Retelling N.Z. history

Press, 24 December 1988, Page 15

Retelling N.Z. history

The Farthest Corner: New Zealand — a Twice-discovered Land. By Harry Morton and Carol Morton Johnston. Century Hutchinson, 1988. 315 pp. illustrations. $44.95. (Reviewed by Tony Johnston) This handsomely presented book, written by a father and daughter (with help from other members of the family), tells the story of the discovery and exploration of New Zealand by the Maoris and the Europeans. Generally the book traverses, in a somewhat verbose way, territory familiar to those who have read the standard texts on New Zealand history. This is not to belittle the achievement of the authors who have made good use of their sources, particularly personal stories from letters and journals of the early European missionaries, explorers and settlers. “Farthest Corners” provides a useful summary of the information available about the arrival of the Maori, Maori

adaptation to the new land, the main features of Maori culture and society, and European exploration. There are detailed accounts of a number of notable early New Zealand explorers, missionaries, and settlers, including such pioneers as Heaphy, Von Haast,

Douglas, and Mackenzie. The authors have chosen a rather novel way of including extra information on topics that arise in the main text. Throughout the book there are more than 40 short essays on a wide range of topics in “boxes” which provide a good deal of background information on such disparate items as scurvy, French intellectuals’ influence on exploration, the Russians in New Zealand, and eels. The idea of “shots” of extra information is a good one, but the “boxes” are rather intrusive and tend to interrupt the main text. This book has been written for the general reader, rather than the specialist, and it should have broad appeal.