Thomas Cook Traveller's New Zealand (second Edition) - AA Publishing

Advantages: Wit, wisdom and penile fungi
Disadvantages: He's a bit grumpy (but what's wrong with that?)

...'s suburban atmosphere; mocks their accents as "prim, moribund". "Everyone's wearing old, ill-fitting clothes and sensible shoes," he says. The Maoris, he thinks, are the only people who look right at home. He is contemptuous of tourists ("Tourists don't know where they've been. Travellers don't know where they're going"). Along the way he speaks to everyone from the lowliest beachcomber to the King of Tonga, with whom he is granted a rare audience. He even bumps into the former prime minister of New Zealand on a deserted beach in the Cook Islands. For a man who can be so candid to strangers, he grants the reader only glimpses of his personal life: his marriage breakdown; his fears about possible skin cancer. You feel he's being guarded, reluctant to reveal too much. He tells us on the first page that he and his wife separated on a winter day... Read review

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Advantages: a brilliant read
Disadvantages: slightly confusing read

...Who was Dylan Thomas? Even today, no one really knows. From his early years of growing up in Swansea in Wales, to his family life; from his beginnings as a writer to his tours of America; from his early days of alcohol abuse to his death in New York in 1953: Dylan Thomas has become an icon for lovers, literature fans and poets. Dylan Thomas has become a cult figure for Welsh travellers of today an inspiration for every young lad heading from Swansea to London, into the new life. But it is Dylan Thomas’s debauched lifestyle that perhaps draws people towards him. In the book The Dylan Thomas Murders, by David N. Thomas, we begin to get an idea of who Dylan Thomas might have been, reimagining the poet without attempting to stick to the known facts. Reading this book, D. Thomas still remains a mystery, but David Thomas’... Read review

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Advantages: Cheap, informative and comprehensive travel guide.
Disadvantages: Some information is now out of date, a few more glossy pictures would have been nice!

...This review is based on the September 2004 Edition of Lonely Planet: New Zealand (The latest edition at the time of writing this review). Most travellers are familiar with Lonely Planet guides, if you aren't, and you're considering a trip, my advice is that Lonely Planet produces the best guides on the market. Rough Guide publications are also worth considering. Basically, this book provides information for travelling in New Zealand for every budget; it offers guides to all its outdoor activities, its flora and fauna, sights, public transport, history and culture. One particularly useful section is the suggested itineraries. In this section different routes are proposed, and the minimum time-scales you should allow to travel them are given. This is great because it shows you the most efficient route (so you don't waste time... Read review

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