Rush to Riches — capturing the essence of our great kauri and gold rushes

THIRD IN NON-FICTION SERIES RECOUNTS NZ’S TWO GREAT COMMODITY RUSHES 

Rush to Riches: Kauri and Gold – Gordon Ell 

Colonising New Zealand was as much a scramble for wealth as an imperial venture. The rush to exploit the country’s gold and kauri is a story of innovation and determination, as well as greed and thuggery.

Those stories are told in Rush to Riches: Kauri and Gold, the third book in The NZ Series — a fact-packed, smartly design collection on New Zealand society, history and geography for readers from intermediate school on up.

Rush to Riches tells how the discovery of gold in New Zealand in the 1800s led thousands of people to rush to overnight tent towns set among isolated mountains and rivers. 

Meanwhile in the north, vast forests of giant kauri trees cloaked the land. Yet now only a tiny fraction of the trees survive in threatened forests, and many gold-mining settlements are just ghost towns. 

The rushes of both industries drew Māori and British, and also Americans, Australians, Dalmatians and Chinese to these areas. 

They brought their cultures and adapted technology to extract their desired riches — kauri timber and gum from forests and fields in the north, gold from the rivers and mountains mostly in the South Island.

Rush to Riches explains gold and kauri extraction, and presents characters that became famous and infamous as they toiled to become rich. 

Plentiful illustrations and fact boxes show how these industries shaped our society and left their mark on our environment.

All the books in The NZ Series give readers a broad range of rich, visually stimulating introductions to what makes our country unique (read about the other titles here). 

The author

Gordon Ell is a well-known writer and publisher with a life-long interest in New Zealand’s natural and historic heritage. He has written more than 30 books for adults and children, and was the founder of the Bush Press. Originally from Christchurch, Gordon lives in Takapuna, Auckland. 

Publication: 8 May 2020  |  RRP $29.99  |  ISBN:  978-0-947506-70-4

Paperback, 240 x 160 mm, 100 pages, 2 colour

First two books announce the arrival of non-fiction series for young adults

Volcanoes and Earthquakes– Gordon Ell and Sarah Ell

Pioneer Women– edited by Sarah Ell

Recognising the need among readers from intermediate school up for attractive non-fiction books relating to their own experience, Oratia Books is today publishing the first of The NZ Series — a snappily designed and fact-packed collection on New Zealand society, history and geography.

The first two books in the series respectively plumb the mysteries of New Zealand’s earth movements and relate the history of early European settlers with easy-to-understand text accompanied by numerous photos, explanatory diagrams and ‘Fact File’ boxes. 

Volcanoes and Earthquakes investigates the causes and history of seismic activity in Aotearoa, taking in the Christchurch and Kaikoura earthquakes and recent volcanic activity. Historical and contemporary photos and colour diagrams bring the whole field to life!

Pioneer Women presents extracts from diaries and letters by women who emigrated to New Zealand from Europe in the nineteenth century. These tales of hardship and happiness are accompanied by portraits , newspaper clippings, and markers like the Women’s Suffrage Petition.

With two books a year planned for 2020 and beyond, The NZ Series promises readers a broad range of rich, visually stimulating introductions to what makes New Zealand unique.  

The authors

Gordon Ell is a writer and publisher with a life-long interest in our natural and human heritage. He has written more than 30 books for adults and children. His daughter, Sarah Ell, is an editor, and journalist, who has written ten books, and inherited her father’s love of New Zealand history and the environment.

Publication: 9 July 2019  |  RRP $29.99 each

ISBNs: Pioneer Women 978-0-947506-59-9  | Volcanoes and Earthquakes 978-0-947506-60-5

Paperback, 240 x 160 mm, 100 pages colour