In Journey to a Hanging, Peter Wells writes about two key hangings in New Zealand history – those of Carl Sylvius Völkner and Kereopa Te Rau, in the 1800s. The book is written from a very personal point of view and is filled with pictures, giving a sense of the times and places. The subtitle of the book is “The events that set New Zealand race relations back by a century”.
I’m liking
I found “Journey to a Hanging” very easy to read. I know a little bit about New Zealand history, but there’s a lot I don’t know, and Peter Wells struck the right balance for me in terms of not making many assumptions about what readers would know, but not feeling the need to cover every detail of the A to Z of New Zealand history.
I really appreciated the pictures. They made everything in the book come alive. I also liked the author’s voice, which came through strongly and clearly, making what could look like a long, dense, academic book (there is quite a lot of text on each page, in a relatively small font size) very easy to read.
The hangings took place and contributed to a crucial point in New Zealand history and I am glad I now know a little bit more about the history of my country.
The book shows how so much of “history” depends on records and memories, which may be biased or unreliable, and how events that later become significant can be a result of people being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Things that made me go hmmmm
There is an index, but it could have been useful to have a quick reference guide to some of the main people mentioned. When I got nearer the end of the book, I couldn’t always remember who the minor players were from the earlier parts.
The text can look dense due to the small font size, and made me think that the book would take a long time to read. However, that turned out not to be the case!
The conclusion
I highly recommend this book for history enthusiasts, but also for people who are interested in finding out more about New Zealand history or who enjoy learning about real people. It is easy to read and gives a feel for a significant period and some significant people and events in New Zealand history.
