Two book reviews.
By Stan Stewart.
It’s Winter - Rug up; get comfy and read a book or two about our town and district. Get stuck into these two books about Whitianga and Mercury Bay
A Brief Guide to the History of Whitianga by Gerry Church and Jenny Bithell. Available at Whitianga iSite - Cost $25
This Is an excellent brief introduction (80 pages) to Whitianga and its history. The first half of the book tells the history of the town - why and how it came about, the timber industry, the gum diggers and dairying and the town’s development into a tourist destination. Plenty of historical photos add to the impact of the text. The second half of the book lists the town’s street names and stories behind the names. There are some interesting facts. The third and final section of the book deals with creeks and streams. These are put into historical context and their current names are explained.
PLUS: The Whitianga iSite also has an attractive, up-to-date, colour street map of Whitianga with a list of important information. This attractive large map is available at no cost.
Saltspray & Sawdust by Janet Riddle
One thousand years of history in Mercury Bay, Te-Whanganui-A-Hei
After being absent from book seller’s shelves for some time, this wonderful book is available again! It is in stock now at ‘Paper Plus’ Whitianga for $45.
‘Saltspray and Sawdust’ is a gorgeously illustrated book of the classic history of Mercury Bay. The book covers 1000 years of events in Mercury Bay. Carefully and thoroughly researched, this book is the authoritative, comprehensive historical record of our region. Stories of life in the Bay from the arrival of the great navigator Kupe to Michael Fay’s and the Mercury Bay Boating Club’s challenge for the America’s Cup in 1987, are featured. Exhaustively indexed, all subjects and areas of interest are easily traced. With interesting photographs on every page, and chock full of detail, the result of years of research, this book is the gold standard of history books on the Coromandel. Read every page, or browse subjects of interest, this book will bring knowledge and value to all who own it.
Caption: A Brief Guide to the History of Whitianga by Gerry Church and Jenny Bithell.
Saltspray & Sawdust by Janet Riddle.