THE FRIDAY INTERNATIONAL MIXED BAG

THE MAN IN THE WINDOW
K.O.Dahl – Faber - $24.99

This is the second crime novel from Norwegian writer K.O.Dahl in his Oslo Police series featuring officers Gunnarstransa and Frolich.
Chunky and at almost 500 pages will make a good plane or holiday read.

SILENT LEGACY
The unseen ways great thinkers have shaped our culture
Paul Henderson & John Fox – Maxim Institute - $30

This serious volume invites you into conversation with some of the great minds that have formed history and shaped the culture and civilization we enjoy – think Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, John Locke, Rousseau, Kant, Marx, Nietzsche, Foucault and others.
http://www.maxim.org.nz/

TREASURE ISLAND
Robert Louis Stevenson – Marvel – NZ$44.99

I bought this graphic novel version (brilliant, vibrant illustrations), of Stevenson’s famous novel at Dymocks in Lambton Quay, Wellington on a recent visit. One of the enthusiastic staff there, Matt, who is something of an expert on graphic novels, brought it to my attention and for that I am most grateful. Thanks Matt.
I enjoy the occasional graphic novel, takes me back to my comic reading days growing up in Gisborne.

THE TOMORROW CODE
Brian Falkner – Walker Books - NZ$19.99

This book has its own website – www.tomorrowcode.com/ as does the author www.brianfalkner.com/
New Zealand author Falkner has written a clever sci-fi thriller set in Auckland for 12-15 year olds and must be delighted to have the book published in Australia and New Zealand as well as in the US and UK. And not only published there, but to uniformly good reviews. A thumping read running to 432 pages.
Footnote for Auckland readers of blog:
The author will be doing in store events at
Whitcoulls Henderson Friday the 5th of December at 10am
Whitcoulls Botany Downs Saturday the 13th at 2pm

THE SHACK
Wm.Paul Young – Little Brown - $29.99

The story of this book is a great tale in itself. The author initially printed 15 copies. Friends who read the book told him it deserved a bigger audience so he sent it off to a number of publishers who all turned it down. So he and three friends set up their own publishing company, Windblown Media, and published The Shack with a first printing of 10,000 copies. Within 6 months they had printed and sold more than a million copies!
The story is about a father who has lost a daughter, and his encounter with God which was described by one reviewer as “part breezy yarn, part theological rumination”.
Not for me I’m afraid but what a great piece of publishing history.

FABER & FABER DIARY 2009
Faber & Faber - $35

I love this hardback diary published to commemorate Faber’s 80th birthday but there is no way I am going to be using it as a diary. Oh no, it is just too gorgeous for that littered as it is with illustrations and text which display the richness and diversity of this great independent UK publisher.
It is a gem that I shall treasure far beyond 2009. It will be a reminder for me of the long and happy association I had with Faber & Faber particularly through the 1980’s when Robert McCrum was the Publisher, Matthew Evans the CEO and Mike McLennan the Export Sales manager. What a team they were and what a joy it was to represent them in New Zealand. Thanks guys wherever you might be, and I hope you too have a copy of this commemorative diary.

THE JOURNAL OF THE CENTRE FOR NEW ZEALAND STUDIES – ISSUE NUMBER 1
Kakapo Books

This is the first edition of the annual refereed journal of academic articles, reviews, fiction and poetry published by the Centre for NZ Studies at Birbeck, University of London , in association with Kakapo Books.

Editors: Ian Conrich and Gerri Kimber (Centre for New Zealand Studies, Birkbeck, University of London)
Reviews Editor: Jessica Langer (Centre for New Zealand Studies, Birkbeck, University of London)
Editorial Assistant: Tory Straker (Centre for New Zealand Studies, Birkbeck, University of London)
Typesetter: Jodie Robson

Advisory Board:
Dominic Alessio (Richmond The American International University)
Clare Barker (University of Leeds)
Claudia Bell (University of Auckland, New Zealand)
Judy Bennett (University of Otago, New Zealand)
Roger Collins (University of Otago, New Zealand)
Sean Cubitt (University of Melbourne, Australia)
Philip Dewe (Birkbeck, University of London)
Alan Gamlen (St Antony's College, University of Oxford)
Peter Gathercole (Darwin College, University of Cambridge)
Nelly Gillet (University of Technology of Angoulême, France)
Manying Ip (University of Auckland, New Zealand)
Michelle Keown (University of Edinburgh)
Yvonne Kozlovsky-Golan (Sapir Academic College, Israel)
Jessica Langer (Royal Holloway, University of London)
Geoff Lealand (University of Waikato, New Zealand)
Martin Lodge (University of Waikato, New Zealand)
Bill Manhire (Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand)
Michaela Moura-Koçuglu (Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany)
David Newman (Simon Fraser University, Canada)
Claudia Orange (Te Papa Tongarewa, Museum of New Zealand)
Vincent O’Sullivan (Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand)
Jock Phillips (Ministry for Culture and Heritage, New Zealand)
Christopher Pugsley (Royal Military Academy Sandhurst)
Khyla Russell (Otago Polytechnic, New Zealand)
Andrew Sharp (Birkbeck, University of London)
Adrian Smith (University of Southampton)
C. K. Stead (University of Auckland, New Zealand)
Kirsten Moana Thompson (Wayne State University, USA)
Alan Tidwell (Georgetown University, USA)
Francine Tolron (University of Avignon, France)
Toon Van Meijl (University of Nijmegen, Netherlands)
Ian Wedde (Wellington, New Zealand)
Janet Wilson (University of Northampton)
Margit Wolfsberger (University of Vienna, Austria)

Enquiries to the Centre’s Director, Ian Conrich – Ian@ianconrich.co.uk
Website – www.bbk.ac.uk/cnzs
Kakapo Books
Kakapo Books, established since 1996, supports and promotes new and original research which seeks to examine, question and communicate developments in New Zealand culture. Titles are part of the series ‘Studies in New Zealand Culture’, and amongst the publications is an annual collection of papers from the NZSA conference, available to NZSA members for free. To date it has published twelve titles and more are forthcoming