Books to shape our sensibilities
Otago Daily Times book reviewers consider releases from the past 12 months - and even further back - and offer some reading suggestions.
Summer Times
Stonehenge in the blood for 99 years
Stonehenge in the blood for 99 years
Stonehenge spreads beneath the big blue sky of the Maniototo. Neal Wallace takes in a high country property that has been in the Hore family for 99 years.
Drama, intrigue and controversy
Drama, intrigue and controversy
A great book is a great book, no matter the subject. So why do sports books often get such a bad name? Sports editor Hayden Meikle - who answers his own question by acknowledging the sports book market has more dross than most - names the 12 sports books you simply must read.
A succinct indictment of human influence on the environment
A succinct indictment of human influence on the environment
Author and Observer writer Robert McCrum's first choice in his 13 essential works of non-fiction is Elizabeth Kolbert's Sixth Extinction.
A compelling urgency elevates Herr’s war story years on
A compelling urgency elevates Herr’s war story years on
Author and Observer writer Robert McCrum's 9th pick for essential works of non-fiction is Michael Herr’s Vietnam memoir, Dispatches.
Let the fleeces fall fast
Let the fleeces fall fast
Invercargill is gearing up to host the world shearing and woolhandling championships next month. Agribusiness reporter Sally Rae catches up with local lad Nathan Stratford, who will represent New Zealand in front of a hometown crowd.
A good reason to stop in ... Winton
A good reason to stop in ... Winton
Until a few years ago, Winton was like any other small town in New Zealand, a place holiday-makers travelled through on their way to their destination.
Comfort stop more of a jolt
Comfort stop more of a jolt
Dunedin is a good walk from Invercargill, which is why I'm hitchhiking.
Hitchhiker's guide for purists
Hitchhiker's guide for purists
Some people take years to learn how to hitchhike properly. Clearly, they have not made enough mistakes.
10 of the best
10 of the best
Ranking the greatest performers is not an easy task but if any man can try, it is long-serving Otago Daily Times athletics writer Alistair McMurran.
Still honing his craft
Still honing his craft
Shane Gilchrist shares a cuppa and a few cackles with enduring Kiwi songsmith Dave Dobbyn.
The show goes on
The show goes on
Be it pet calf, prized cattle beast or preserved fruit, the Otago-Taieri Agricultural and Pastoral Society's 150th anniversary show next week promises to stir rural passions. It might even prompt some to breed, writes Shane Gilchrist.
Cup brimmeth over
Cup brimmeth over
For longer than we can really nail down, the four of us have been attending Cup Week in Christchurch. Rex Martin, from Wellington, Stephen Gray, from Nelson, Nevan Trotter and myself, from...
No stranger to success
No stranger to success
Shane Gilchrist presents a special Summer Times selection of albums worth exploring.
Three of the best from 2011
Three of the best from 2011
It has been an interesting music year for the Otago Daily Times reviewers. Today, Paul Mooney shares his top albums for 2011 and one to watch.
Reliving those great moments
Reliving those great moments
ODT subeditor Tony Love has been obsessed by sport for more than 40 years. However, the all-consuming passion of youth has dulled and, as he gets older, it is the aspects of sport that bug him that occupy more and more of his thoughts.
Two tales interwoven make one fine story
Two tales interwoven make one fine story
Crime fiction can be a mixed bag but Connelly is always good and this yarn, one of his earliest, is the best I have read.
Worms turn airport waste to resource
Worms turn airport waste to resource
You've remembered to collect your luggage but, Shawn McAvinue reports, it's what you've left behind at Dunedin International Airport that helps the rhododendrons bloom.
A place to slow down, relax
A place to slow down, relax
Life does not come much more laid-back than in the tiny North Otago village of Ngapara. In fact, it is so small it does not feature as a separate entity in either the recent national census or the local council count of rateable properties. Despite that, Andrew Ashton discovered its rural appeal.
No right or wrong when it comes to tap dance
No right or wrong when it comes to tap dance
Now is the time to shake off the winter cobwebs and move. Timothy Brown looks into dance forms around Dunedin. Today he looks at tap dance.