New Offerings from Grantham House being released in early August for Father’s Day

BLACK JERSEY – SILVER FERN – Tom Ellison – First Maori to Captain the All Blacks – by Denis Dwyer - $29.95

Black Jersey Silver Fern’ is an informative and fascinating account of the life of a significant figure in the history of rugby in New Zealand. Tom Ellison was a man ahead of his time. 

Sir Graham Henry, five times World Rugby coach of the year.

Tom Ellison is the man behind the black jersey and silver fern of the All Blacks. He was the “Mr Rugby” of his era, a tremendous player who captained the All Blacks in 1893 (the first Maori to do so), captained, coached and selected teams, developed the role of the wing-forward which was to give New Zealand an enduring advantage and wrote one of the first instructional books on rugby. His views were respected nationally and he was widely quoted.

His story is rich in individuals and incident. His great-grandfather was chief Taiaroa of Ngai Tahu, his grandfather Edward Weller the whaler of Otakou and his father Raniera the discoverer of gold at Maori Point on the Shotover River. Tom Ellison went from Te Aute College to Wellington to become one of the first Maori lawyers. He had a myriad of interests and brought energy and fresh vision to them all. This is the story of his life – the first biography of Tom Ellison.

The author, Denis Dwyer, has an MA (Hons) in English and History and diplomas in journalism and teaching. His family roots in rugby run deep – his grandfather Jack scored the winning try for Otago against Arthur Harding’s Anglo-Welsh team at Carisbrook in 1908 (the roar could be heard at the gasworks a mile away!).

JUST TO LET YOU KNOW I’M STILL ALIVE – Postcards from New Zealanders during the First World War – by Glenn Reddiex - $49.95  (184 pages in colour)

This book takes the reader on a journey into the colourful world of the picture postcard during World War One when the form of communicating was to mail a postcard with a message on the reverse side to a loved one serving on the battle fields of Europe.

They were the emails of yesteryear, the economic way to communicate with family and friends across the miles. When war was declared in 1914, postcards took on a more meaningful purpose on a scale not seen before. Beyond their heart-filled personal messages to and from the battlefront, postcards also became a patriotic and propaganda tool. The Dominion of New Zealand was quick to rally and answer the call to serve King and Country and it was not long before New Zealand publishers were producing original works by New Zealand artists and photographers for the local market.

They were cherished as prized possessions for their photographs and art and became collectables in private postcard collections. These wonderful and thought provoking postcards with their handwritten messages give a poignant insight into the life and times in New Zealand during the Great War.

Glenn Reddiex is a Deltiologist, Genealogist, and a First World War historian. He has served with the Royal New Zealand Navy and in later years with the Joint Information Services Agency (JISA) in the New Zealand Defence Force. His interest in genealogy and the history of the First World War began while living in England. He undertook research throughout Europe exploring ephemera, letters and postcards to gather historical information. From these origins, Glenn became a keen collector of postcards with a fascination for the artistry, photography and social history of each of the cards in his collection.