Christchurch City Libraries Blog

The Selwyn District Heritage collection has some interesting photographs of St John’s Church at Hororata which was badly damaged in the September 4 earthquake.

The church was consecrated on 27 February 1911. Money to build the church came from Sir John Hall, former prime minister of New Zealand.

Sir John Hall

The old church which was moved to make way for the new stone church. It is still standing today and is being used for worship until the newer church is restored. The photograph was taken on the occasion of Sir John Hall’s funeral in 1907. Children from Hororata School line the path.

The photographs are taken from the Weekly press and the Canterbury times between the 1860s and the 1920s. They have been produced as a joint project between Selwyn District Council and Christchurch City Libraries. They were photographed from the newspapers by Stephen Wright.

Suddenly I am more interested in my city.  The buildings and places I took for granted are now gone and I wonder whether something wonderful will replace them, or will there be yet another tilt slab monstrosity?

I am obviously not alone in this interest . A number of you have sent in requests for material on architecture that shows that we are concerned about how our city will look. Here are some  titles full of  fantastic ideas that will soon be gracing our library shelves:

• A life Between buildings: Using public space
• A guide to the new ruins of Great Britain
• The Green dream: Building green, great and gorgeous cities
• Green living: Architecture and planning
• Beyond architecture: Imaginative buildings and fictional cities
• City building: Nine planning principles for the twenty-first century
• Human cities: Celebrating public space

The Tarahumara are stewards of a lost art. For centuries, the reclusive Mexican Indians have practiced techniques that allow them to run hundreds of miles, rest-free, and enjoy every mile of it. They’re healthy and serene and immune to diseases that can plague modern existence. But how?

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen asks this very question. And one answer the author came up with is… drumroll please:

They run barefoot. Well, almost barefoot. They craft simple sandals from old tyres – no pillowy soft air cushioning, no dynamic cradles that can be found in over-priced running shoes.

People were designed to run. Barefoot. This is the theory established in Born to Run. Barefoot running strengthens the foot and creates  a solid foundation for the body. Running shoes  force the foot to rely on the shoe for support, weakening the foot, which can lead to injury. When ‘proper’ running shoes were introduced in the 1970s, so too were running injuries. The more expensive the shoe, the higher the rate of injury!

So what is a lover of running to do? Likely we don’t want to wear old tyres or risk naked feet when there’s glass and rocks to contend with. There is an answer. It isn’t pretty. But it is oh, so comfortable. It’s a barefoot running shoe. I first read about them in Born to Run and now  I wouldn’t run in anything else.

Like to run or thinking about starting? Born to Run will psyche you up. Read on! It might just change everything.

Check the Christchurch City Libraries website for great running resources.

You get a native tree when you take New Zealand citizenship. Greg got an enthusiastic Pittisporum. I got a brooding, slow-growing Black Pine.

But the real citizenship rite of passage happened back at my language school. The Kiwi staff decked me out in a floppy hat, a Swanddri shirt and gumboots and pushed me in to teach my class of twelve Korean, Japanese and Chinese students who would do anything if it was set to karaoke. So, in five different languages, armed with kiwi tucker and L&P’s, we belted out:

“WE DON’T KNOW HOW LUCKY WE ARE!”

Recommended Listening: We don’t know how lucky we are

Assignment 4: Go get yourself a Canterbury Draught!

William Gimblett, that is. This interesting fellow was an orchardist and fruiterer in Christchurch whose name is on a lovely collection of photographs you can browse online.

If you need a late-afternoon pick-me-up, some of these photos will do the trick. Mostly the photos are of family life, scenes of  Heathcote and social occasions. One that tickled my fancy was the Heathcote Debating Society picnic – what a bunch of characters!

I wonder how much they argued over how they should pose? Or what they said while the photo was being taken?

• Read more about William Gimblett
• View the Gimblett collection

Craig Smith, the author of Wonky Donkey has a new book out -  Willbee the Bumblebee. It’s a picture book of Craig’s song that is illustrated by Katz Cowley.

Come and listen to Craig perform Wonky Donkey, Willbee the Bumblebee and other songs this Saturday, 13 November at 2pm in Central Library.

With show time upon us again I decided to browse of our collection of historical photographs for pictures of past A&P shows. I love this one, taken at the 1910 show, where wind power was obviously as much of a  preoccupation as it is now:

You can search for images like this one on our catalogue. Here’s how:

• Hit “Start.” You’ll find yourself on the “Search Catalogue” page. You’re in the right place.
• In the grey box use the right-hand drop-down menu to limit your search “by material type” to “Pictures and Photographs” and then enter a keyword search as usual. You’ll get a list of images matching your search, many of which can be viewed online.
• Just click on the entry you want to see – if the image is available online you’ll see a link, “View the photograph,” at the bottom of the full listing.  E voilà!

Going to the agricultural show has always been an important event for country people – an opportunity to show people and animals in their best finery.

Dalmuir Prince – champion draught horse stands proud.

Stylish show goers.

The photographs are from the Selwyn district collection, taken from the Weekly press and the Canterbury times between the 1860s and the 1920s. They have been produced as a joint project between Selwyn District Council and Christchurch City Libraries. They were photographed from the newspapers by Stephen Wright.

It is  the 11th hour of the  11th day of the 11th month.

Be silent.

Contemplate this – and other – images.

Continue until 11:02.

I love ‘em. Delicious snacks of stories. Every word counts. Morsels of cleverness.

I recently finished a new short story anthology edited by Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio called, Stories : all-new tales. Fantastic. Enjoyable. Intriguing. Beguiling. Creepy. I didn’t read everything, as some stories just didn’t appeal, but there’s plenty here to dip into.

I prefer anthologies with lots of authors over a collection by one author, and this book is a treasure-trove of goodies by well-known and less-known authors.

Neil Gaiman’s Introduction delighted me beyond measure. He succinctly captures the whole point of fiction. This section alone is worth borrowing this anthology.

I thoroughly enjoyed the opening tale by Roddy Doyle – despite it’s weird and gruesome topic. I was intrigued by Jodi Picoult‘s story – it’s a change from her best-selling blockbusters. I meandered through Joe Hill‘s story – which is a work of art on the page with roving typography adding a different perspective to the story on the page.

From first timers like Kat Howard (her first published story appears in this anthology) through to Joyce Carol Oates and Michael Moorcock, there’s also plenty of well-known authors, across a range of genres, to whet your appetite, from Diana Wynne Jones, Peter Straub, Jeffery Deaver, Richard Adams and Chuck Palahniuk.