Books & Writers Weekend - Details for Sunday

Going West Books and Writers Weekend

Sunday 12 September

10.00 - 10.30am Who said that first?
Max Cryer, writer, broadcaster and entertainer, explores words and phrases that pepper our everyday conversation – and pinpoints who actually said them first. There were a few surprises when finding who invented ’Superman’, 'nerd' and 'in the doghouse.' He uncovered people you never knew (Hester Newdigate, Ernest Dowson, John Dennis) who invented expressions we hear almost every day – but whose names have sunk without trace.  Inspired by his long-ago friendship with TV star Lucille Ball, Max shares two years of searching, from his new book Who Said That First.

Max Cryer
A former entertainer and television host, for the last 14 years Max Cryer has been broadcasting answers to radio listeners' questions on the English language (on Radio Live). He has written 11 books – seven of them on the structure of English, plus Hear Our Voices We Entreat – the only history of NZ's national anthem; Cat Miscellany about cats in English literature; Love Me Tender, the back-story of 40 world-famous songs; and now Who Said That First. His last three books have been published in Australasia, Britain, America, Italy, Germany and Russia.

10.30 - 11.15am The teller is the tale
Much-lauded Pacific writer and poet Albert Wendt describes his latest novel as a lifetime in its incubation and writing. A novel in verse, The Adventures of Vela, chronicles Samoa’s immortal song maker Vela and other divine figures, and was awarded the Commonwealth Writer's Prize for the South East Asia and the Pacific earlier this year. Straddling time and place this Pacific epic draws on indigenous oral story telling and Western poetry – reflecting perhaps its author, who when asked where he comes from replies “Aotearoa-Samoa”. In conversation with Nga Puhi poet and librarian, Robert Sullivan, Albert reflects on his latest book – and a lifetime of telling and tales.
 
Albert Wendt
Albert Wendt has published novels and collections of short stories and poetry, which have been translated into many languages, and taught around the world. Since the 1970s his writing and teaching have helped shape the literatures of Samoa, New Zealand, the Pacific, and the international indigenous novel.  His latest novel, The Adventures of Vela, won the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize for South East Asia and the Pacific Region, 2009. Two of his novels have been made into feature films. He has been awarded numerous prizes and honours, including the Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, the Nikkei Asia Prize for Culture, the Wattie Book of the Year, the Montana Book Award, and two Commonwealth Writer’s Prizes for the South East Asia Region.

Robert Sullivan
Robert Sullivan's collections of poetry include Star Waka, Captain Cook in the Underworld, and Voice Carried My Family. He has two new collections just out this year, Shout Ha! to the Sky (Salt Publishing, UK) and Cassino City of Martyrs (Huia Publishing). He is Head of School for Creative Writing at Manukau Institute of Technology, having recently returned from Honolulu where he taught creative writing at The University of Hawaii at Manoa.

11.15-12.00 Tuamaka: The challenge of Difference in Aotearoa New Zealand
The finding and telling of stories in the language of the indigenous people seems to be one of the  keys to understanding the land and the people. In her work on how cultures can interact and intersect Joan Metge draws on six decades of living in and between cultures. We are delighted to have Dame Joan back at Going West. Today she talks with Mei Hill, herself a story finder from Ngati Whatua and they discuss the ' the story of cultures meeting, arguing and then dealing with diversity'.

Dame Joan Metge
Joan Metge: New Zealander (Pakeha) born Auckland 1930. All my life I have been fascinated by the diversity of cultures developed by the peoples of the world. Working as a social anthropologist I have spent 50 odd years learning about tikanga Maori from Maori mentors, exploring the difficulties and rewards of cross cultural communication and sharing the knowledge thus gained with other New Zealanders.

Mei Hill Ngati Whatua
Mei was delivered by her grandfather in the back seat of a borrowed Chev, driven by her father – from that day onwards life has been a constant adventure. In the early 1960s growing up in rural South Kaipara to market gardening parents, Mei’s creative and entrepreneurial instincts developed then as an abundance of watermelons were ‘traded’ at local Parakai school. For the past 20 years, Mei has worked extensively across the arts and cultural sector with a strong commitment to the advancement of Maori arts. She is currently, a member of the Waitakere City Council Arts Team, Ngati Whatua representative on the Public Arts Advisory Panel, Auckland City Council, selection panellist for Kapiti Island Writers Residency and member of her marae Trust Board.

1.00-1.30 On the walls of the cities
Poetry wants to get off the page, where it once always was -- in the voice, in the life of the community, on the walls of the cities, as part of performance that includes music and spectacle and dance....  Now there are entirely new ways for it to do this' – Stephanie Strickland.
Poetry has always been conventionally stored in books or journals. Since the late 1950s there has been a revival of poetry reading, and with the more recent advent of electronic media, poetry is finding new opportunities that better suit its performance origins. Poet and lecturer Helen Sword talks about her colourful, kinetic digital poetry: work that seeks to expand readers’ definitions of poetry even while remaining deeply affirmative of book culture and the written word.

Helen Sword
Helen Sword is a teacher, scholar, jeweller, mosaicist and digital poet. She teaches literary studies and higher education pedagogy at The University of Auckland and has published widely on modernist literature and culture, digital poetics, educational development and academic writing.  Together with Michele Leggott, she co-convenes ‘Poetry off the Page’, an award-winning undergraduate English course in which students read, write, chalk, record, perform, analyse, digitise, animate and otherwise engage with a wide range of poetic and critical texts.  Her digital poetry can be found at www.stoneflowerpath.com.  

1.30 - 2.15pm Whatever we touch carries our fingerprints
Elizabeth Smither has recently published her fifth novel Lola, a book the NZ Listener described as “infused with the lyrical effects and techniques of poetry”. As recent recipient of the Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement in Poetry and with 15 collections of poetry to her name, Elizabeth is often described as a poet first, bringing this sensibility to all her writing. Her poetic voice is the rich vein running through her considerable body of work – be it novel, poem or short story. Elizabeth discusses her lyrical life, and reads from her latest novel, with local poet, writer and reviewer Paula Green.

Elizabeth Smither
I think that whatever we touch carries our fingerprints and this applies to words as well.  Novel, poem or short story, seem to me distinct forms, with their own prescriptions and possibilities. Poetry is not necessarily ‘poetic’; a short story may not require a beginning, middle and an end, and a novel demands a great deal more than lyrical effects. My latest novel, ‘Lola’, begins with a family of funeral directors but broadens into life in a hotel, music, and string quartets. Its themes are love and friendships, family, and discovering an identity. Funerals come into it but they are not the whole thing.

2.15 - 3.15pm ‘Wearing half his heart on his sleeve…
….the better to protect the other half.’ Despite being considered one of New Zealand’s most distinguished writers, with celebrated novel Coal Flat and influential essay Fretful Sleepers, Bill Pearson remained throughout his life a deeply private person, a mystery man. In No Fretful Sleeper – A Life of Bill Pearson biographer Paul Millar peels back the layers in what reviewer Peter Simpson describes as “an outstanding and absorbing biography”. Paul is joined by three of the many who knew Pearson at The University of Auckland in the decades following World War II. Albert Wendt, Elizabeth Smither and Jeny Curnow share their memories of Bill whose  "life story proves to be extraordinarily revealing of our society through the second half of the 20th century..." Introduced by Peter Simpson.

Jeny Curnow
Jeny Curnow is neither a writer nor a literary critic. She and her late husband, Allen, were close and fond friends of Bill Pearson from 1955. For the last 30 years Jeny has worked with Maori materials in the Maori Studies Department at The University of Auckland and the Auckland War Memorial Museum. She edited the new edition of King P?tatau to be launched in August. Jeny is currently translating manuscripts for a project on the Ao Tawhito/The Ancient Maori World

3.30- 3.45pm Slip Stream – Paula Green reads
Poet and critic David Eggleton described Paula Green as “a splendid rhapsodist, soaring like a kite to bob and weave”. Paula, a Waitakere-based poet, reads from her upcoming collection Slip Stream, due to be published in October. Paula has recently published an anthology and critical introduction aimed at helping readers find ways into New Zealand poetry (see page 21). Her latest book for children Aunt Concertina and her Niece Evalina, with illustrations by her partner, painter Michael Hight, has received rave reviews from adults and children alike.

3.45-4.45pm  In memory of Paul
As Paul's coffin left St Pat’s Cathedral the Dylan song Knock Knock, Knocking on Heaven's Door filled the space – it certainly seemed the right song for a man who had spent a bit of time recently on the subject of 'Cloud Computing'. Today Graham Beattie, blogger to the literati and Penny Carnaby, National Librarian and Chief Executive of the National Library of New Zealand talk with Murray Gray about this immensely inspiring man and his commitment to the democracy of power that the Internet brings to communities everywhere. We look at some of the recent material offered by Paul as Adjunct Director at the National Library and listen to some of Paul's thoughts presented to us at earlier Going West festivals. Bookman Graham tells of insights into blogging he gained and Murray recalls his early days with Paul in the frenetic life of Parnell in the early '90s.

Graham Beattie
Former Managing Director/Publisher of Penguin Books NZ Ltd and Scholastic NZ Ltd and former Books & Poetry Editor, Citymix Magazine, Graham Beattie now works as a book reviewer, book blogger and judge of book awards. His interests include books, travel, food & wine. He likes most music from opera to Irish folk and contemporary popular. His favourite books are too many to list but among them would be A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth. And of course he was a student at Gisborne Boys High School many years ago with Murray Gray of Going West fame.

Penny Carnaby
Libraries, literacy and learning when mixed together make up a very potent cocktail for delivering a vibrant democracy. I count myself incredibly fortunate to be a career librarian practising at a time when the world has been turned upside down by the transformative power of the digital revolution. As we know it has been a great democratiser in freeing up knowledge and information both in Aotearoa New Zealand and globally; in turn consolidating the role of our libraries as trusted, civic institutions at the heart of a democracy.  As National Librarian I see myself very much in this space, building on the opportunities of digital world, while still valuing our tangible heritage

Paul Reynolds
Internet developer ... commentator ... catalyst ... electronic media pioneer
Before email and the internet were part of daily life, Paul Reynolds saw the potential for it to transform our everyday lives and he made sure we knew about it. He enlightened listeners on Radio New Zealand to the wonders and powers of technology and had an ability to make the most complex things sound simple.
He was committed to the democratisation of information access and played a huge part in making New Zealand a more informed society. He was co-founder and joint managing director of McGovern Online and worked with clients in New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and the UK on their new media strategies and development. He was a board member of the NZ National Digital Forum, a member of the International Academy of Digital Arts, and was the former Adjunct Director [Digital Library] to the National Library of New Zealand and served on the Auckland Museum Trust Board.
Paul had a long association with Going West – which began in the very early days when he worked with Murray Gray at the former Under Silkwood bookshop in Parnell. He was a huge supporter of literary festivals and was programmed to present at Going West this year. Sadly, he can only be with us in spirit, but his words and ideas will live on.

4.30pm The Final Word – A Miscellany
Well-known bibliophiles – book blogger of note Graham Beattie; poet, novelist and dramatist Fiona Farrell, and Going West’s own festival programme director and sometime bookseller Murray Gray began reading at a time when British publishers and the public library were the source of most of our books. Over a glass of wine they share their earliest memories of reading, reminisce about growing up bookish in ‘50s New Zealand, and how those early books influence them still.

Graham Beattie
One of the great reading pleasures of my life was back in the days when my children were young. I loved reading to them and did so from the time of their birth until they finally called quits when they went to high school.
Recently I have rediscovered this pleasure by reading classics aloud to my wife Annie. Some especially enjoyed have been The Wind in the Willows, Winnie the Pooh and Shakespeare sonnets.
In July this year I was in New York on holiday and especially enjoyed reading a Lee Child novel, The Hard Way, because it was set in Manhattan where we were staying and I was familiar with the street settings and locations. I also read and enjoyed Edit Wharton’s novel Ethan Frome, following a visit to her home, The Mount, near Lenox in Massachusetts.
Most of my reading for pleasure is fiction and were I to choose one all-time favourite I would go for A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth followed closely by Ian Rankin’s Dead Souls, or any of his other titles featuring the superbly drawn Inspector Rebus.
A fond memory of reading was the last occasion I judged the Montana NZ Book Awards. The books were all read over the summer months while sitting on a specially constructed reading platform in a Pohutakawa tree a metre above the water at a small bay in Northland.

Fiona Farrell
Reading is when I disappear, become inaccessible. Maybe it's all that practice as a child sitting reading behind the sofa, deaf to all requests to feed the cat or set the table. Our whole family had perfected the technique of invisibility: we all read at the table, books propped up on the cruet set or toast rack. If we didn't read, we'd throw the toast rack and the cruet set instead and argue.
I still like reading at the table. So pleasantly companionable, with none of that compulsion to make conversation or worse still, ‘share quality time’: Just the whisper of pages turning, the occasional request for the butter, and the exchange of interesting facts from the current book.
My favourite place of all for reading is when on my own in a restaurant, back to a wall preferably but with decent lighting or a convenient window, and only a book for company, while someone else does the cooking.  

Murray Gray
A favourite reading experience was re-reading Arthur Ransome books decades after I read them as a boy and finding that they still worked; that they hadn’t dated.
Another great experience was reading The Bone People by Keri Hulme before it was published. I was at a motel somewhere listening to the radio and Keri was being interviewed about her book and I rang my boss and told him to get the rights to this book. I took a carton of the book to work and sold every copy in one day – it was an overnight sensation, it touched the cord of a generation. So, picking up this book early on and proving my initial instincts right was a highlight.
Also, rediscovering libraries and reading writers rather than books, meaning that I’ll read a book by an author and, if I like it, I’ll go down to the library and track down all the books by this author.
Favourite books are the ones I’ve read more than once. I’m just discovering Jeffery Archer – post cold war thrillers – and I’ll do Thomas Hardy next for a couple of months, he’s harder work than Jeffery.