Neville Peat: Coasting: The Sea Lion and the Lark

By MARGIE THOMSON

We are so used to hearing about the disappearance of species that news of a species returning to a habitat is magical in itself.

So Peat is off to a good start with his recounting of how, after having been driven from the mainland around 400 years ago by the moa-hunters, sea lions are coming back to Otago, with a pup being born near the mouth of the Taieri river around Christmas 1993.

He sets out to trace the migration paths of these vast creatures, journeying from Otago to the subantarctic places that seem gloriously foreign and wild to us of the tepid north.

Peat's deep understanding and love of the natural world, coupled with a facility for also getting on easily and well with humans, and the charm with which he tells his story, make this a truly special book.

Longacre Press

$29.95