All aboard for excellent Otago railway books

Railway books normally fall into two categories; either painstakingly researched and illustrated with a mix of plans, diagrams and historical photos, or glamour photo books that capture express trains and workhorses in stunning landscapes.

There are already excellent books on the Otago Central Railway (of which the Taieri Gorge Railway is a remnant) that fall into both of those categories.

These new books capture the essence of a journey rather than being historical texts. Both cover the line to Middlemarch, and to a lesser extent the route to Palmerston also plied by the same company.

Antony Hamel's Taieri Gorge Railway: A Photo Guide certainly packs a lot into its 65 landscape-format pages.

Each facing page addresses a different aspect of the journey. This is a refreshing approach and covers a lot of subject material that wouldn't instantly spring to mind when visualising such a book; including a very thoughtful and well-explained commentary on the Abbotsford landslip, the Burnside industrial area and the Hillside railway workshops. The provision of copious maps maintains some context. Photos also give a hint of the human side of the railway, as well as the vast, silent landscapes that the trains momentarily disturb on their daily journeys.

The clutter of small, heavily cropped photos and lighting and composition issues for some larger images are minor points and do nothing to diminish the intriguing, fresh, interesting and easy read.

• Gerald Cunningham's Guide to the Taieri Gorge & Seasider rail trips explores the route of the Taieri Gorge and Seasider trains at a more relaxed pace. The book is of larger format and runs for a full 80 pages. It takes time out to depict the lives of people who were influential in the areas traversed by the trains as well as some of the current and former activities undertaken near the railway, from gold mining to a sobering account of the Seacliff lunatic asylum. The time and effort that has gone into research is clear, although a couple of typos in names, and the at times rather scrapbookish layout do injustice to this effort.

This book is also lavishly illustrated with colour photos but provides space for them to be enjoyed without overloading the senses. Some of the photos have been cropped quite tightly and seem to have lost some of their context. The maps provided are adequate but in some ways it is difficult to tie in the very specific text with the rather general map locations.

While the book provides an excellent social and geographical commentary for the railway and aspects of its surroundings, the relaxed style is a bit light on technical aspects of the trains, structures and the statistics of the operation. Overall, an informative, well researched and interesting read that is likely to leave the reader wanting to explore the area further.

The two books make a welcome addition to the region's already excellent selection of railway and tourist publications. Deciding which one is best really depends on personal preference, budget and baggage allowance.

  - Andrew Robinson is a member of the Otago Railway and Locomotive Society.