From the author of the acclaimed The Lighthouse Keeper’s Wife and The Lighthouse Children’s Mother, comes a new book with a fascinating insight into life on a remote New Zealand island.

Living on the isolated and beautiful D’Urville Island in the outer Marborough Sounds, Jeanette Aplin, who wrote so engagingly about lighthouse life in her previous books, brings us an equally candid account of her lifestyle in the secluded Iron Pot Bay on the island. With no electricity, no roads to the door and a solar-powered computer for contact with family and friends elsewhere, Jeanette finds herself facing a myriad of adventures and dilemmas.

With her husband working away for long periods, she finds herself constantly alone and hankering for companionship and stimulation. Therefore, when she is offered a pair of kunekune, an especially amiable and comical breed of pig of unknown origin and unique to New Zealand, Jeanette’s excitement mounts. She will become 'a breeder' and sell the piglets and thus help to save this rare pig from extinction.

With passion and an affinity for animals Jeanette weaves her tale around the pigs she has known, (and some she hasn't) the mischief they get up to, and the complications of taking on a breeding pair. She tells of the way they and their offspring take over her affections and change the face of Iron Pot Bay.

But, with 37 years of island life behind her, Jeanette is a veteran, and The Price of Bacon is about more than pigs. With her trademark candour and humour she also leads us intimately into a life that is very different but compellingly universal; and, in the process, she gives us a love story encompassing husband, family, friends and wildlife - and, of course, always the island itself.

Jeanette Aplin’s two previous accounts of life in remote parts of New Zealand, The Lighthouse Children’s Mother and The Lighthouse Keeper’s Wife, have sold widely asnd received many favourable reviews.
Born and raised in Motueka, Jeanette has lived much of her married life in remote, out of the way areas and still celebrates the learning and discovery this lifestyle brings.

Jeanette Aplin is touring to promote the book in April, with events in Nelson, Blenheim, Wellington, Masterton and Auckland.