Articles in ‘Books’

In this opinion, Dr Vernon Coleman recalls meeting young men who were prepared to die rather than lose the only home and community they knew. He draws on that experience to argue that military power alone cannot defeat people determined to defend their country and dignity. Applying the lesson to Iran, Coleman contends that Donald Trump misunderstands the resolve of those he seeks to overpower. Note: The following extract is taken from Vernon…

Dr Vernon Coleman argues that the Great Reset is not a future threat but a transformation already under way. In this extract from his new book, he links digital ID, the decline of cash, Net Zero, government debt, economic instability, restrictions on personal freedom and expanding state control into a wider warning about the direction of Western society. He argues that public resistance remains possible, but time is running out. The following…

Winner of the Franklin Writers Group short story competition: · Heather McQuillan from Christchurch · Ascendence · We hug our knees and search for the wishing star far beyond the white puffs of our breath. Thick grain sacks protect our bums from the frosted ground and our shoulders are caped with old blankets; my brothers and I beneath chequerboards of stained pink and green, while Philip and Maggie share mouse-chewed grey. Philip told me that…

Published by Viking. Hardback, 768 pages. “Looking back, I sometimes ponder the age-old question of how much difference the particular characteristics of individual leaders make in the sweep of history—whether those of us who rise to power are mere conduits for the deep, relentless currents of the times or whether we’re at least partly the authors of what’s to come… · “The truth is, I’ve never been a big believer in destiny. I worry that it…

Published by Penguin Books (NZ). Paperback, 304 pages. When journalist Martin van Beynen started writing Black Hands, a book about the fatal Bain family shootings in 1994, he wondered if he could finally nail who did it. · The veteran reporter, who covered David Bain’s second trial in 2009 and started his journalism career in Dunedin in 1989, said starting on the book was delayed by the Christchurch earthquakes and a bout with cancer. · “I…

Extracted from Pull No Punches: Memoir of a Political Survivor by Judith Collins. Published by Allen & Unwin NZ. RRP $36.99. In stores from 1 July. When David and I came back from Hong Kong, enthused by the energy and hard work we had seen, we did what any sensible people would do. Despite both of us working full-time and studying parttime at university, we bought a restaurant. We spent a lot of time eating in restaurants so, clearly, we should…

A terrific read that touches more of us than we would care to admit. · This coming of age story is set in the small towns of Warkworth and Pukekoke and has a warm familiar touch, as does the subject matter. This novel asks the question – ‘When you hate your body. How can you love yourself or anyone else?’ Research shows that over 40% of woman are consumed by this question but few overcome the shame to acknowledge or explore their irrational…

Reviewed by Janet Pates. This book has been described as a biography and indeed, the early pages do present the reader with a picture of the writer’s life. Gwen Francis attributes the wisdom portrayed in the book to her background in farming, teaching, sport, business and community affairs. Having trained and taught as a Home Economics teacher in her younger days, she then furthered her education later in life, with a BA majoring in World…

This magnificent historical novel delves into the relationship between Napoleon and his first wife Josephine, from her point of view. What emerges is quite different from the prevailing tempestuous love story we currently know. Rather than being merely the beautiful consort of the Emperor, Stephanie Parkyn has drawn us a picture of a woman with her own passions, including the garden Josephine developed at her country house, Malmaison. · The…

Four books from the same publisher which are briefly outlined in the fore pages appear to take approaches commensurate with those found in Free Speech Under Attack though there is little overlap in authorship. · In chapter one Jeremy Fisher describes the appalling punishments inflicted on people for speech that offended the authorities in Britain and New Zealand up to 1840, in the latter case before British justice intervened. In chapter two he…