In the early 1980s, Helen Brown was a 20-something journalist mum of two adored boys: Sam (almost 9) and Rob (6). Helen and the boys’ father, Steve, had married very young and were having some problems, but their Wellington home was largely happy and the boys were thriving. In anticipation of his upcoming birthday, the family had visited the home of a friend whose cat had just given birth, and Sam picked out a vivacious black kitten. He named her after the Egyptian queen in recognition of her regal bearing and glossy coat. She would be ready to leave her mother in a few weeks, and Sam couldn’t wait; he loved all animals.

Sam was killed a week later when, having found an injured bird, he stepped out in front of a car near the Brown home as he carried it to the vet. His little brother was with him. Brown writes with exquisite pathos of the initial weeks following his death, and their punctuation by the arrival of Cleo, now of age, at her new home. The devastated family had forgotten all about her, and Brown’s first instinct was to send her back; it wasn’t the time for a new pet. But Rob loved her, and she wasted no time creeping into her new mistress’ heart.

What follows is the life story of both a cat and a family; it is no spoiler to say that the Browns’ marriage broke up, that Brown met someone new and that Rob didn’t remain an only child for long. Brown recounts the ups and downs that accompanied Cleo’s nearly 25-year lifespan, including, in one of the funniest and warmest passages, a ‘gap’ year in the UK and Europe by Brown and her new partner, Philip.

Cleo was left behind with a trusted friend; the couple decided, in a fit of romantic devotion, to marry in Switzerland. It swiftly became apparent that the Swiss authorities were determined to deny their wish, demanding that all personal documents dating back to high school be produced and witnessed in triplicate. When that criterion was met, they imposed a rule that the marriage would be legal only if performed by an English-speaking Swiss minister, and such a creature proved nearly impossible to find.

Sensitive readers should be warned; this is at times a very saddening book, not only due to Sam’s death but because it cover’s Cleo’s life from birth to death, and the ‘high priestess’ of the Brown family is as real as any human Brown describes. I was struck by how well, and cogently, Brown wrote about the loss of her son; she has addressed the subject in some of her many columns in the former Dominion and in Next magazine, and her talent for concise, direct and affecting writing is on full display here.

Anyone who has loved a pet, laughed at their antics and taken solace in their company will relish this book, which Brown dedicates to “anyone who says they’re not a cat person, but secretly is.” For a special treat, visit www.helenbrown.com and read Cleo’s blog. She’s reporting from cat heaven, and in one of the recent entries bemoans the surfeit of farmed salmon. A personality as strong as this one doesn’t go away.

3.5/5 Stars:  Funny, touching, and one of the loveliest stories of a family I have read in a long while.

Ali’s Book of Tall Tales by Ali Williams

If a talented young sportsman absolutely must produce a book about his career to date, best that it be exactly like this effort from All Black lock (none of your David Beckham hagiography, thanks, especially when he doesn’t even mention the nanny. Pet peeve, sorry. Moving on).

It consists of a series of stories about life as a highly recognizable football player in a rugby-mad nation, in no particular order – Williams veers from the sublime (his swift and straightforward rise to national representation) to the dramatic (the truth about why he was sent home in the midst of a Blues campaign in South Africa) via the painful (a broken jaw and six weeks of nothing but liquid food, compounded by the indignity of being visited in hospital by drunk, partying team-mates. On a related note, his account of trying to turn two Burger Wisconsin burgers into a meatshake is hilarious).

One of the most widely reported tales at the time of publication was the spiking of a beer-filled rugby trophy with Viagra and the feeding of the contents to several in the vicinity, including All Black coach Graham Henry. Henry was characteristically taciturn when quizzed on the subject, but a couple of Williams’ team-mates were more forthcoming, and it makes for some cringe-worthy reading.

Williams is responsible for this book’s many side-splitting anecdotes, but James Griffin (best known for co-creating and writing Outrageous Fortune) deserves all the credit for its construction. The piss-taking tone is spot-on and quite perfectly Kiwi (Griffin knows better than to lace the pages with self-deprecation – this would be un-Ali).

Right at the end, Williams clears up a small matter of mispronunciation: his name is pronounced as in, “Wouldn’t want to run into him in a dark alley,” rather than as in Muhammad Ali. Williams has had a bad run with injuries and is currently down for the count with a torn Achilles tendon, but hopefully he’ll be back on the pitch soon. There are more anecdotes to be generated – this book needs a sequel.

3/5 Stars: An engaging piss-take from start to finish, and you don’t need to be a rugby fan to get the humour.

The event is one of two community initiatives that LynnMall Shopping Centre hosts in support of walking. At least twice a week for the past 12 years, members of the New Lynn community have chosen to avoid car emissions and instead enjoy the smell of fresh coffee and muffins on their regular MallWalk at LynnMall Shopping Centre.

LynnMall Acting Centre Manager Linh Luong says the MallWalkers set a great example for staff and retailers. “The Walk2Work Day is all about getting our people thinking about using alternative methods of transport and incorporating that little bit of exercise into our everyday routines. Our MallWalkers are very supportive of this.”

LynnMall Shopping Centre was the first mall in New Zealand to offer MallWalking and over the years, walkers young and old have been showing others how it is done by coming to the mall bright and early for a brisk walk along the passageways.

“We now have over 50 members that take part in the sessions, all of varying ages,” says trainer Zoe Bond. “Occasionally we have mothers who join us, some bring their little ones for a stroll and others take it as an opportunity to have some down time. Others in the group are aged between 50 and 90 years old and we even have a regular walker in her 80’s that joins us.”

“It’s more than just a physical activity for our MallWalkers. It’s a weekly social event they all look forward to, where they often have coffee or breakfast afterwards.

“Walk2Work is a great initiative which has a close alignment with what we do. It is great to see this encouragement to get people out there and increase physical activity in the community.”

Auckland Networker for Living Streets Aotearoa Vincent Dickie says he is thrilled to have LynnMall Shopping Centre on board for the Walk2Work Day and hopes staff and retailers will opt to head to work on foot rather than reaching for the car keys. “We want to encourage people to incorporate health and fitness into their everyday life, and what simpler and better way to do this than by taking to the streets?”

The first 20 participants who pledge or register to walk to work will receive a free breakfast from Walk2Work sponsors McDonalds, One Square Meal, Cyclops Yoghurt and Sanitarium Up n Go. Breakfast will be served in the Lynnmall food court between 8am and 9am.

Click here to view the video and find out more about private-public partnerships for infrastructure spend in New Zealand over the next 10 years.

Gone by Mo Hayder

Those new to Mo Hayder but partial to a gripping thriller will be tantalized by the author blurb in this seventh crime novel from the British writer: “Mo Hayder has written some of the most terrifying crime thrillers you will ever read. Her first novel, Birdman, was hailed as a ‘first-class shocker’ by the Guardian and her follow-up, The Treatment, was voted by The Times one of ‘the top ten most scary thrillers ever written.’”

Crikey. Nothing like the weight of expectation. Happily, this is a case of underpromising and overdelivering. Gone is lengthy, at more than 400 densely-packed pages, but plotted with extreme skill. It doesn’t flag for a moment, and Hayder expertly balances the main storyline with a related sub-plot (the woman Caffery yearns for, police diver Sergeant Flea Marley, undertakes her own, subterranean search to find the villain at the centre of the story).

The best thrillers kick into action immediately, and accordingly, the first page of Gone has Hayder’s recurring protagonist, DI Jack Caffery, contemplating a crime scene. It happens to be a public street in which a Santa Claus mask-wearing man wrestled a woman away from her car and drove off – with her young daughter in the back seat.

Several similar incidents quickly follow, and it becomes apparent to Caffery and his team that this serial offender wants something more than either the cars or the children. But the preternatural intelligence and foresight of the Jacker, as he becomes known, is stymieing the investigators: it’s as if he has access to information that is so high-level even the police can’t get at it. But what? And what is he after?

In desperation, Caffery turns to the Walking Man, a middle-aged vagrant whom Caffery is in the habit of visiting. The Walking Man is well-known to locals as a former successful businessman whose young daughter was abducted, raped and murdered by an itinerant offender on probation. The Walking Man took grisly revenge on the killer, and now spends his days roaming the countryside, searching for his daughter’s body and sleeping rough.

Gone is the third novel from Hayder to feature the Walking Man, whose bond with Caffery adds complexity and richness to the story (they are close in part because Caffery’s brother went missing at age eight, and the offender, probably a local paedophile, was never brought to justice). Caffery sees the Walking Man as possessing unique and valuable wisdom. As Hayder writes: “[Caffery had] learned that in this relationship, he was the pupil and the Walking Man was the teacher.”

(A note for sensitive readers: Hayder’s oeuvre as a whole is one in which bad things happening to children is a recurring theme.)

It’s always best to reserve judgement on a book, especially one in this genre, where the pay-off is all. At times, I found myself holding my breath while reading Gone; I was enjoying it so much, and so clueless as to what was coming next, that I desperately hoped Hayder could deliver. She does.

It’s a great treat to discover a new favourite writer, and Hayder, with her knack for plotting and the evocation of mood, is one for any fan of clever, suspenseful fiction.

4/5 Stars: Truly stunning, but not for the faint-hearted.  Follow this link for more Easy Mix Book Reviews

Challenge Trust Chief Executive Clive Plucknett

Challenge Trust chief executive Clive Plucknett tackles the silent epidemic that is depression head-on today in the National Business Review, 05 March. 

In his interview with Niko Kloeten, Plucknett says depression is the next global crisis, it happens to more people than we realise, the problem is, NZ executives are too afraid to open up and confide in one another.

Depression the silent epidemic for executives uncovers another side of the corporate world and identifies several issues;

• Boards are not dealing with the issue effectively;
• Outlines NZ within the global context;
• Depression does not necessarily happen gradually, and it may strike anyone, at any time;
• Challenge Trust offers help at hand with the Wellness & Recovery model based on International Benchmarking, a model that may be applied to a whole organisation or individual;
• Challenge Trust runs sessions on emotional resilience;
• Sufferers should not go-it-alone, support in recovery is key;

Plucknett understands pressure and hard-work as the head of Challenge Trust, an organisation dedicated to recovery services for people from all walks of life.

Stolen by Lesley Pearse

If I were of a mathematical bent, I could probably calculate a formula to determine what proportion of a thriller’s success relies on the initial premise, and what proportion on delivery (plot, characterization, quality of writing). Suffice it to say, Stolen has one of the stronger openings I’ve read – the action starts on the first page and doesn’t let up.

Pearse is a beloved novelist in her native UK, and her books have sold two million copies worldwide. Stolen is the 13^th, and it begins with Lotte, a beautiful young blonde, being washed up half-drowned on a beach in Selsey. Her hair has been roughly hacked off, and the purple marks on her wrists and ankles indicate she has been in restraints.

Once revived and hospitalized, Lotte is diagnosed with trauma-related amnesia. Her Jane-Doe status is revoked when Dale, a Brighton hairdresser, recognizes Lotte as the friend she made when the two met on a cruise ship they worked on a couple of years earlier. Towards the end of the cruise, Lotte was raped and then taken under the wing of a God-fearing American couple, and the two women lost touch.

Things get especially interesting when Lotte’s memory begins to resurface, and what she recollects prompts action by her friends and family – leading Lotte and Dale into a confrontation with Lotte’s former ‘rescuers’. Be warned: what has happened to Lotte is every bit as dark as what you might encounter in a Val McDermid or Ian Rankin tale. (I was rather fooled by the chick-lit cover.)

Lotte’s recovery of her memory is what drives the story and prompts the major turning point in the plot. I felt that the remembering is rendered in less than artful fashion; it occurs in a series of conversations between Lotte and other characters, whereas scenes of Lotte alone, recalling, would have been far more affecting. Pearce seems to prefer plot to character development, and she does achieve on that front.

I find it helpful, rather than limiting, to think of novels in genre terms; the if-you-liked-that-you’ll-like-this in a review frequently leads me to my next read. Stolen isn’t easy to define; it’s a suspense thriller, certainly, but there are elements of chick-lit in the romantic connections made and the triumphant female friendship of Dale and Lotte, not to mention the rallying-round of various friends and family members (a Bridget Jones-ish touch that is a hallmark of this genre), and the comeuppance of one most unpleasant character.

It’s also fits into a sub-sub-genre that might be called recovery-from-amnesia fiction, though it’s not the finest instance of this (for a wildly different yet brilliant example, see Robert Ludlum’s Bourne series). Nonetheless, it achieves what I suspect was Pearse’s ambition: an absorbing, suspenseful tale that has something to say about the bonds of friendship, and the testing of them.

2.5/5 Stars:  Solid rather than mind-blowing.  Click here to see the Easy Mix book reviews

The Long Song by Andrea Levy

Last year’s historical-fiction sleeper hit was Kathryn Stockett’s The Help. I wouldn’t be surprised if The Long Song is the novel to fill that space in 2010. It has the requisite ingredients: a compelling setting (1830s Jamaica, as slavery comes to a bumpy, volatile end), a sympathetic main character (July, a slave girl who lives on a sugar plantation and whose erstwhile nemesis is a transplanted British widow), and a rollicking and drama-laden, yet plausible, plot.

One of the best-known ‘rules’ of fiction writing is to write what you know. Though it’s been a long time since anyone had first-hand knowledge of this particular subject, Andrea Levy brings a personal connection that tinges her story with pathos and empathy rather than melodrama (one of the biggest potential pitfalls for such a tale). Her complex background also explains how she can write so authentically and movingly about the collision of two cultures – in this case, the white plantation owners from Britain and the blacks (or negroes, as they were referred to at the time) and mulattoes who served them in the fields and homes of Jamaica.

Levy’s father sailed from Jamaica to England on the Empire Windrush ship in 1948, and her mother joined him soon after. Andrea was born in London in 1956, growing up black and the child of Caribbean immigrants in what was then still a very white country; she says this experience has given her a complex perspective on the country of her birth.

This ambivalence shines through in The Long Song, which, while it faces some of the horrors and injustices of slavery and its aftermath head-on, takes an even-handed approach to its characters. Levy refuses to tell us what to think of them, opting instead to simply present their motives and actions.

A portion of the book’s introduction explains its clever and unusual explication: You do not know me yet but I am the narrator of this work. My son Thomas, who is printing this book, tells me it is customary at this place in a novel to give the reader a little taste of the story that is held within these pages. As your storyteller, I am to convey that this tale is set in Jamaica during the last turbulent years of slavery and the early years of freedom that followed.

The identity of Thomas’s mother, our storyteller, is a fact cleverly concealed by Levy until the end of the book, which focuses chiefly on July and the vicissitudes of her everyday existence. As a slave, her life is not her own, but one of the finest elements of The Long Song is the description of how she responds to the events in her life – there’s an illicit love affair, unexpected offspring, and at one point she is banished from the plantation – and how these happenings reveal the depths of her character.

I am curious as to how much of the character of July is based on Andrea Levy’s mother or other Jamaican women she has known – there is such a realness and spirit to the character that it is hardly to believe she is a complete invention.

This is an historical novel, but one of greater literary quality than many books in this genre – enhanced, I think, in large part by the depth of research Levy has undertaken (there is a bibliography at the end) and her ear for the Jamaican patois and the distinctive rhythm of speech.

4/5 Stars: Few novels are compelling and informative in equal parts – this is one.  Click here to listen to the Easy Mix Audio Review

Campaign Overview

Auckland-based commercial cleaning company Clean Planet redefined the meaning of green-washing when it launched as New Zealand’s first truly environmentally-friendly cleaning company in 2008.

It grew exponentially in its first 18 months of operation, from an initial three franchisees to more than 25 throughout Auckland by the end of 2009.

In this formative stage, in addition to winning contracts with clients such as Fletcher Steel, Bear Park Childcare Centres and healthcare provider Labtests, the innovative start-up also began manufacturing its own range of eco-friendly cleaning products. The products are specially formulated to meet Clean Planet’s high standards of environmental integrity, and are independently certified by Environmental Choice.

“There’s huge demand for truly environmentally friendly services, not just tokenism, and companies are paying attention to what’s going down their sink for both the health of their staff and the health of our environment,” said Clean Planet co-director Mark Houghton Brown.

AC’s main brief was to build the brand’s profile within the business community, particularly among SMEs, and to articulate the cold hard truth about what chemicals people are exposed to in the office and the impact that has on their health and that of the environment.

Results

A story titled ‘Green cleaner trades on environmental health’ featured in the NBR’s Executive Health section in December. The reporter interviewed Mark Houghton Brown and highlighted some of the health implications for office workers, such as asthma and other respiratory ailments, commenting on the alternative service provided by Clean Planet for businesses looking for a more sustainable option.

The SME-focused publication Business to Business ran a story titled ‘Green cleaning business walks the talk’, featuring Clean Planet as the lead story in their online email newsletter and on their website in November.

Clean Planet co-director Chris Morrison was interviewed for the Unlimited Lives series.   In addition, the story was picked up in trade publications NZ Retail and NZ Franchise magazine and online on scoop.co.nz, voxy.co.nz and infonews.co.nz

Campaign Overview

It’s a word you’re more likely to see in the context of the art-filled drawing room of a Henry James novel than in today’s world of instant obsolescence, but ‘curio’, defined as something unusual and worthy of collecting, was unearthed as the name of a new range of exclusive, single-estate and at times single-block wines from the Mud House Wine Group in 2009.

The inaugural Curio Collection, hailing from five different vineyards in Marlborough, Nelson and Central Otago, launched with five varietals. Each wine was carefully selected on the blending table from a myriad of single-vineyard fruit parcels, from which only the stand-out examples were deemed worthy of the Curio label. 

The wines were launched into some of the best restaurants and fine wine retailers around the country, including Bisque, Circa, Capitol, Museum Hotel and Ambeli in Wellington; Sticky Fingers and Annies in Christchurch; and in Auckland, O’Connell Street Bistro, The Engine Room, Rocco, Cibo and Soul Bar & Bistro.

The unique and artistic label design was a distinct characteristic of this young, stylish and carefully considered range of wines.

AC was asked to help launch the new Curio brand and connect the range with wine writers and consumers to help make it jump out on restaurant wine lists and on the shelf.

Results

Curio partnered with a number of key events around the launch to connect with the artistic elements of the collection.  

First, it came on board as a key supporter of the spectacular Breast Cancer Research Trust’s Art for a Cure exhibition. Held at Hopetoun Alpha, the exhibition featured artworks created by some of New Zealand’s most preeminent artists inspired by leading Kiwi musicians. The artworks were auctioned for the charity and complementary glasses of Curio wine were served to guests at  the opening function and final auction.

In addition, Curio was the wine sponsor at one of central Auckland’s most stylish art spaces, the Gus Fisher Gallery. Curio partnered with the gallery to serve the wine at two highly successful New Zealand art exhibitions, Marti Friedlander Looking Closely and Len Lye Art that Moves. A special wine tasting with Curio wines was also held for the public at the gallery during the exhibition.

AC focused on boosting the profile on the new wine and getting it in front of the leading wine writers in New Zealand to swirl, sniff, and sip to their hearts’ content!

The Curio Collection was well received by the wine writers, with reviews featuring in nearly all of the country’s major provincial daily publications. This included the NZ Herald’s Viva magazine and the Herald on Sunday’s Detours as well as The Press, the Otago Daily Times and the Marlborough Express.

Special promotions were also set up with Life & Leisure and Mindfood magazines to promote the wine.

2008 CURIO d’Auvergne Vineyard Wairau Valley Marlborough Gewurztraminer reviews:

Viva Wine Columnist Jo Burzynska described the Curio d’Auvergne Vineyard Wairau Valley Marlborough Gewurztraminer as a “gorgeously textured wine, with layers of mineral and hints of rose petals, seasoned with savoury spice and finishing with a fresh twist of citrus peel.” NZ Herald 4 November 2009

 ”A perfectly balanced, delicate and slippery gewurztraminer that sings turkish delight, ginger, rose petal and soft citrus.  Musky, fruit-laden flavours enhanced by wild yeast ferments and time in oak give it a sexy, spicy finish. Available from fine wine stores and selected restaurants and bars”.  Bay of Plenty Times 9 November 2009 

 ”…My pick of the bunch is Curio d’Auvergne Vineyard Wairau Valley Marlborough Gewurztraminer 2008.  It smells so good you don’t want to stop sniffing the harmonious mix of musk rose, mango and cloves.  On the palate it’s like sucking on Turkish delight before it sets; luscious fruit flavours with silky texture made all the more interesting from barrel fermentation and wild yeast.”  Capital Times – Wellington 21 October 2009 

2008 CURIO Bendigo Vineyard Central Otago Pinot Noir reviews:

 “Great packaging is one of the appeals of this spicy young Central Otago pinot noir.”  Joelle Thomson, Herald on Sunday Detours, 13 December 2009 

 “Ah, that’s what a good pinot noir is all about – it’s light, ruby-red translucent colour belies its rich and full flavoured character, with satisfying length. Currants and vanilla were evident. This pinot is velvety smooth, with no furry tannin feeling. Ideal with piquant cheeses and scrummy appetizers.”  David Killick, The Press, 11 January 2010 

 ”An attractive, lush wine with soft, overly ripe, sweet fruit, oozing cherries, strawberries and boysenberries, supported by darker tones of toasty oak, and finishing with a firm, spicy grip”.  Charmian Smith, the Otago Daily Times, 18 November 2009

2008 CURIO Ganes Vineyard Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc review:

 ”Despite its tender age, this lovely wine is full of personality. It does what classic sauvignon blanc does best – slightly acidic and bursting with apricot, passionfruit and gooseberry flavours.  There’s a weight and complexity underpinning all these delights which stamps this as an outstanding wine.” Chris Moore, The Press – Christchurch, 27 January 2010 

 “Juicy, tangy, with tingly acids and some underlying warmth. The aroma rolls on through to the palate – we enjoyed the pleasant grassy/tropical blend in this full-bodied wine. The flavours are quite intense out to the finish, which is herbal, drying and warming. A really nice example of Wairau Valley sauvignon blanc.”Deborah Walton and Peter Morice – The Marlborough Express 18 February 2010

Curio Castles Vineyard Awatere Sauvignon Blanc 2008 review:

 “Quite a ripe Awatere style though it shows typical concentration. Green capsicum and mineral flavours with a stone fruit influence. A bold and appealing wine with character.”

Bob Campbell, December 2009 www.bobswinereviews.com

“Typically funky, pungent Awatere sauvignon, with wonderfully exuberant fruit oozing herbs, salad leaves, and mineral, complex, and textural makes a definite statement.”  Charmian Smith, the Otago Daily Times, 21 October 2009