Distinctive N.Z. voices

Press, 23 March 1985, Page 22

Distinctive N.Z. voices

Some Other Country: New Zealand’s Best Short Stories. Chosen by Marion McLeod and Bill Manhire. Unwin, 1984. 246 pp. $12.95 (paperback); $24.95 (hardback). (Reviewed by Michael Hannah) The compilers of this collection of New Zealand short stories would have done better to stick to their main title. With perhaps two exceptions, the stories chosen certainly succeed in portraying the distinctive and changing face of New Zealand. The sub-title is, at the least, distracting, and, at worst, arguable. Readers are advised to ignore it. What distinguishes this collection from its predecessors is precisely the picture conjured up in the main title. New Zealand does have its own peculiar character, and the spread of stories, covering 60 years from the obligatory inclusion of a Katherine Mansfield story (from 1922) to the bold choice of a 1982 tale by Owen Marshall, reflects the growth of New Zealand society from rural to city cultures. John A. Lee’s “Man’s Inhumanity to Man” (?1936), one of the Shiner tales, brilliantly conveys the taste of a world that has disappeared. A curious feature of a chronological collection, though, is the temptation to compare styles, as much as the authors’ preceptions. Mansfield’s “At the Bay” (1922) is almost overworked in its attention to descriptive detail

compared with, say, the sensitive simplicity of Joy Cowley’s “The Silk” (1965). In fact, the sheer strength of talent among our women writers is one of the highlights of this collection — Frame, Cowley and du Fresne being my favourites. I would question, however, the editorial judgment which allow Janet Frame just five pages for a gem of a story (“Swans,” 1951) while 13 pages are devoted to an abstract discourse by Russell Haley (“Barbados — A Love Story,” 1977), which said little (to me) of New Zealand or New Zealanders. It would be unfair to list personal choice from the 22 authors included. It would be fair to say, though, that they are among New Zealand’s best short story writers, though some inclusions will disappoint an author’s fans. Maurice Gee’s “Glorious Morning, Comrade,” (1973) really serves to demonstrate how superior his later full-length work, the “Plumb” trilogy, is to his earlier short stories. Readers may have difficulty fathoming the choice of two stories, more because of an inability to relate them to the main title than through - any lack of talent on the, authors’ part. Russell Haley’s work, mentioned earlier, is one example. Michael Gifkins’ (“After the Revolution,” (1978) is another, where there is nothing to distinguish the story as coming from “Some Other Country.”