NZ author Catherine Morrison describes the book as a tremendous tribute to the people who shared their amazing memories of the station and its staff.  She praises the source of a lot of the information to one of the original land owner's grandsons, William Stanley Wheeler, who kept such detailed and remarkable records of his lifetime of work there.

Having "lived" the past 3 years writing the book the author's dream is  ".... Just once would I like to ride along the beach to Terawhiti and meet Hannah McMenamen (from the original settler family) coming the other way - just once - just for a chat ........"

That probably describes the passion that went into this project over the past 3 years and Mayor Kerry Prendergast in the book foreword notes that 2003 marks the 150th anniversary of Terawhiti Station; a place that many New Zealanders fly over when approaching Wellington airport, or sail past when heading south on the Inter-island ferry,  yet most people are unaware of the details of its existence.  It is in the minds, probably unconsciously, of many Wellingtonians - known to them as rugged, unwelcoming land, but no knowledge of the story of the people of that land.

"Terawhiti" brings to light the development and struggles of those early pioneers on the land - it is land that will not be sold to overseas investors - it will remain in the Wellington " family".   196 pages packed with good, clear historical  photographs, maps and drawings "Terawhiti" covers an era from Maori legend, noting the historical presence of Maori and pa sites and then details the arrival in 1842 of the young Irishman James McMenamen, the early settler who started the development as we know it today.

It is a very detailed historical record, a credit to the author and all the people who opened up their Photograph albums and diaries handed down through the generations; in all a record worth reading just to appreciate another of the original developments that helped make Wellington the city it is today.

TERAWHITI - The Story of our Capital City's Largest Sheep Station

Written and Edited by Catherine Morrison

Published by Arty Bee's Books Ltd July 2003     ISBN 0 473 09638 2   196 pages  Soft Cover

For further information the publisher's site is:  www.artybees.co.nz

Recommended retail price is around NZ$35                                                                       Reviewer:  KPR