Three books to check out this week. Photos / supplied
Three books to check out this week. Photos / supplied
The Last Muster
By Carly Thomas
The Last Muster by Carly Thomas. (Image / Supplied)
The first horses came to New Zealand with missionary Samuel Marsden in 1814. When they were swum ashore, local iwi apparently thought they were taniwha. By 1840, Māori horse owners outnumbered Pākehā. Soon, every farm had at least one horse to muster stock, andby 1911, there were more than 400,000. Then came tractors, and quad bikes, and helicopters and drones. In 2022, there were about 33,500 horses working on farms, down more than 20,000 in a decade. But they are still a part of farm life for many, says Carly Thomas. In The Last Muster (HarperCollins), she saddles up to travel with musterers across 11 stations and tells their stories.
New Zealand’s Native Mammals
By Carolyn King
New Zealand's Native Mammals by Carolyn King
The central North Island once supported at least 12.5 million lesser short-tailed bats. The numbers now are tiny percentages of this, most done in by deforestation and introduced predators. In New Zealand’s Native Mammals (White Cloud), Carolyn King notes that our bats are all derived from Australian strays. The emeritus professor in zoology says ours is the only nation where non-native terrestrial species are dominant, though our fauna is unique because of the wide range of geography. The book profiles our mammals, including seals and sea lions, whales and dolphins, and where to see them.
You Don’t Have to Have a Dream
By Tim Minchin
You Don't Have to Have a Dream by Tim Minchin (Photo / Supplied)
Tim Minchin is old school, believing in critical thinking and the scientific method, a free marketplace of ideas, and opposing restricted speech and compelled speech. You Don’t Have to Have a Dream (Penguin) gathers the speeches the Australian comedian and musician gave for each of his three honorary doctorates. They (and their new intros) offer timeless advice: be “micro-ambitious”; be very hard on your assumptions; comparing yourself to others is poison; first you have to get good; be authentic; and art is any expression of an idea into which you’ve put a bit of effing effort.
