Ian Grant: The other side of the ditch

BY DITA DE BONI

Few countries bicker and grizzle about each other more without going to war than New Zealand and Australia.

More correctly, though, it's New Zealand that does the grizzling, says Ian Grant in his introduction to this collection of cartoons depicting the Kiwi/Aussie relationship over the past century. Australians are "largely indifferent, with interest in their nearest English-speaking neighbour usually limited to seeing it as a good place for a quiet, quaint, and relatively cheap holiday".

One fruit of this long-held but lopsided relationship has been a wealth of New Zealand cartoons which lampoon and lambast Australia - and a handful in reverse - the best of which are showcased here and accompanied by a potted history written by Grant.

The chronology of cartoons touches on many aspects of the sometimes-fraught relationship, and showcases work from a range of local luminaries including Peter Bromhead, Trace Hodgson and Malcolm Walker.

Despite an overwhelming indifference to their Kiwi cousins, Ditch proves that within the past century there have been times when Australia has viewed New Zealand as more than an insignificant blip. Sporting rivalry has been constant fodder for cartoonists of both countries. Throughout the century, the question of transtasman political union has been raised and dismissed repeatedly, as rivalry has ebbed and flowed.

With such a variety of artists included, over such a time span, the book is an enjoyable insight into the relationship between Australia and New Zealand

* Dita de Boni is a Herald feature-writer.

NZ Cartoon Archive with Tandem Press

$19.95