Booklovers take note

Booklovers take note. First Church’s Monster Book Fair is coming soon. On the weekend of 17-19 June you will find thousands of second hand books for sale at the Martinborough Town Hall.
All proceeds from the fair go towards the running of the Church, which has been serving the Martinborough community for over 140 years. Admission is free on Saturday and Sunday. If you would like preferential access to the sale then come along to the opening on Friday the 17th. For $15 you’ll get first choice of sale books and a supper famous for its home baking.
The opening night speaker this year will be Dr Janet Davidson ONZM. She will give a short talk on a recently published book about growing up Martinborough in the 1950s. She will also offer insights into much more ancient times, gained from her illustrious career as an archaeologist.

The new book’s titled The Dauntless Two of Martinborough and was written by Janet’s husband, Dr Foss Leach, who grew up in the village. He became an eminent archaeologist too and his work included important discoveries at Palliser Bay that changed our understanding of early Maori settlement. Foss and Janet retired and came to Martinborough a few years ago.
The Dauntless Two was originally written for Foss’s grandchildren but it became clear that the tales about two young lads growing up here had wider appeal and it has now been published. It’s written through the eyes of one of the boys, and all the stories are based on real events. If you are a long time local you may even recall some of them. Copies of the book will be available for sale at the Fair.

So this could be a very nostalgic read: stories of hair-raising adventures, local characters and family life in the days before TV and long before the grapes changed Martinborough so dramatically! It also offers an interesting social history of New Zealand as it was 60 years ago.

Janet’s own work looks back not 60 years but well over 2000 and she has published widely on both the Pacific and New Zealand, including her book The Prehistory of New Zealand. She can tell you that Men’s Sheds have been around a lot longer than you might imagine!

So Janet’s life has been one of excitement and adventure too, including fieldwork in very remote areas with few modern amenities and doing research and writing that has led to a new understanding about those places. Later she had the opportunity to share her knowledge with a wider audience through her role as Senior Curator of Te Papa’s Pacific collection.
So don’t miss the opportunity to hear Janet speak at the launch.

Monster Book Fair, Martinborough Town Hall
Friday17th June at 7pm ($15 admission includes speaker and supper)
Saturday 18th 10am-4pm & Sunday 19th 10am-2pm. (free admission both days).
Donations may be left at The Library or leave word at P&K’s, the BNZ or contact
Carol Hawkins, Margaret Peek, Margaret Griffiths or Anne Dodd.