Flaxroots Productions

Entertaining and well written

21/1/2021

Addressed to Greta
by Fiona Sussman

‘Good on you, love,’ the old fellow said, his Adam’s apple tracking up and down his bristly neck. ‘Bloody nuisance, pukekos.’
Greta blushed. ‘I didn’t mean to kill it,’ she said, horrified that he thought the act deliberate….
A modest hero, too.’ The man gave a gruff chuckle…
That’s how we meet Greta Jellings – the first sentences of Addressed to Greta establishing setting, tone and the central character.
By just a few more pages into the novel we’re well acquainted with her – background, fears (many of those), and her self assessment. Greta is certainly modest, but no hero.
By her own confession she lacks any degree of sophistication. She doesn’t even have a middle name to distinguish her from any other Greta Jellings wherever they may be. And, as though to give final proof of her lack of worldliness, hadn’t she gone and fallen in love with a gay man.
  Who was she? That depended on who was asking. She was an amalgamation
   of who her mother, her boss, and her few friends had wanted her to be.
   She does know her way around the office of Blue Sun Spas, Pools and Pipes and the suburbs between that and her Devonport home. She has extra-large feet and a pet chook called Marilyn Monroe. As for the rest of the world, she’s very much an ingénue. Whatever happened to her plans for fame?
But things are about to change.
To her own disbelief, no spoilers here about how, Greta’s life is upturned. From the safety of the North Shore, we accompany her and those distinctively large feet to distant shores, all the way both despairing at and sympathizing with her lack of sophistication.
Addressed to Greta is entertaining and well written.
I’m always wary of sequels, series even more so, but I wouldn’t mind meeting Greta again.
As Walter might have written to her – you’ll understand that better when you’ve read the book – ‘Hey Grets [sic], it’s been good knowing you’.

Review by Bronwyn Elsmore

Title: Addressed to Greta
Author: Fiona Sussman
Publisher: Bateman Books
ISBN: 978-1-98-853860-0
RRP: $34.99
Available: bookshops

0 Comments

Witty entertaining short stories

14/1/2021

0 Comments

Life Sentences: Shared Short Stories
by Peter Beatson, Tony Chapelle, David Fountain

The idea behind Life Sentences is three writers use the same sentence or paragraph to start a story and then finish it. The result is 38 short stories, each averaging 500 words.
    The starters were provided by a member of the group or a friend. The result proves that if three writers use the same starting point each writer will find a different way to continue the story. Apart from the start, no story is the same. They are fun, tongue in cheek, and creative. There are some that are serious but mostly they entertain. For those who like to read about other places there are stories that take readers to other countries. However, most are set in New Zealand.
    There are stories of extraordinary beauty such as those found in Harmony where the writers are given this short sentence: Despite the harmony, he shuddered.
    This short sentence becomes a story about the crafting of an aeolian harp in Spring Wind Song (88).  Music, Metempsychosis (89) is extraordinarily beautiful with a comparison to the Gods and the birth of Stephen Hawking. Requiem teleports the reader to another world where a recording of Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’ plays.
    The interesting thing about this exercise is that it inspires the writers to experiment with genre. For example, this sentence: Imprinted on the yellowing pages of the old book, just at the beginning of the third chapter, was the outline of a fern frond that must have been used as a bookmark generates stories from three different genre: romance, historical, memoir.
    This book is perfect for anyone who aspires to become a writer. The prompt that sets each story in motion can be used by writers as story starters. Encouragement to do this is at the end of each completed set of stories.
    Some may say that providing the start to a story is prescriptive and could compromise the writer’s creative spirit. However, when you read the outcomes of the exercise from these three writers there is no question that the opposite happens. The supplied sentences trigger their imaginations, and it is interesting to see where that takes them.
    Exercises like these train writers to keep to topic, expand an idea and explore one’s own creativity. The 500 word limit also keeps the stories tight.
    It is hugely entertaining with some of the stories causing me to laugh out loud as in The Moment by Tony Chapelle. Other stories revealed a skill in developing character as in Peter Beatson’s Bless ‘em All and for political comment as in The Leader Grieves by David Fountain
    It is essentially a book of witty, thoroughly entertaining short stories.

Review by Suraya Dewing
Founder: Stylefit, suraya@stylefit.co.nz

Title: Life Sentences: Shared Short Stories
Author: Peter Beatson, Tony Chapelle, David Fountain
Publisher: Rangitawa Publishing rangitawa@xtra.co.nz
ISBN: 978-0-9951406-2-2
RRP: $30
Available: in print from bookshops and online bookshops or from publisher. Available on kindle through Amazon

0 Comments

Intriguing story told in novel

7/1/2021

0 Comments

The Forger and the Thief
by Kirsten McKenzie

This mystery-drama is set in Florence, Italy, in 1966, amid the devastation of rising floodwaters. The entertaining story alternates between five strangers: the guest, the wife, the cleaner, the policeman, and the student. Their lives are loosely connected, although they all have differing agendas. The impending deluge threatens to expose their darkest secrets.
The time period is reflected in the ingrained chauvinism of the policeman. Some of the characters are quite unlikeable, but that only makes them more interesting and increased my curiosity about what was going to happen to them, and to uncover what secrets they were hiding.
The chapters are short and swap back and forth between the main characters, but each one is clearly labelled at the start.
The ancient city is steeped in artistic and historical treasures and, although 2 decades on, there are still ramifications from the Nazis’ wartime plunder of artwork. Ownership and possession are dealt with behind closed doors, as are forgery and theft. Passion and greed fuel many art transactions.
The prose is beautifully descriptive and paints a vivid cultural backdrop of monuments, paintings, and sculptures. The river moves through the story like the sixth character.
Towards the end, there’s a touch of supernatural, which I found rather disjointed from the rest of the book, and I wondered if the story would be better off without this element.
Overall, this intriguing story is a rich tapestry capturing events during a historical and catastrophic event. The enduring spirit of the people of Florence and their dedication to preserving their art treasures shine off the pages.

Review by Wendy Scott
Award-Winning Author

Title: The Forger and the Thief
Author: Kirsten McKenzie
Publisher: Squabbling Sparrows Press
ISBN: 9780995136915
RRP: $34.95
Available: paper: from all good independent bookstores, ebook: most digital platforms, see https://books2read.com/forgerandthief

0 Comments

Novel difficult to put down

23/12/2020

2 Comments

One Little Lie
by Carne Maxwell

“Oh! What a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive!”  So said Sir  Walter Scott  And so it was when Melissa decided to tell one little lie.
Set on Waiheke Island, the novel is about four young women with a longstanding friendship taking a working holiday during their University break to earn some money picking tomatoes. The story gradually weaves in relationships and romances until  the heroine makes a poor decision and covers it up with one little lie.
This lie grows in magnitude until it involves a pregnancy, her family, her friends, drug taking, drug dealing, and eventually a death which rocks the little community. And we are left with the quandary – was it an accident or was it murder?
The story is told through the voices of Melissa, her cousin Seth, Stephen and Clive, a local policeman, all one time friends but circumstances occur to change the dynamics of this friendship.
From the first chapter where Melissa is abducted and almost buried alive I was hooked and eagerly read the chapters as the plot evolved to its satisfactory conclusion.
The story scans well, is easy to follow and descriptive with such passages as “Lies. You tell one and wham – it’s like a ticking time bomb in your head. It quietly sits there fermenting away and pops up, without warning, over and over and over again. Even if you tell the truth there’s no escape because you’ve already ruined everything”
I found it difficult to put down and would hide in a corner ignoring what else I could be doing, but deciding that, to read a good book was good for the soul.  This was one of those books.
“One Little Lie” is a novel set in New Zealand with a New Zealand flavour and will be enjoyed by people of all ages as they too think about the consequences of  not telling the truth.
Walter Scott was right.

Review by Merilyn Mary

Title: One Little Lie
Author: Carne Maxwell
Publisher: Carne Maxwell
ISBN: 9780473534509
RRP: $30 from author’s website. Varies in stores from $29.99 - $37.99
Available: website https://www.carnemaxwellauthor.co.nz
some Paper Plus stores; Poppies Howick; Writers Plot Upper Hutt; The Women’s Bookshop Ponsonby; Wheelers
Amazon: print ISBN 9780473534509; kindle IBSN 9780473547271
iBooks ISBN 9780473547288; Kobo ISBN 9780473547264
Barnes & Noble ISBN 9780473547264; Google Books ISBN 9780473547264

2 Comments

Sequel that’s even better than the first

15/12/2020

0 Comments

Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem
by Selina Tusitala Marsh

Mophead’s, or Selina Tusitala Marsh’s, journey continues in this second delightful book. Note the pun in the short title.
If you can take the time to click over to my review of the first, Mophead: How Your Difference Makes a Difference,
http://www.flaxroots.com/flaxflower/autobiographical-tale-a-delight you’ll appreciate the backstory to this before continuing.
Now read on.
Here is a sequel that’s even better than its excellent predecessor.
The author, having succeeded brilliantly in this country, takes a further huge step in her career when she receives a message from the Head of the Commonwealth. Can she achieve to the same high level in the UK?
The book, in hardcover as was the first, makes full use of its 100 pages as even the inside front and back covers are used and, in fact are a vital part of the text.
And again, using delightful cartoon-type illustrations and humorous asides, the storyline continues when Mophead, aka Selina Tusitala Marsh, aka poet laureate, is invited to write and perform a poem at a royal occasion in Westminster Abbey. There are rules imposed that must be adhered to.
The poem she presents, “Unity”, is included right at the beginning – it introduces the storyline and sets the theme –
Let’s talk about unity
Here in London’s Westminster Abbey
A simply-written message in rhyming couplets, it clearly states values, personal and universal.
In London, with top royals present, the rules are adhered to, but poetry can be subversive, and “Unity” reveals an alternative history and comment on colonialism and the Pacific.
“Unity” is a relevant text poem for school study. The whole book, Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem, likewise.
This is a book that looks so simple yet is obviously the result of a great amount of thought, work, writing, drawing, rewriting. It has been well worth all the effort put into it.
In terms of books it’s not lengthy, but it is huge!

Review by Bronwyn Elsmore

Title: Mophead Tu: The Queen’s Poem
Author: Selina Tusitala Marsh
Publisher: Auckland University Press
ISBN: 9781869409449
RRP: $24.99 hardback
Available: bookshops

0 Comments

Good whodunnit

9/12/2020

1 Comment

The Murder Club
by Nikki Crutchley

It was with great anticipation that I began reading another Miller Hatcher novel. Having read a previous book featuring Miller, I was looking forward to reconnecting with her and the next phase in her life. I was not disappointed, this is a great read, that is easy to follow with plenty of false leads and suspects with a surprising conclusion.
A murder mystery novel suitable for readers of 18+ years, as it does feature some violence, the odd swear word and damaged personalities.
We meet Miller Hatcher as she is picking up the pieces of her life as an investigative journalist after a disastrous reporting event in her previous hometown. She has moved to her deceased mother's house in a much smaller location and secured a job with the local paper, which is not without some office rivalry and jealousy. Miller receives an anonymous letter one day, saying “Tonight's the Night”. Miller ignores it but then a woman is found murdered in her home, strangled – with a scarf left around her neck. The letters keep coming and the murders keep happening.
A local girl, Cassie Hughes, has, for many years, been trying to find the person who murdered her mother. She is fixated on one name and after meeting Miller, asks her to report on the cold case to spark interest again and maybe uncover the murderer. Cassie is in a rather controlling relationship and the author shows how these relationships can continue despite ill treatment of one party.
Logan Dodds is introduced to the story and he is obsessed with true crime since his sister was murdered 30 years ago. Logan is a creepy character with a unhealthy fixation on murders, forming his new venture “The True Crime Enthusiasts Club”.
Miller Hatcher struggles with her own personal demons, but these flaws make her more sympathetic to those who have been affected by traumatic events in their lives, murder being one of them.
The author describes the town, people and events very well, with shady characters and one desperate for infamous attention. The reader is never quite sure who the perpetrator is and the book leads to a surprising finale.
Miller Hatcher is fortunate to have an ally in the Police Force, Kahu Parata, who also has his own personal tragedy to cope with.
The story highlights that events in a person's childhood can lead to a flawed adult, and how some relationships can be destructive.
This is a good “whodunnit” story and makes you wonder what secrets a small town can hide!
I look forward to the next episode in Miller Hatcher’s life.

Review by Fran Hartley

Title: The Murder Club
Author: Nikki Crutchley
Publisher: Oak House Press
ISBN: 9780473505929
RRP: $34.99
Available: Amazon, order from your local bookshop or www.nikkicrutchley.com

1 Comment

Incredible detail in tribute to sculptor

3/12/2020

0 Comments

Paul Dibble X:  A Decade of Sculpture 2010-2020
Text by Fran Dibble

The enormity of the size and variation of Paul Dibble’s work comes to life in this stunning celebration of his work over the last decade. From his iconic huia birds to the moving Featherston Stand, He Tino Mamoa (It’s a Long Way) and the surprising Killer Rabbits series with a serious message of rabbits being one of our earliest inflictors of environmental damage in New Zealand.
    This large format, 180 page book has stunning photography throughout. It includes Dibble’s finished sculptures in galleries and public places and working in Palmerston North in his workshop. Dibble’s artistic process from an idea to a 3-D form is shown in his first drawings, moulds, mock ups, materials used and the finished sculptures.
     Woven carefully throughout the book are snippets of Dibble’s handwritten notes reflecting on his art and influences. This is a treat for the reader as they get a real insight into the artist’s thoughts and opinions.
    Dibble was born in Thames and raised on a farm in Waitakaruru on the Hauraki Plains. He does have artists in his family, but had never been to an art gallery or even a library until he left the farm and went to Elam School of Fine Arts in Auckland.
    He says that even though he admires art outside of New Zealand, it doesn’t influence his work. “As far back as I can remember, my art has been preoccupied with images of this country” – Paul Dibble. This is very evident in every series of work that Dibble takes on, with strong themes of New Zealand’s fauna and flora and our social history.
    The book is collated and written by Fran Dibble, his wife of 35 years; who is a fellow artist and art critic. Fran’s close perspective is unique and insightful.
    My only criticism is the cover of the book. Clearly the X represents a decade of Dibble’s work, but the image does not immediately connect you to his iconic sculptures.
    Readers will be amazed to read that this book focuses only on the last decade of Dibble’s work and not a life time. The incredible detail in the large scale sculptures that he brings to life really make people stop, look and contemplate.
    Paul Dibble X: A Decade of sculpture is a real tribute to one of New Zealand’s most original and respected sculptors.

Review by Renee Hollis

Title: Paul Dibble X: A Decade of Sculpture 2010-2020
Text by Fran Dibble
Publisher: Bateman Books
ISBN: 978-1-98-853841-9
RRP: $69.99
Available: paperback, from bookstores

0 Comments

Small volume packs a punch

27/11/2020

0 Comments

The Perfection of Snails
by Linley Jones

In these uncertain and rather worrying times, short stories provide an attractive alternative to the longer immersion required when a novel or a weighty volume of non-fiction is tackled. This collection is a case in point.
The stories are well-written, but their appeal goes well beyond simply that. They are in turn provocative, compassionate without being overly sentimental, often highly amusing and always entertaining. They are also based firmly in ordinary human experience, and for the relatively small amount of time involved the reader is rewarded lavishly by having some of them stay in mind long after the last sentence is read. These are stories that don’t try to shock with edgy language or escape into fantasy, but they will frequently induce gasps of recognition, and they do sometimes have an unexpected twist in their tail.
There are some that had particular appeal for this reviewer. One concerns a keen gardener with a neighbour who also spends much of his time in his own plot cultivating potatoes, constantly repeating the first phrase of an annoying ditty as he works. So strong is her reaction to this annoyance she is eventually driven to a desperate remedy.
In another, a doctor has to come to terms with the tragic effects of an abusive relationship in one of her patients while dealing with personal problems of her own.
A particular favourite is one concerning a meeting between a man’s adult children and his choice of new partner, that shows how difficult (indeed, perhaps impossible) it is to make headway against the established bigotry of those who will not even subject their own thoughts to rational analysis.
Then there is one concerning a frustrated young lawyer trapped in a high-rise office who momentarily mistakes a skinny lad wrapped in a blue towel and wearing red budgie-smugglers for Superman come to rescue her. Oh, how disappointing reality can be!
Perhaps the most moving story is one that reminds us of both the dreadful inhumanity of war, and the resilience of the human spirit.
For readers who might be inspired by these stories to try writing some of their own, the author has provided useful short notes at the end telling something of how she herself found the required inspiration. But it is the stories themselves that will be the real attraction here. Some will appeal more strongly than others, but they are all at the very least thought-provoking.
This is a small volume – perfect for tucking under a pillow or slipping into a pocket – but it packs a punch.

Review by Tony Chapelle

Title: The Perfection of Snails
Author: Linley Jones
Publisher: AMPublishing
ISBN: 978-0473-54123-1
RRP: $28.00
Available: Poppies Books, Howick; or lesjones@xtra.co.nz

0 Comments

Trilogy of adventure novels

21/11/2020

0 Comments

The Trainsurfer Series (3 books)
by Kate Richards

If searching for a trilogy of adventurous and informative novels set in South Africa and New Zealand one could hardly go past the three books written by librarian Kate S Richards and suitable for ages eleven onwards.
The first two stories take place in South Africa each giving insight into a particular period and place in the life of Jabu, an orphaned Zulu boy, at a time when interracial friendships could prove to be dangerous, while the third book chronicles his time spent in New Zealand.
The author’s inclusion of a glossary of words requiring definition is well placed at the beginning of each book and enhances the reader’s journey.

Trainsurfer
Jabu’s mum has died . . . a powerful beginning to the story as Jabu realises he belongs to nobody and has nowhere to go. Jumping on a train, and trying to avoid paying the fare, he hauls himself up onto the roof joining other boys who show him how to surf the train, an extremely risky occupation with possible severe consequences as when one of his companions comes to grief.
   Stowing away in a truck on his way to Durban to find his aunt, Jabu realises he has an interesting companion.
   Once in Durban he meets other homeless kids and experiences  racial tension on the surfing beaches, including a violent episode with the police.
   Eventually Jabu becomes an accomplished surfer and if you wonder what these accomplishments lead to please read ‘Trainsurfer’. I think you’ll enjoy it. I did!

Saving Thandi
Here the author addresses another major problem, the slaughtering of rhinos for the purpose of obtaining the animal’s marketable horn.
Jabu and friends, including a young professional surfer, journey to a private game reserve on a publicity mission illuminating the danger rhinos can find themselves in as they are trying to raise their young.
The action heats up as the surfers are taken to sea and find themselves on a luxury yacht, complete with sinister cargo, in the middle of a storm. Alexia calls on her considerable skills as a surfer.
A mischievous monkey and a chatty Raven do their part in making this informative book exciting and entertaining.

Nikau's Escape
   A more mature Jabu arrives in New Zealand where he joins his friend Kyle, who is training for surfing events, and meets a new friend, Pania. Pania has a younger brother, Nikau, who is in danger of ‘going off the rails’ as he looks forward to his father’s release from prison.
   In the hope of reforming Nikau, Pania has formed a group called ‘Aotearora Ora  Adventures’  which is similar to a group Jabu has formed in South Africa called ‘Kids Surf 4 Life’ both of which are aimed at getting kids off glue sniffing or weed. After her stepfather was hospitalised Pania decided to go ahead and take a group to Mount Ruapehu for skiing and snowboarding. They are followed to the mountain by Nikau’s father who is after a parcel he believes Nikau has in his possession.
   The 1995 eruption of Mount Ruapehu volcano occurs and splits up the group. Nikau has to contend with both the dangers of an avalanche  and of his criminal father, not to mention the lahar below him. Some geological detail is included as Nikau decides on a course of action.
   The book touches on the use of drugs without labouring the problem.
   The story flows well, draws to a very acceptable conclusion and is highly recommended.

This set of three books  is a beautiful collection with each one having a very attractive cover conveying the theme of the story.  There is much to be learned as the writer addresses such topics as homelessness, race relations, conservation, as well as personal relationships, making it a valuable addition to any young person’s library.

Review by Irene Thomas

Title: Trainsurfer  ISBN: 9781980325390  RRP: $22.99
Saving Thandi  ISBN: 9780473481933  RRP: $24.99
Nikau’s Escape  ISBN: 9780473529048  RRP: $27.99
Author: Kate S Richards
Publisher: Green Room House
Available: Directly from the author (www.katesrichards.com) or via most online retailers (eg. Amazon, Wheelers, Barnes & Noble) as a paperback or ebook depending on country.

0 Comments

Good quality crime fiction

14/11/2020

1 Comment

Caught Between
by Jeannie McLean

This tale gets a “Wow!” from this reader. It comes as no surprise that it was one of three finalists out of two hundred entries in the 2018 Michael GifkinS Prize for an Unpublished Novel.
Rarely does a book engage me to the point where I consume it in one sitting but “Caught Between” did just that. Plenty of tension, red herrings, twists and turns built the suspense at just the right pace to make it un-put-downable.
Alternating chapters between Tova Tan and Constable Finn McIntosh (with the exception of the first and last), Jeannie takes us into a world of distrust, murder and betrayal in the suburbs of Auckland paralleled with the politics, rivalry and frustrations of the investigation team at the Henderson Police station.
Big money, drugs, gambling, crime gangs and police corruption ... “Caught Between” has the lot.
To review in more detail could risk giving away some of the plot so I will resist the temptation. Suffice to say that if you are a fan of good quality crime fiction, this will certainly fit the bill.

Review by George Hollinsworth

Title: Caught Between
Author: Jeannie McLean
Publisher: Jeannie McLean
ISBN: 9780473514648
RRP: $27.99 paperback
Available: Amazon (ebook only, $4.50); paperback: The Women's Bookshop Ponsonby, Dear Reader Grey Lynn, Fivedogsbooks.com (online store), direct from author jeanniemcleanauthor@gmail.com

1 Comment

<<Previous

Entertaining and well written

Witty entertaining short stories

Intriguing story told in novel

Novel difficult to put down

Sequel that’s even better than the first

Good whodunnit

Incredible detail in tribute to sculptor

Small volume packs a punch

Trilogy of adventure novels

Good quality crime fiction

FlaxFlower Reviews

Archives

Categories