something had to change. With a mate he enrolled for a 10-week ‘ultimate body transformation’ regime at the local gym.

This thoughtful, insightful book is the remarkable story of how with a wonderful woman at his side – and the right support a Kiwi bloke fought back. This ten-week diary will make you laugh and cry, but above all it will provide rare insight to those struggling with depression.

Published by Wellington Culinary Events Trust
ISBN: 978-0-473-43852-4

Your perception of the humble burger will never be the same again once you’ve salivated over the most popular, wacky and wonderful recipes from Burger Wellington, finally brought together in book form.

This hotly contested and much-loved burger competition, presented in partnership with iconic Wellington brewery Garage Project, takes place during the annual food festival Visa Wellington On a Plate. For 17 days every August, New Zealand’s capital city plays host to wild celebrations of food and beverage through exclusive set menus, creative cocktails, unforgettable events, cutting-edge pop-ups and – last but not least – the world’s most delicious burgers. Over 100 eateries from all over the region serve up their own special burgers for judging by obsessive locals and visitors alike.

From early winners to the most infamous, meat-lovers’ to plant-based, fine dining to secret sauces, bouncy buns to the crispiest chips, you’ll find it all in this book. Many of the burgers are also matched to a burger’s best friend: Garage Project beers.

So, come on then, what are you waiting for? Put on your stretchy pants and challenge your notion of what makes a bangin’ burger.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-43527-1

Circa 300 BC: slavers are secretly active around the Black Sea, kidnapping children and forcing them into a life of deprivation and captivity. Sixteen-year-old Melo, a respected Amazon tribal leader in the Plains, is empowering the Tribe’s children within the Peace Way. When Melo’s friend Atalanta is captured and put to work on a pig farm, Melo and her friends must harness all their courage to mount a successful rescue operation.

In this enthralling tale of love, adventure and revenge, the children of the cities, the slaves and the tribal young all face the most monumental challenges of their lives as their world is rocked to its core.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-43736-7
Cover design by Carla Sy

Donato has spent most of his life in a monastery, helping Cook in the kitchen, serving the monks at mealtimes and trying to avoid the abbot, Brother Benito. His only comfort is time spent with his protector, Brother Francesco, and trips to the top of the church spire. It is the only life he knows, but it is not the one he wants. Donato dreams of castles and adventure, where he is certain he would matter; that his life would somehow have greater meaning.

When the monks travel into Dhogra’s city centre to celebrate the Spring Festival, Donato is permitted to go too, but when he gets separated from Brother Francesco, he finds himself inside the castle walls. Spying an unguarded entrance, his fascination pulls him deep into the castle’s dark passages, but he’s not alone.

An overheard conversation convinces Donato the King’s life is at risk and he is the only one who can stop the assassin. This decision plunges Donato into a new and unfamiliar world of rivalry and deception. He is set on a path of new friendships and new enemies, and to a destiny he could never have imagined.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-42383-4
Cover design by Spencer Levine

A biography of the life and times of Douglas MacDiarmid over the past 10 decades, from his childhood in New Zealand, through his long and colourful painting career in France. The art, relationships, travel, and philosophies of a truly charismatic expatriate New Zealand painter.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: March 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-40128-3

Crazy. Bold. Fearless. Parris Goebel was destined to make her mark.

Young Queen is the autobiography of a dancer with a dream . . . a young Polynesian girl who grew up in New Zealand and went on to conquer the hip hop world.

In this honest memoir, Parris Goebel shares the extraordinary story of how she went from high-school dropout to award-winning dancer, choreographer and video director.

At just 19, Parris got her big break choreographing for Jennifer Lopez. She has since worked with some of the biggest stars in music, including Janet Jackson, Rihanna and Justin Bieber, creating his record-breaking video, ‘Sorry.’

In these pages, Parris reveals the challenges, fears and obstacles she’s faced on her journey and gives fans and readers a backstage look into her life and the lessons she’s learned.

Filled with photos from Parris’s personal collection, on tour and on set, this is a fun and inspiring read for anyone with a dream.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: 1 November 2017
ISBN: 978-0-473-40377-5

This striking hardback book is full of activities and experiences for New Zealand children. It is an essential go-to resource for parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents of children aged 0 – 6.

The team at BestStart, New Zealand’s largest early learning provider, has put together this book especially for people like you. Written by over 100 early childhood educators, with contributions from Plunket, the Heart Foundation and Jumping Beans, this book is a treasure trove of activities designed to stimulate the inquiring minds of our youngest learners. From Wet and Wild Adventures, Crazy Rocks, Giant Ice Balls to Stomp Painting, this book has dozens of brilliant low-cost ideas – all beautifully photographed and laid out in an easy-to-follow style complete with learning outcomes and handy tips – that your kids will love.

Bright Ideas for Young Minds is guaranteed to fill many an afternoon with wonder, giggles, shrieks of delight and countless lightbulb moments when a skill is mastered, new knowledge is gained and imaginations are ignited!

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: May 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-42760-3

You must be nuts, they all said…

When, after a successful career in banking and finance, David Walshaw decided it was time for a change, he settled on growing olives for oil as his new direction. Neither he nor his wife Helen had any previous experience, but by doing the research, by seeking the advice of other growers, by putting in the work, by trial and not a few errors, they made a go of it.

Join David and Helen on their journey, from the decision to take the plunge, through the establishment phase of their grove at Te Horo on the Kapiti Coast of the North Island, up the steep part of the learning curve to where they are now, living the dream: producing award-winning olive oil on a commercial scale.

Told with candour and humour, Olive Oil the New Zealand Way is part inspirational memoir, part case study in how to make a go of lifestyle farming — and a must-read for anyone nuts enough to give growing olives in the New Zealand situation a go. 

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: May 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-42382-7

When Adrienne was first diagnosed with cardiomyopathy she asked, “What is that?” She had never heard of the condition and had trouble finding information. Her book is designed to help others with cardiomyopathy and heart failure. As well as telling her story she describes how, over time, she learnt to manage - what worked and what didn’t. During her journey, she met others with a similar condition and includes their stories. Her book is relevant to anyone with a chronic health condition.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: 1 March 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-39173-7

Bruce Finds A Home is based on the true story of Bruce the Cat, who was found on the streets of Auckland, New Zealand, when he was just one day old. At first Bruce was a tiny little creature who had to be bottle-fed around the clock, but now he’s big and strong (and a little bit naughty). His story went global and now he has thousands of kindhearted followers all over the world. Bruce lives with his humans and his “big sister” Jager, who is also a rescue cat. 

Published by Little Love
Publication date: April 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-42235-6

Have you ever seen . . . 

A pandemonium of parrots? A loveliness of ladybugs? A dazzle of zebras?

Follow us on our adventure as we discover 25 different colourful animals and their wonderful, wacky group names.

The vibrant, full-colour illustrations by New Zealand artist Kate Hursthouse take us on a journey to meet some of our world’s unique and fabulous creatures.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
Publication date: March 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-39198-0

Respectable appearances can hide the blackest of secrets.

The Vanishing Act is a spicy tale of intrigue set in 1960s New Zealand, where society’s constraints and the laws of the day made outcasts of lesbians and prostitutes.

Rosemary Cawley is used to hiding. With a penchant for beautiful women, such as gorgeous art tutor Judith Curran, the well-heeled fine arts lecturer knows she must keep the blinds drawn. After all, her love life led to her being banished from London to New Zealand by her ultra-conservative, upper-crust family. She thinks she has it all under control until someone starts to blackmail her, threatening to expose a shameful, dreadful episode in her past.

General practitioner George Abercrombie and university registrar Alistair Dunstan are two old friends bedevilled by their greed for money and sex. Surreptitious photographs of women undressing, stolen money hidden in a floor safe – where will it end? In walks Rosemary. Will she be the undoing of them both, or will their unwanted attentions and intimidation drive her over the edge?

When Dr Abercrombie is murdered, Inspector Maynard cranks up the heat. Will he solve the case, or will somebody crack first?

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-39744-9

Earthquakes in New Zealand have always been a reminder of its Geological idiosyncrasies, and occasionally when the earth moved, so did our little house on Christchurch’s sandy suburban fringe.

My father – declared a near-genius by my mother – was a mechanical engineer, collector and inventor of such useful items as industrial tile cutters, lawnmower sharpeners, a hovering conveyance platform, a collapsible boat and an ingenious multi-chicken decapitator – to name but a few.

My mother, on the other hand, was a complicated woman with Jekyll and- Hyde tendencies, a creative bent and certain knowledge that civilisation was irrevocably doomed. There was much talk of ending up in the nut house.

Living on a shoestring required creative recycling and reimagining.

Disappointingly for my mother, her Ten Toothsome Ways with Gourmet Offal were not a success.

We didn’t appreciate how lucky we were, she said. Trying to lip-read Mr Ed through a shopfront window wasn’t my idea of lucky. Owning a television wasn’t hers, but she was prepared to reconsider when New Zealand got colour. Fortunately my father couldn’t wait for something that might never happen; instead, we became the proud owners of a black-and-white nineteen inch legless Idiot Box.

No more sing-songs around the piano, reading a book after dinner or lengthy debates on the merits of cod liver oil as a laxative. The world and one corner of our lounge had just become a brighter place.

“This is an impressive, amusing, intriguing and really well written story” – Norman Bilbrough, Author, Reviewer, Writing Award Judge and Manuscript Assessor

“Absolutely brilliant!” – Dr Marianne Tremaine, Reviewer Heritage New Zealand Magazine

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-39360-1

For Detective Matt Buchanan, the world is a pretty sick place. He has probably been in the job too long, for one thing. And then there’s 14-year-old Samantha Coates, and the other unsolved murder cases. Those innocent girls he just can’t get out of his head.

When Buchanan pursues some fresh leads, it soon becomes clear he’s on the trail of something big. As he pieces the horrific crimes together, Buchanan finds the very foundations of everything he once believed in start to crumble. He’s forced across that grey line that separates right and wrong – into places so dark, even he might not make it back . . .

This is an astonishing first novel by ex-detective Nathan Blackwell that is guaranteed to grip you.

It will reverberate in your head long after you’ve finished reading it.

Written by Jenny Palmer
Illustrated by Evie Kemp

Published by Little Love (Imprint of Mary Egan Publishing)
ISBN: 978-0-473-38445-6

Animated rhymes and colourful illustrations helping children (and their grown ups!) talk about emotions. This is a book to come back to again and again, whether you feel a little nervous, happy, angry or just plain silly!

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-38895-9

“I know this sounds crazy but there was blue light coming out of his hands and I could feel all my pain flowing out of me.”

When Dean Bradley is brutally murdered for his new shoes, undertaker Ken Tamati does a lovely job on the corpse — but next morning, the body has vanished from the funeral parlour.

That day, a mysterious figure — witness give wildly conflicting descriptions — begins rescuing victims of assault all over Auckland and healing their horrific injuries with a dazzling light. They call him the Rainbow Man.

Who is he? The police and media think the stories of apparent miracles can’t possibly be true. The public thinks this may be the Second Coming.

Meanwhile a brutal serial killer is about to strike again, young Tom Heke is on the run from both the police and a fearsome Maori gang, and Constable Mary Clark puzzles her colleagues by knowing more about the Rainbow Man than she should.

Gary Moore’s debut novel is a fast-paced thriller with cracking dialogue, sly humour and, underlying it all, a serious ecological message.

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-38937-6

Will the Peace Way succeed?

East of the Black Sea, c.300 BC: Fifteen-year-old Melo is one of the most gifted Riders in the Wild Horse Tribe, destined to become a leader in her female warrior clan. Her old rival Mithrida, however, has cunning plans of her own. But when city slave traders cut a violent path through the Plains, all the Amazon Tribes are under threat.

Far, far away on the Holy Island, Sofia, a young priestess-intraining, wonders why these strangers have landed on their isolated shore. Can she find the answers from the Black Rock? When the worlds of traders, slaves and warriors collide, new alliances come from unexpected sources and new powers are harnessed. But is it enough for the Peace Way to succeed?

Published by Art Nahill
Publication date: April 2018
ISBN: 978-0-473-43053-5

The accessible yet skillfully crafted poems of this collection will be enjoyed by newcomers to the riches of poetry as well as experienced readers. In this, his second collection of poems, Art Nahill writes about fear, family, and redemption in language and imagery that speak plain truths. Each poem stands alone but like the starlings of his titular poem coalesce into a larger, surprising, and mesmerizing whole.

The Student Body, Simon Wyatt

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN:  978-0-473-36243-0

In The Student Body, Simon Wyatt takes the reader on a thrilling journey to catch a killer through his eyes as a former police detective.

A popular fifteen-year-old girl is strangled to death at a school camp on Auckland’s west coast. The posing of the body suggests a sexual motive. Nick Knight, a week into his role as a newly promoted detective sergeant, is tasked with the critical job of leading the Suspects Team.

Nick – who turned his back on a lucrative career as a lawyer – is well-versed at dealing with the dark sides of human nature. With no shortage of suspects, he sets a cracking pace on the trail of the murderer, grappling his own personal demons along the way. But are things really as they seem?

Tu Meke Tūī, Malcolm Clarke and FLOX

Written by Malcolm Clarke, illustrated by FLOX
Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN:  978-0-473-34375-0

Tere the Tūī  and Taitū  the Takahē  are two very different sorts of birds: one loves to flit and twirl about in the sky, while the other prefers to rustle around in the undergrowth.

Tu Meke Tūī!  is a story of friendship, courage and discovering that sometimes it’s our differences which make us truly special.

Double-edged Sword, The Simonne Butler Story

By Simonne Butler and Andra Jenkin. 
Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-36435-9

Double-edged Sword is a survival story like no other. In 2003 Simonne Butler’s violent partner, high on methamphetamine, cut off both her hands with a samurai sword. Her hands were reattached in a groundbreaking marathon surgery and she spent the next decade healing her mind, body and spirit.

To the Ice and Beyond, Graeme Kendall

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN:  978-0-473-39906-1

Kiwi yachtsman Graeme Kendall was the first person to sail the Northwest Passage solo non-stop. Sailing east to west, he knocked off the “Everest of sailing” in just 12 days – the fastest recorded – as part of his extraordinary solo circumnavigation of the globe. This is a story of determination, meticulous planning and rugged courage.

Striking Gold, Suzanne McFadden

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-34372-9

In the Montreal summer of 1976, a band of tenacious Kiwis triumphs
against all odds to be crowned Olympic champions.
Striking Gold weaves together each man’s story with the team’s epic quest, rising to a dramatic and heroic final that lives on today in New Zealand sporting folklore.
Striking Gold is as much about social history as sport, dramatically telling the inspiring tale of an unlikely bunch of blokes who pulled off New Zealand’s most improbable Olympic gold medal. 

The Gentlemen's Club, Jen Shieff

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-32742-2

A psychological thriller that will shock you to the core. Headstrong and independent, Rita Saunders is a successful hairdresser by day and a busy brothel madam by night. The only thing missing from her life is the love of a good woman. Istvan Ziegler is a Hungarian immigrant who has come to New Zealand to work on the brand new harbour bridge project. He is full of hope and dreams of a better life. Sixteen-year-old Judith Curran has come to Auckland for an abortion. With no money or family support, she finds herself at the mercy of strangers and simply has to hope they have her best interests at heart. Becoming bound into a desperate situation involving a group of orphan girls, Rita, Judith and Istvan find fortitude they never knew they possessed. But do they have enough of it to expose the menacing orphanage director and the slice of the heartless and seedy 1950s' underworld he inhabits? The Gentlemen's Club is an honest and gritty debut novel that will linger with you long after you have finished reading it.

The Grand Electrification of the South, Gay Buckingham

Published by Power Company Limited
ISBN: 978-0-473-35350-6

The history of The Power Company Limited and its predecessors, The Southland Electric Power Board and The Southland Electric Power Supply (1914-2015)

Good Sons, Greg Hall

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-38378-7

In early 1914 Frank Wilson and his two close friends, Tom Davis and Robert Sutherland, are growing up in Oamaru in the South Island of New Zealand. The coming war in Europe arouses the hopes and dreams of a generation of young men. The pressure becomes irresistible and one by one the boys become soldiers. Frank delays his decision but in 1916 a strange encounter shocks him into enlisting.

After a rapid coming-of-age in the training camps of the North Island the novel moves to France. A reunion, the insanity of a love affair in the midst of a terrible war and a brutal event set Frank on course for the best and worst days of his young life. As he becomes a frontline soldier and experiences hard fighting, fate forces him to make an agonising decision. Good Sons is a poignant story of youth and war, love and loss, suffering and hope.

Published by Shelagh Duckham Cox
ISBN: 978-0-473-36386-4

In 1940 at the age of five, Shelagh Duckham was evacuated with her family to North Wales where she spent the war years. They moved to Washington D.C. in 1945 when her father was offered the post of British Agricultural Attache to the U.S.A. The family was repatriated to England in 1950 and Shelagh’s teenage and university years were lived in a land of post-war austerity. In 1966, as ‘ten-pound Poms’, she emigrated with her husband and three small children from the city of Oxford to the small town of Levin, New Zealand. 

Her first thirty years were lived against a background of remarkable events. Describing the idiosyncratic characters of her parents and the many other interesting people in her life, Shelagh writes beautifully and insightfully about her childhood and early adulthood. She weaves historical events into her personal narrative and remembers the frequent loneliness and struggle in her own life, while observing the world around her with the eye of both a writer and a sociologist.

Hucking Cody, Aaron Topp

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-32668-5
Hucking Cody was a finalist in the New Zealand Book Awards For Children And Young Adults.

"Life has been pretty average for Cody Harrington lately. First, there's his job at the bike shop where he's being blamed for not locking the door and causing a burglary. Then there's his wild brother Zane who's promised his parents he's back on the rails, but is he? As for girls, they only exist in his fantasies, and if only he could get through the week without being egged by a carload of rugby heads. The only time that Cody feels truly free is when he's flying down bush-lined tracks and hitting stunts on his bike. But then he falls in love - with a bike and a girl. Does he have it in him to win either of them or are they out of reach? Can a huckster ever really change?"

Dusty Allen Rediscovered, Neil Anderson

ISBN: 978-0-473-35580-7

THIS IS THE BIOGRAPHY OF DR I.M. ALLEN, better known as “Dusty” Allen to his colleagues. He was the first fully trained
neurologist to practise in New Zealand.
Allen was a controversial figure in the history of New Zealand  medicine. He was respected for his clinical acumen and formidable knowledge, but to many people he appeared reclusive and dour. His opposition to the way neurosurgery was being developed and his reluctance to refer patients for neurosurgery led to an acrimonious dispute with neurosurgeon Murray Falconer. Allen believed that patients with mental disorders were a neurologist’s responsibility and this attitude made him unpopular with psychiatrists. He tried to enhance the role of specialists, but this was vigorously opposed by general physicians. Allen was a researcher and a prolific writer. He showed it was possible to combine clinical work with research without academic appointment or financial assistance. The study of neurology was his all-consuming passion.

Super Power Baby Project, Rachel Callander

Published by Evie's Book Club Ltd
ISBN: 978-0-473-28575-3

Super Power Baby Project features striking photographic portraits of its 70 subjects, taken by award-winning photographer Rachel Callander. The personality of each child shines through, with text that explains the special qualities and life-changing powers each one brings. Rachel and Sam Callander have created this beautiful book not only as a record, but also as a means of changing the way we talk about children. They believe all children are born awesome - this book demonstrates it.

Stories Men Tell, John Keir and Neville Aitchison

Published by The Atrium Club
ISBN: 978-0-473-33909-8

Extraordinary stories. And ordinary stories. Stories rarely told by men. Revealing. Insightful. Honest. For 50 years the Atrium Club has operated as a gym for men only. But the Atrium is like no other gym. It's a club – unashamedly a safe haven for an unlikely mix of gentlemen; a place for mind and body where the relationships and the camaraderie are as important as the exercise. The members include rich listers as well as those down on their luck; knights of the realm; sports stars; leaders in the fields of business, industry, medicine, law, academia, military and the media. Many have unique connections to the issues of our times. One man spent his childhood in a Japanese POW camp, another flew the first New Zealand troops into Vietnam, one was sued by David Lange for defamation, another played cricket for New Zealand, one helped save Sir Edmund Hillary on Mt Everest, another lost a child to terrorism in the 2005 London bombings, and one walked away from a horrific plane crash.

Why Not? traces the journey of a bright, active boy raised in a Hamilton subdivision in the late 50s/early 60s to the loving husband and father, successful businessman, adventurer and sailor he became.

‘I am definitely an optimist. This is something that I actively work on and have done so since my childhood. People tend to prefer to hang out with positive people. I certainly do. I’d like to think that being an optimist has helped my family and I to live and experience a very high quality of life that I could only dream about in my early years.’

Tony Nicklin has been a thinker as well as an action man all his life. Why Not? sums up his approach to most things. He has always believed in taking calculated risks. His incorrigible optimism, the priority he has placed on family and friendship, combined with his passionate love of sailing, adventure and travel, have enabled him to create a very rewarding life.

Misi Utu, Margaret Guthrie

ISBN: 978-0-473-35582-1

The life of visionary educator D W Hoodless and the development of the Fiji-based Central Medical School are joint themes in this fascinating history of how modern medicine and indigenous cultures met and evolved progressively inthe thirties and forties of the twentieth century.

The author, Margaret Guthrie, is the daughter of D W Hoodless. 

Dinosaur Mac's Discovery, Erin Feasey

ISBN: 978-0-473-30034-0

Mac loves dinosaurs so much that he wears a dinosaur tail all the time, at home, in the playground, even to all his medical appointments. Mac's muscles work differently to those of other kids, and he needs help with balance and strength. When Mac starts using a wheelchair, what will happen to his dinosaur tail?

Living in Paradox, Garth Falconer

ISBN: 978-0-473-30219-1

How can we develop better urban environments for New Zealanders? Is it a straightforward matter of better planning and applying more resources? Do we have to settle for second best? What of the lessons learned from those who have come before us? In this first book on the contradictions and paradoxes of the design of New Zealand's urban places, Garth Falconer suggests that these are exciting times to be thinking about such issues. With better understanding of our unique context, together with broad collaboration across all sectors and a commitment to creative, resourceful action, there are alternatives to accepting soaring house prices, congested traffic, a bland and illegible urban landscape, growing gaps between different peoples, and hopelessly complicated urban planning regulations. 

Published by Chocolate Fish Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-45254-4

Set on the extraordinary world stage of a high-seas adventure, “By the Light of the Moon” is a true story of a young woman’s rite of passage into love and self-realisation.

When Bernadette Marama Gavin accepts an invitation to join a solo sailor on his quest to circumnavigate the globe on a small sailboat, she has no idea how deeply it will impact her life.

Sailing more than 28,000 nautical miles over four years, the countless hours of aloneness demand immense endurance. Bernadette finds exquisite beauty on the boundless ocean, but also fear, frustration and fatigue, bringing her to the thresholds of her own inner impasses.

The Darlimurla Letters, Trish Macky

Joe and Mary Macky were both passengers on the ill-fated ocean liner, the Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat off the coast of Ireland in 1915. Mary was offered a place on one of the lifeboats but insisted on staying with her husband. The pair perished, along with about 1,200 others. They were both prolific letter writers - and early adopters of the camera - and a bundle of their letters and photos has been preserved, named the Darlimurla letters after their home in Devonport. Great grandaughter, Trish Macky, compiled this 27-chapter book based on the 500-thousand words worth of letters they wrote.

The Silver Gaucho, Jackie Ballantyne

Published by The Doby Press
ISBN: 978-0-473-27525-9

The Silver Gaucho is dead - and across Argentina an entire nation is in mourning. But for adventurer Lockie Steele, the death of the famous television idol is merely one part of a puzzling family mystery. Why does the wealthy and manipulative Mabon family wish to engage her services, and why are they prepared to go to such lengths to protect their secrets? Why has the Silver Gaucho's brother disappeared without trace into New Zealand - and what are the family conflicts that force him to remain hidden? Ranging from Argentina to the South Island of New Zealand and back again, Jackie Ballantyne's surprising new novel combines an infectious passion for Argentina's culture and people with a talented writer's confident ability to tell an engrossing, deeply satisfying story.

Inside the Black Horse, Ray Berard

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN : 978-0-473-31515-3
Winner of the 2016 Ngaio Marsh Award for New Zealand Crime Writing

Inside the Black Horse is a fast-moving thriller, a story of fate, and unlikely love story for our time. Pio Morgan is waiting outside a pub on a cold winter night. There is a debt he must pay and no options left. What he does next drags a group of strangers into a web of confusion that over the course of a few days changes all their lives. The young Maori widow just trying to raise her children, the corporate executive hiding his mistake, the gang of criminals that will do what ever it takes to recover what they've lost - and the outsider sent to town to try and figure out who did what. Time is running out for all of them as events take an increasingly dark turn.

The Legend of Mt White Station, Gerald Sandrey

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-32397-4

Sold Out

The diverse and desolate country that makes up Mt White Station has held an irresistible allure for men for decades. Many have committed themselves to the extreme weather and isolation of the place only to finally admit defeat, while others have endured, raising families and forming bonds with their fellow station workers and the land itself. From the Riversdale flats to the Puketeraki and Dampier ranges on the Lochinvar estate in the Upper Waimakariri catchment, Mt White has been one of the most successful operating stations since the Long Depression of the 1880s. The Turnbull family, who live 200 kilometres away from the station, have owned Mt White for almost 100 years. The key to their success has no doubt been the careful appointment of skilled managers made of the right stuff to handle this volatile and isolated terrain. From the managers, musterers, shepherds, shearers, packmen, fencers, deer-cullers, cooks, cowboys and the wives and children who have worked and lived there, Mt White has certainly attracted its share of colourful characters and high country legends. This book pays homage to them and to the rugged and beautiful landscape of Mt White station.

The Invisible Millionaire, Jonathan Bidmead

Publishing by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-35409-1

Most millionaires in our midst are invisible. Many people would be surprised as to who the real millionaires are, as opposed to those who may drive prestige cars and live in the right suburbs. Invisible is how they make the intangible tangible. Invisible too are the thoughts, beliefs, axioms and actions of millionaires. Welcome to the journey. Invest two hours of your time to make visible what was invisible!

A History of Crime, Dinah Holman

Published by Ravensbourne Books Limited
ISBN: 978-0-473-27279-1

It is 1887. The young colony of New Zealand is in the grip of a deep depression. Insolvent speculators conspire with corrupt politicians while Maori land slips from the hands of its owners. Into this landscape of barely suppressed conflict steps a young Anglo-French-Maori soprano, visiting New Zealand for the first time. Frederique Bonnell - known to her family as Riki - meets another performer, the Italian tenor Francesco Bartellin. Unofficially, Bartellin has been persuaded to spy on lawyer Thomas Russell and his powerful associates, whose tentacles penetrate the political establishment. Riki is pitched into this treacherous underworld when she witnesses the attempted murder of Kaituhi, a young Maori man apprehended in Russell's shipboard cabin. Kaituhi and Riki are thrown overboard yet manage to save each other's lives. Mingling timeless themes of misunderstanding and betrayal, A History of Crime interweaves real and fictional crimes in 19th century New Zealand. It explores the seamy side of Victorian society, with echoes that resonate into the present day.

What does the Sea Sound Like?, Evie Mahoney

ISBN: 978-0-473-36771-8

Evie Mahoney is a CODA, a Child Of Deaf Adults, raised in Auckland, New Zealand.  She is the eldest of six hearing children. Being first born her early life was mainly in a deaf environment and she was sensitive to how hearing people outside that environment reacted to her family.

Conjurors Cardsharps and Conmen, Bernard Reid

A comprehensive history of one of the most popular theatrical entertainments of nineteenth-century New Zealanders.

My Darling Lemon Thyme, Emma Galloway

Published by HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand)
ISBN: 978-1-775-54021-2

Designed by Anna Egan-Reid

Enjoy wholesome, nourishing food without skimping on taste! Emma Galloway learned to love fresh, healthy food growing up in a family of creative cooks. She has carried that love over into her roles as a chef, mother and highly successful food writer. these recipes reflect Emma's philosophy that natural, whole food should also be flavoursome, fun and easy to prepare. this is food as it's supposed to be eaten - fresh from the earth to the kitchen, seasonal, nourishing and delicious. Perfect for anyone with food intolerances, My Darling Lemon thyme is also sure to please everyone who loves great food that is also great for you.

Resilience Adaptation Sustainability, Robert Riddell

Published by Robert Riddell
ISBN: 978-0-473-29245-4

Around 1970 the planet and our occupation of it was pretty much a situation of balance; the biospheric absorptive and recycling capacity coping with resource uptake and waste discard. Since then a doubled human mass and carbon gas overload has spawned the greenhouse effect that has activated ice field melt, savannah extension, rainforest depletion, waste accumulation and species extinction.

Resilience Adaptation Sustainability is a prevent-and-adapt advisory. It evokes limits for the growth-on-growth ideology and print money process. It provokes a births-deaths equilibrium, reduced fossil carbon consumption, rainforest restoration and waste recycling. It is about future proofing the next generation.

A Gallipoli Soldier’s Secret, Buket Uzuner

Published by Antares Publishing
ISBN: 9780473287894

Designed by Anna Egan-Reid

A Gallipoli Soldier’s Secret is the story of a New Zealand woman’s pilgrimage to Turkey to discover the truth about her great-grandfather’s fate - a Gallipoli soldier who never returned home. During her search she stumbles over dark secrets which have been hidden in a Turkish village for decades. They are so sensitive that disclosure threatens embarrassment for villagers and two old foes -New Zealand and Turkey. 

A Gallipoli Soldier’s Secret is unique in that it provides a glimpse of the war from a Turkish perspective. It also vividly reveals village life and a journey of inner conflict and self-discovery.

Living in Paradox, Garth Falconer

Published by Blue Acres Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-30219-1

This landmark book examines the contradictions that form the design of New Zealand’s urban landscape. It analyses many of the various trials and pitfalls of the past, and paints an exciting picture of the way things could be in New Zealand’s towns and cities.

Living in Paradox explores the dynamic and intriguing story of this young, vigorous and intriguingly complex country. It is an optimistic, far-reaching book which documents the rich history of earlier visions, analyses many of the various trials and pitfalls of the past, and paints an engaging picture of the way things could be in New Zealand’s towns and cities. As New Zealanders’ are a highly urbanised population this book provides a very relevant and much needed discussion.

Guy Frederick Andrew: One Man's War, Ronald Pemberton

Published by Citadel Books
ISBN: 9780473316952

Cover designed by Anna Egan-Reid

Death and Forgiveness, Jindra Ticha

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-30671-7

Two worlds collide.
Anna has flown from New Zealand to her native Prague to nurse her dying mother. The night after the funeral she receives a phone call with the news that her husband Jan has committed suicide in faraway Dunedin.
Why has Jan decided to end his life? As Anna grapples with her grief in post-communist Prague, her story is interwoven with the tale of the family’s fortunes on the long voyage taking them to New Zealand 20 years previously.
Fleeing the violent takeover of Czechoslovakia in 1968, Anna and Jan found themselves in a strange new country with unfamiliar values. This had an unexpected consequence. Instead of terminating an unwanted pregnancy, Anna decided to give birth to Marie – a daughter who would go on to claim the lion’s share of Jan’s affection.
A subtle and affecting story of change and rebirth, Death and Forgiveness shows how exile alters the pattern of a life, with after effects that reverberate for decades.

Country Cop 24/7, Catherine Ballard

Published by Catherine Ballard
ISBN: 978-0-473-30024-1

This book tells the story of Gavin Benney's life as a rural policeman in charge of the Hikurangi police district for over 20 years. It is also the story of the Hikurangi district, its people and how it has changed in that time. Police have unparalleled access to all levels of society, they see us in the raw and deal with the dark side of life, the side that those of us in safe, comfortable positions do not want to know about. Gavin dealt with crimes of murder, violence, drugs, thefts, petty vandalism and also with accidents from the horrific to the bizarre and the funny. This is a story of New Zealand rural life.

Unleashing Greatness, David Galbraith

Published by Mary Egan Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-473-30932-9

Everyone is capable of greatness . . . sadly, not everybody finds it.

If you are sick and tired of settling for second best or want to achieve the greatness you know is just there in front of you, then this book is for you!
This book moves beyond most other personal development and sports psychology books by providing a clear, simple, practical structure to follow to achieve a deep Mental Toughness and Killer Instinct, and pure ‘mind/body/soul connection’.
The material in this book works! If followed fully it will help you achieve your ‘greatness’ in sport, and in life. Whether that is as a parent or spouse, or a business-person or athlete. It will help you succeed beyond your wildest dreams in finances, at school or university, and in sport. It will help you to secure the dream job and find your dream partner.
And perhaps most importantly, it will help you help others reach their dreams if you are a teacher, coach or mentor, or you are a friend just helping out a friend!

Suddenly it is goodbye, Stefanie Backhouse-Rudolph

ISBN: 978-0-473-30215-3

A story for everyone who has lost a sibling.

When a sibling dies many things change in a child’s life – family structure, daily routine, their friend’s behaviour, parents who are upset and not coping, a feeling of tremendous loss and sadness. Children will experience all sorts of feelings.

This book helps children to understand and talk about their grief and to understand that their feelings are normal and part of the healing process.

For ages 2 – 13, but can be helpful for everyone who has lost a sibling.

Unbreakable Spirit, Karen McMillan

Published by McKenzie Publishing

An invaluable collection of real life stories of cancer, representing a wide range of circumstances that will provide comfort and help for families facing cancer.

Unbreakable Spirit is a testimony to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of cancer. It tells the true stories of people who have survived cancer and of those who are terminally ill. It also shares the experiences of people who have had a loved one die from cancer and includes information from hospice workers, oncologists, GPs, a counsellor, surgeon and breast physician.

Unbreakable Spirit was first published in 2003, and it has helped numerous families facing cancer. In this revised edition, Karen finds out what has happened to many of the people featured in the book and updates their stories. She discusses the advances of medical science in the past decade and other changes. She also tells her own story of being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011 – a positive story of the importance of early detection through screening, and she includes insightful new chapters from her medical team.

Dead Men Running, Gavin Manning

ISBN: 978-0-473-33607-3

Imagine the most tenacious and skilled soldiers in the business fighting in the most brutal of bush wars. Gavin Manning was there, from 1982–88, on the border of northern Namibia and southern Angola – right in the thick of it.

The ultra-covert South African special forces unit known as Koevoet (or Special OPS-K) has been shrouded in mystery for three decades. This book will blow the lid off the box and set all the mis-conceptions straight.

Manning gives a gripping account of tracking the Soviet-backed terrorists, often right on their heels, using elite skills and technology. The finely honed instincts and supreme ability of the Koevoet operators earned them the reputation of the best counter-insurgency and tracking unit that Africa and the world had ever seen.

Dead Men Running is a vital book about the Angolan bush war that finally tells the truth. But it is also Manning’s own story – how he realized his dream of becoming part of Koevoet, the brotherhood he inherited, and the friends he made who lost their lives.

Manning is a skillful writer who will sweep you up into the action with the precision of accurate gunfire. 

Wahine, Kerry Harrison

ISBN : 978-0-473-24514-6

In 2009, a mysterious figure in an Auckland resthome, where an old woman is dying, triggers memories of the Wahine storm of 1968 and its aftermath. After the disapearance of her father Snow in the storm, fifteen-year old, Jude Farley is deposited in a Taranaki boarding school so her mother Kit can escape the memories and get on with her life. But Jude is determined to discover through prayer, pure willpower and recovred memory, the truth behind her father's disapperance. Helping her is a new friend, Huia, her headmistress, the formidable Miss Wallace, and the beauty of Mount Taranaki and its surroundings. Meanwhile, in Auckland Kitty Farley faces her own demons and embarks on her final journey.

Minor Surgery, Dr Samantha Murton

This easy-to-read guide takes you from basic skills to expert, with 44 watercolour pictures clearly depicting the techniques discussed.

Not only does it give you tips and tricks for creating beautiful results, it puts the patient in the centre of the procedure and reminds you of the precision with which any surgery should be undertaken.

A Long Commute Home, Art Nahill

Through language and imagery that is clear and engaging, these poems explore the metaphorical state of "commuting", of traveling from one place to another- from home to work, from childhood to young adulthood to middle age, from health to sickness, from one hemisphere to another- and the many lives that intersect with one's chosen trajectory along the way. These poems traverse the diverse landscapes of family and suburban life as they invite the reader on a journey that is warm, often humorous, and passionately human.

A Second Life, Alan Poletti

ISBN: 978-0-473-19438-3

This book tells the story of more than 200 foreign Jews who had been in interned in the small Italian town of Aprica who fled successfully over the Italian-Swiss border.

Ka Mau Te Wehi, Bradford Haami

Published by Ngapo and Pimia Wehi Whanau Trust

ISBN: 978-0-473-23371-6

Ka Mau Te Wehi provides a unique insight through the biography of Bub and Nen into the development and promotion of kapa haka throughout NZ and in particular primary and secondary schools.

Caught Between Sunshine and Shadow, Compiled by Georgie Tutt

Caught Between Sunshine and Shadow is a collection of stories and poems written by people who have bipolar disorder and are managing their condition and are able live fulfilled lives despite their diagnosis. The book includes the stories and poems of more than thirty New Zealanders – from teenagers to octogenarians, males and females from all walks of life, who have found the courage to speak out about their experiences in the hope that their stories will be a source of inspiration for others. 

Bipolar Affective Disorder or Manic Depression as it used to be called is a serious mental illness which occurs in around 1% of the population. It is a recurring disorder which affects a person’s mood. Everybody has changes in moods, good days and bad days but a person who has bipolar disorder will experience excessive mood swings from extreme elation (the mania) to profound depression. Although there has been a lot of research into bipolar the actual cause is not really fully understood.

Built for Justice, Terry Carson

ISBN: 978-0-473-23082-1

Built for Justice - Visits to old North Island Courthouses takes the reader on a nostalgic journey back to a time when almost every small town had its own small 'palace of justice'. A courthouse, with its distinctive architecture, was a symbol that a small colonial town had passed the 'frontier' mode and had acquired status and was thriving. Not only were these buildings used for court hearings but they often fulfilled many other government administrative functions as well, sometimes being used as the 'de facto' town hall or as a temporary place of religious worship, before churches were built.
Through a combination of photographs, historical research, local and legal anecdotes, and sometimes sensational newspaper accounts, Built For Justice tells the human story behind the courthouse facades and gives these unique and often architecturally attractive buildings their proper place in New Zealand's small town social history.

Sainsbury Logan & Williams, Stuart Webster

Published by Sainsbury Logan & Williams
ISBN 978-0-473-19241-9

This book, published in hardback and launched in November 2011 chronicles the story of Sainsbury Logan & Williams from its origins in 1875 through to the present.

This book is unashamedly a compendium of information about the evolution of a provincial law firm with its roots embedded in colonial New Zealand. It is not intended to be read as a novel from the beginning chapter through to the end. It is hoped that those who pick up the book and browse its pages will find an image or two that will resonate with them and in turn draw them to the text in and around those images.

Stolen Lives, Netta England

ISBN: 978-0-473-27115-2

Netta and her older brother Ray hardly knew their Mother. She was a strange woman who made occasional visits, and they did not even know they had a Father. Instead from a very early age they lived with foster parents and at school were treated as different. Growing up, Netta became increasingly aware that her foster mother disliked her. Though never starved, Netta suffered neglect, as well as mental, physical and sexual abuse. After her brother’s death in 1976, Netta, by then married with a grown up family, began her long journey to learn about and understand what had happened in the past. She wanted to find out if somewhere out there was a family, her own family that she could belong to. How would she find them, and would they want to know her? She needed to find her roots. Stolen Lives is the record of Netta’s journey from a neglected and abused state ward, to a woman who discovers her heritage and creates a positive life regardless of her upbringing.

The History & Arts of the Dominatrix, Anne O Nomis

ISBN: 978-0-9927010-0-0

"This book is the illustrated treatise on the Dominatrix throughout history, and her practices as arts.

No book previously existed on the subject. Anne O Nomis set to work meticulously researching the most discreet and mysterious occupation of the Dominatrix. This book reveals the ancient roots of the Dominatrix lie within sacred rituals to a Goddess Inanna who ruled one of the most important cities of the ancient world, the city of Uruk (or Warka). With a Masters degree in archaeology and art history, Nomis has included exerts of a hymn to the Goddess with rites of gender transformation, punishment, pain and ecstasy, linked to the high en-priestess named Enheduanna, and images of the Goddess.

The Paris of the East, Karen McMillan

ISBN: 978-0-473-27007-0

Warsaw, 1939. Four friends picnic on a brilliant summer's day and celebrate an engagement, aware of the rumbles of war, but hopeful that in any conflict Poland will have the upper hand. But only months later, Poland has surrendered and dare-devil pilot Rafael is ordered to flee the country, eventually flying for the RAF in Britain. The other three remain in Nazi-occupied Warsaw - Rafael's spirited wife, Celina; his shy and brooding brother Marek - who wishes he was the one Celina had married - and their plucky friend Anna. Danger lurks on every corner of occupied Warsaw, even more so when the three friends become active members in the Polish Resistance...A page-turning story that spans the period of the Second World War, this is a dramatic historical adventure that goes from Warsaw to Lublin, from Bucharest to Paris, from London to the Concentration Camp at Ravensbruck - but always at the heart of this novel is the mesmerising city of Warsaw - 'The Paris of the East.'