Ce romancier néo-zélandais de renom puise fréquemment dans son enfance rurale, un passé qui façonne profondément sa fiction. Ses récits revisitent constamment des cadres familiers, souvent sous des noms différents, soulignant l'influence durable de la vie dans les petites villes. Même dans ses œuvres les plus récentes, situées dans le contexte de grandes villes, ce sont les détails intimes de quartiers spécifiques qui captent véritablement l'attention du lecteur.
Was poet Rex Petley a murderer? And why, forty years later, does he drown out on the gulf? His friend Jack Skeat is drawn to examine the landscapes of their childhood, going west from Wellington to Auckland, as he attempts to unravel the mystery of Petley's life.
Ellie Crowther is fourteen and living in a hostel where her mother, a single parent, is a matron. She begins her journey into adulthood aware of its disappointments but also finding passion - and enough love - to sustain and enrich her in unexpected ways.
Alice Ferry is a retired Wellington scientist, a mycologist (fungi is her thing). One day a young man knocks on her door. Adrian is a great-nephew she never knew she had, the grandson of her brother Gordon. As her story unfolds we learn of her childhood with Gordon in West Auckland and of the divergent paths their lives have taken. While Alice has gone on to have a successful career, Gordon has mentally deteriorated to the point where he is a silent derelict living on the streets of Wellington. Adrian wants to meet him. But Alice resists. As Adrian persists, Alice becomes more and more edgy. What is she hiding from her nephew? How has Gordon ended up in this state? And what does Alice have to do with it? Blindsight shows Gee the master playing with characters and complex story structures with immense skill.
A collection of stories exploring moments in the lives of ordinary people, including "The widow," "Schooldays," "Eleventh Holiday," and "Buried Treasure, Old Bones"
Josef Mandl, retired from business, takes a sharp-eyed look at his past. As a young man in the communist underground in Vienna he fought street battles against the Nazis. Safe from persecution in New Zealand, however, he is classed as enemy alien and locked up onSomes Island in Wellington Harbour. At war's end, an Austrian Jew in a 1940s antipodean and colonial society, Mandl exists in harmony and in conflict with refugees and New Zealanders alike. His story mirrors the alien experience everywhere. In precise, elegant prose Maurice Gee looks at themes of loss and dispossession, of family, friendship and love, investing the familiar with touching significance. Live Bodies is, quite simply, an exquisite piece of writing by one of New Zealand's finest novelists.
Amid the backdrop of New Zealand at the onset of World War I, four children unite in a quest to uncover the mystery behind a series of arson incidents plaguing their town. As they navigate the challenges of their environment and the impact of the war, their adventure reveals themes of friendship, bravery, and the innocence of youth in turbulent times.
The novel features George Plumb, a complex clergyman whose dual nature makes him both admirable and repulsive. As he navigates his intense spiritual convictions, the story explores the personal sacrifices he makes in the name of his conscience, often at the expense of his loved ones. This character-driven narrative delves into themes of morality, self-absorption, and the impact of one's beliefs on relationships, solidifying its place as a significant work in New Zealand literature.
Giant creatures, long dormant beneath extinct volcanoes, are awakening with the intent to destroy the world. Twins Rachel and Theo Matheson, seemingly ordinary except for their red hair, uncover their extraordinary destiny as the only ones capable of stopping this impending doom. As they confront their newfound roles, they must navigate the challenges posed by these ancient beings and uncover the truth behind their unique abilities.
James Tinling, a former Cabinet Minister, plans a political comeback, although a brash newcomer stands in his way. James has methods of dealing with upstarts, but is handicapped by secrets in his life.