July 2015 - Books By George

■ REVIEW: The Beginner’s Guide to Rugby
Understanding our national game

There was a popular ad campaign a year or three back that proudly proclaimed you’d never be a Kiwi until you loved a particular brand of sauce, but I reckon a love of rugby is probably of greater importance. It’s our national pastime and while I hear the odd anti-rugby piker complaining about the amount […]

■ REVIEW: The Beginner’s Guide to Rugby
Understanding our national game Read Post »

■ REVIEW: A Bit of What You Fancy
Recipes to set the tastebuds tingling

Home & garden

Jo Seagar has done a good job of finding 130 recipes that help inspire tasty dishes. You do not have to flick far to find recipes – balsamic roasties, slow-roasted pork belly with lemon and fennel seed crackling, easy strawberry cheesecake in a glass – to set the tastebuds tingling. She has designed the book

■ REVIEW: A Bit of What You Fancy
Recipes to set the tastebuds tingling Read Post »

■ REVIEW: One Summer: America, 1927
The summer that changed the world

General non-fiction

British author Bill Bryson has come up with an interesting concept for this fact-packed trip back in time, telling the story of one summer in the history of America that changed the world forever. In 1927, the world between the two world wars, the United States was half-way through Prohibition and facing a time of

■ REVIEW: One Summer: America, 1927
The summer that changed the world Read Post »

On the bookshelves: August 2015

New releases

New releases coming in August. FICTION I’m Travelling Alone, by Samuel Bjork: Published by Doubleday on August 1, with an RRP of $38. A six-year-old girl is found hanging from a tree. Around her neck is an airline tag which says ‘I’m travelling alone’. A special homicide unit in Oslo is re-opened and the race is

On the bookshelves: August 2015 Read Post »

■ REVIEW: The Bassett Road Machine-Gun Murders
Gangland killings a shock

General non-fiction, NZ books

This book was published to mark the 50th anniversary of a shocking crime that drew a line in New Zealand’s criminal history and heralded a more sinister era. Set against a backdrop of six o’clock closings, a Chicago-style underworld, bent cops, prostitution and the lure of a quick buck or two, the book helpfully provides

■ REVIEW: The Bassett Road Machine-Gun Murders
Gangland killings a shock Read Post »

■ REVIEW: Vicious Circle
Huge disappointment for dedicated fan

Mysteries & thrillers

My brother, an avid reader, introduced me to Wilbur Smith when I was still in my teens and I’ve enjoyed his novels ever since. Smith is easily my favorite author and I love his books more now than ever. He is the master of the epic adventure and once started his novels are hard to

■ REVIEW: Vicious Circle
Huge disappointment for dedicated fan Read Post »

■ REVIEW: Dog Will Have His Day
Quirky thriller is a little off-balance

Mysteries & thrillers

Former special investigator Louis Kehlweiler has to find new ways to fill in his days now that he no longer works for the Parisian police force. Kehlweiler gathers information, takes care of his toad (yes, he has a pet toad), and patiently digs away at crime and corruption. He’s keeping watch on the flat of

■ REVIEW: Dog Will Have His Day
Quirky thriller is a little off-balance Read Post »

■ REVIEW: Farmageddon The True Cost of Cheap Meat
Will we pay the price?

General non-fiction

It’s so easy to feel a disconnect between the vacuum packed offerings in the meat aisle at your local supermarket and the origins of that product on the farm, but it is important that we know – and care about – where our meat comes from. As the world’s population grows, the need to produce

■ REVIEW: Farmageddon The True Cost of Cheap Meat
Will we pay the price? Read Post »

■ REVIEW: Marble Bar
Plenty of smooth action in Aussie thriller

Mysteries & thrillers

Gareth Ford is working long hours in the iron ore industry in Western Australia. He is a solo parent with plans for improving his future. But then his past starts to catch up. When Gareth’s housemate is found dead, the local police discover that he has a file and it is flagged. This is because

■ REVIEW: Marble Bar
Plenty of smooth action in Aussie thriller Read Post »