New Zealand, a country 'rinsed by the sea', has a shipping story to tell as long and convoluted as its coastline. Thoroughly researched, with an eye for a good yarn but also with an acute sense of the shifting social and political changes over the years, McLauchlan tells an informative and engaging tale. Divided into five parts, the book covers the early colonial days, the developing (and still functioning) ports, working on the wharves, port reform and the move, in later years, to containers. The narrative is always lively, picking out the most salient and fascinating elements of what might otherwise be a rambling history of little relevance to today's reader.
Author Biography
Gordon McLauchlan is a highly regarded journalist and media commentator, and a prolific author. He has published seventeen books, many of them histories, including A Short History of New Zealand (2004), Great Tales from New Zealand History (2005), The Life and Times of Auckland (2008) and a history of the Union Steam Ship Company. Based in Auckland, his latest book is an updated version of his 1976 classic, The Passionless People.
