laurenlethbridge's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
slow-paced
4.0
tansybradshaw's review against another edition
emotional
informative
slow-paced
4.25
As someone with Maori ancestry but not growing up in the culture, this book really gave me a deeper understanding of what they went through.
sambo10's review
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
4.0
The best New Zealand history book you will find. Michael King takes you slowly through the journey of the geological, cultural, and political formation of the NZ we see today. While it is well written, set aside a couple of months to read, as it isn’t the kind of light reading book you can smash through.
haydenjweal's review
5.0
Wish I could time travel back and give this book to my naive, ignorant sixteen year old self.
Super cool.
Super cool.
boyblue's review
4.0
There may be a few historical inaccuracies but for scope, depth and ease of read this is the best NZ historical text available. You will be embarrassed how little you knew about your country, it's early beginnings and how it's culture and sensibilities developed over the years. You'll probably also wonder why no one is teaching this in school. In Australia they call it the 'cultural cringe', in NZ it's probably more of a general ignorance. You have to read it if you're a kiwi.
archytas's review
4.0
A solid overview of the subject matter, aided by a structure which alternates chapters between Pakeha and Maori experiences. Nothing was covered in a great deal of depth, but for grasping the history of colonisation; the development of the main political parties and the differences between the islands, it was very helpful.
King injects an appropriate amount of opinion in - enough so you understand he has a perspective and what it is, not so much that the history leans wildly one way or another. I didn't always agree with him - notably when he argues that tensions in the 80s were caused by neglect of Pakeha heritage (comparative to Maori) - but it never felt intrusive or as if you it influenced his material selection. His coverage of the Treaty process was nuanced, looking at the multiple actors involved.I have a long list of things to follow up on now!
King injects an appropriate amount of opinion in - enough so you understand he has a perspective and what it is, not so much that the history leans wildly one way or another. I didn't always agree with him - notably when he argues that tensions in the 80s were caused by neglect of Pakeha heritage (comparative to Maori) - but it never felt intrusive or as if you it influenced his material selection. His coverage of the Treaty process was nuanced, looking at the multiple actors involved.I have a long list of things to follow up on now!