About the Author

Jonathan West was born and raised in and around Dunedin. While indulging his love of tramping in the South Island back country he collected degrees from the University of Otago, culminating in a PhD in history from which this book emerged. He worked as an historian at the Waitangi Tribunal for several years and more recently joined the Office of Treaty Settlements. Jonathan's publications include contributions to Wild Heart: e possibility of wilderness in Aotearoa New Zealand (Otago), The Lives of Colonial Objects (Otago, 2015) and New Zealand and the Sea (BWB, forthcoming). He lives with his wife Kate and their children in Lower Hutt.

Reviews

"Balanced more equitably between Ma ori and Pa keha sources than any other major work on the area, this book is an important contribution to New Zealands environmental history. Atholl Anderson, emeritus professor, Australian National University"