Civilisation: Twenty Places At The Edge Of The World by Steve Braunias

Civilisation: Twenty Places At The Edge Of The World by Steve Braunias

In small-town, suburban New Zealand, with its seemingly average people, can be found many stories of lives, loves, aspirations, and, sporadically, a dark secret or two. As reported by a much-followed columnist and awarded journalist, these rich, fascinating, and occasionally disturbing stories of settlements follow people living throughout New Zealand, from Kawakawa in the north to Mosgiel in the south, and Samoa and Antarctica overseas. Funny, moving, and at times terrifying, this book provides a platform from which New Zealand reveals itself and proves that rarely are people and places as they first appear.

Steve Braunias is a well-known writer who works for the New Zealand Herald, serves as books editor at Newsroom, and is life president of the Hamilton Press Club. He has won over 50 national writing awards and is the author of 10 books, including Civilisation (winner of the 2013 NZ Post award for best book of non-fiction) and The Scene of the Crime, published by HarperCollins in 2015.