Beginning with the return to Venice of an old and sick man determined to confront his past, and accompanied by his daughter who is escaping hers, The Antipodeans spans three generations of a New Zealand family and their interaction with three families of Northern Italy. From Venice to the South Island of New Zealand, from the assassination of a Gestapo commander in the last days of Italian resistance in WWII to contemporary real estate shenanigans in Auckland, from political assassination ...

Spanning the four seasons of a year, "Necessary Secrets" tells the story of Dennis (Den) Sparks and his three adult children. Starting with Den contemplating his mortality on the day of his 70th birthday, the year ahead is told from four different points of view. A searing picture of NZ society today, the family deals with love, loss, financial struggles, drugs, domestic violence, and all the issues that Kiwis deal with daily. As he has done in his plays and his screen-writing, McGee turns...

Brendon McCullum is known as an explosive wicketkeeper, then batsman, who went on to captain the New Zealand cricket team to glory. The holder of many records, 'Baz' is known for speaking his mind. He talks about growing up loving sport more than anything, getting better and better at cricket (although he was a good enough rugby player to keep Dan Carter out of the South Island Schoolboy rugby team) and his uncertain transition to international cricketer. In this explosive autobiography he...

One of the most successful and well-known New Zealand plays is also compelling reading on the page. The power, humour and irony of the language all serve to illustrate a penetrating analysis of New Zealand society, as seen through the lens of sport.

Beginning with the return to Venice of an old and sick man determined to confront his past, and accompanied by his daughter who is escaping hers, The Antipodeans spans three generations of a New Zealand family and their interaction with three families of Northern Italy. From Venice to the South Island of New Zealand, from the assassination of a Gestapo commander in the last days of Italian resistance in WWII to contemporary real estate shenanigans in Auckland, The Antipodeans is a novel of...

A dark and unexpected novel about a Dublin undertaker who finds himself on the wrong side of the Irish mob.Paddy Buckley is a grieving widower who has worked for years for Gallagher’s, a long-established—some say the best—funeral home in Dublin. One night driving home after an unexpected encounter with a client, Paddy hits a pedestrian crossing the street. He pulls over and gets out of his car, intending to do the right thing. As he bends over to help the man, he r...

An enthralling novel of individual bravery versus silent, collective complicity, set in a vividly drawn farming community in 1970s New Zealand. The Baxters do not know their place. On the first of June every year, sharemilkers load their trucks with their families, pets and possessions and crawl along the highways towards new farms, new lives. They’re inching towards that ultimate dream — buying their own land. Fenward’s always been lucky with its sharemilkers: gr...

A dark and unexpected novel about a Dublin undertaker who finds himself on the wrong side of the Irish mob.Paddy Buckley is a grieving widower who has worked for years for Gallagher’s, a long-established—some say the best—funeral home in Dublin. One night driving home after an unexpected encounter with a client, Paddy hits a pedestrian crossing the street. He pulls over and gets out of his car, intending to do the right thing. As he bends over to help the man, he r...

The revealing autobiography of New Zealand rugby legend Jerome Kaino. As the Rugby World Cup approaches, All Black legend and World Cup champion Jerome Kaino reflects on what it takes to be the best. At just 21 years old Jerome Kaino was touted as the next big thing in world rugby. In his first year of professional rugby, he made spectacular debuts for Auckland, the Blues and the All Blacks. It was a dream beginning for this quiet Samoan kid from South Auckland. But just ...

He is one of the most highly regarded coaches in international rugby, but also one of the most controversial. Now you can read why ...John Mitchell’s rugby coaching career spans many years, several teams and various countries. He was assistant to Clive Woodward, who spearheaded England’s 2003 World Cup-winning campaign, for four years in the pioneering days of professional rugby coaching, and he took charge of the All Blacks and the Chiefs in New Zealand, the Western Force in Austr...

When the Captain find us stowaways and give us the choice between join the island or join the crew, all of us to a man cry island! island! So he put us ashore with a few provisions and a trypot and sail away. After escaping from the Norfolk Island penal colony on a sealing ship, Bloodworth and his three fellow convicts are left on a remote southern island by a captain who promises to pick them up in a year's time. It will be many years before they see another ship. During that ti...

Piri Weepu’s story is one of the most fascinating New Zealand rugby stories ever told. Born into a strong rugby league family — Piri’s brother Billy actually played for the Kiwis — Piri has risen to the very pinnacle of rugby union, while at the same time never losing his great love of the 13-man code. At 28, and in the year of the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand, Weepu was finally given his opportunity . . . . and didn’t he take it well. For years he had been in the shadows of Jimmy Cowan ...