New Zealand Listener Issue 35, 2022

As I type this, Jack, the old brown farm collie, is lying on his bed next to me. Jack is dead. He died this morning. He did not recover from a stroke, and the compassionate vet eased him gently into that good night. I am so sad. And I expect to be sad, and, damn it, I’m going to be sad until I’m not. Like any bereavement, as time goes on, the calm spells among the chaos get longer. I will learn to work around the loss. We all have to deal with grief and sadness, yet it can be hard to cope with in other people. The point of this gentle rant is to offer suggestions on how to respond to a friend who is grieving. The primary point: it is not your grief.…

WINNING CAPTION David Scott, Gisborne FINALISTS Rishi Sunak: “Oh no! My arm, her arm, the drink, a stranger, the campaign!” – Robbie Blair, Snells Beach Sunak: “I’m not in No 10 yet, but the headaches have already started.” – John Edgar, Christchurch Sunak: “Oh no! Someone is now saying I was a bully at kindergarten.” – Bill Grant, Napier Sunak: “Yes, I did catch a whiff of her perfume, but I didn’t inhale!” – Mike Hamblyn, Dunedin Sunak: “Oh, no! Boris has sent me a friend request.” – Rex McGregor, Auckland Sunak: “Oh no, I forgot her name … and she’s my sister-in-law!” – Robbie Blair, Snells Beach Caption Competition {listenercaption@aremedia.co.nz} TO ENTER Send your captions for the photo at right to listenercaption@aremedia.co.nz, with “Caption Competition No 475” in the subject line. Alternatively, entries can be posted to “Caption Competition No…

I have just published The Stringing of Pearls, which tells my journey to find my birth family at age 40. It was a long and, at times, frustrating search. It throws a light on a time of bigotry and social judgment when women in particular could feel forced into drastic choices. By sheer coincidence, the Adoption Amendment Act is currently being reviewed in Parliament – and, by another quirk of fate, the Listener’s “rethinking adoption” article (“The ties that bind”, August 13) has just come out. Reading it brought home to me again the huge variety of experiences among adopted children. I was delighted to see Brigitta Baker’s quote: “Security comes from knowing you are loved, that you are the centre of the world of adults around you.” I was indeed loved,…

“Art distils sensations and embodies it with enhanced meaning.”– Miguel de Unamuno“Skill is the unified force of experience, intellect and passion in their operation.”– John Ruskin“Why does garlic have to wear so many little jackets?”– seen on Twitter“The world is governed by opinion.”– William Ellery Channing“We go to the theatre to be entertained, but if what is left after you watch the movie is a sort of eye-opening perspective on some social issues, then it can be a really powerful piece of art.”– director Jordan Peele“We can’t plan life. All we can do is be available for it.”– Lauryn Hill“When we ask for advice, we are usually looking for an accomplice.”– Saul Bellow“I am certain that there is too much certainty in the world.”– Michael Crichton“The unlimited amount of information…

1. In architecture, which of these words describes a costly building that is built mainly for decorative purposes, and often found in a large garden? ❑ Veneer❑ Folly❑ Boondoggle❑ Foible 2. Which modern city was the location of the Battle of Gate Pā in 1864, in which a Māori garrison defeated British forces? ❑ Hamilton❑ Gisborne❑ Auckland❑ Tauranga 3. A technique called the dolphin kick is used mainly in which of these swimming strokes? ❑ Front crawl❑ Breaststroke❑ Butterfly❑ Backstroke 4. Which artist created a painting in 1872 titled Impression, Sunrise that inspired the name of the Impressionist movement? ❑ Claude Monet❑ JMW Turner❑ Vincent van Gogh❑ Edgar Degas 5. What is the maximum number of stars that may be awarded to an exceptional restaurant by the Michelin Guide? ❑ Two❑ Three❑ Four❑ Five 6. In 1903, which of these…

The attempted murder of Salman Rushdie took place more than 5600km from London, but its reverberations were felt here just as strongly as if it had happened in Hyde Park. For more than three decades, and certainly his most eventful decades, he lived in London, where he was a familiar figure at literary parties, both before and after Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini issued his lethal fatwa on Valentine’s Day, 1989. It was in London that Rushdie wrote The Satanic Verses, the cause of the manufactured hate campaign by religious extremists. It was in London in August of that year that Mustafa Mahmoud Mazeh accidentally blew himself up while priming a bomb with which he intended to kill the novelist. London was where Rushdie lived incognito as Joseph Anton for most of…