"132 short histories of organisations, grouped in thirteen sections"--Introduction.

Christine Dann was an early participant in the women’s movement that swept through New Zealand in the 1970s and 80s. Up from Under is a detailed and fascinating study of the achievements and aspirations of women at that time. Dann chronicles the upheavals and events of that time, examining developments across the political philosophy of the women’s movement, fertility control, paid and unpaid work, and violence against women. Up from Under is a unique insider’s account of times and changes that have had far-reaching effects on New Zealanders’ lives.

Emerging from diaries, letters and memoirs, the voices of this remarkable book tell a new story of life arriving amidst a turbulent world. Before the Plunket Society, before antibiotics, before ‘safe’ Caesarean sections and registered midwives, nineteenth-century birthing practice in New Zealand was typically determined by culture, not nature or the state. Alison Clarke works from the heart of this practice, presenting a history balanced in its coverage of social and medical contexts. Connecting these contexts provides new insights into the same debates on childhood – from infant feeding to maternity care – that persist today. Tracing the experiences of Māori and Pākehā birth ways, this richly illustrated story remains centered throughout on birthing women, their babies and families: this is their history.

This accessible and engaging book explores the ways that "space, place, and sex" are inextricably linked from the micro to the macro level, from the individual body to the globe. Drawing on queer, feminist, gender, social, and cultural studies, Lynda Johnston and Robyn Longhurst highlight the complex nature of sex and sexuality and how they are connected to both virtual and physical spaces and places. Their aim is to enrich our understanding of sexual identities and practices--whether they be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, asexual, queer, or heterosexual. They show that bodies are defined and connected through media such as television, movies, ads, and the Internet, as well as through "real" places such as homes, churches, sports arenas, city streets, beaches, and wilderness. Drawing on a diverse array of historical and contemporary examples, the authors argue convincingly that sexual politics permeate all places and spaces at every level of geographical scale. Thus, they illustrate, sexuality affects the way people live in and interact with space and place, as space and place in turn affect people's sexuality.

Penrose & Pyke venture to the edge of madness, when they reunite to investigate two tragic deaths and an old mystery. The last words of a frightened woman may be a vital clue to the disappearance of an old friend, if they aren’t the ravings of delusional lunatic. Detective Constable Charlie Pyke is desperate to find out. But is he desperate enough to risk the life of his sleuthing partner, medical student Grace Penrose? More to the point, can he stop her? The answers lie behind the locked doors of an asylum for wealthy young women of delicate sensibilities, where high walls and dark corridors conceal more than one shocking secret. The ‘Penrose & Pyke Mysteries’ are a series of heart-warming, pulse-racing historical mysteries, set during a remarkable period of social upheaval in 1890s New Zealand. The fight for women’s rights has never been such deadly fun.

Throughout history, the 'welfare of the people' has been a contested area. Is it the responsibility of the state? The churches? The extended family? Organised charities or informal community groups? The Fabric of Welfare is about the many points of contact between voluntary welfare and government social services, and the complex pattern woven by these different threads. The country's welfare history is shaped by its colonial past, with the predominantly British influences transmitted by an immigrant society in the nineteenth century; by its Maori population, with a strong communal ethos; by the shaping forces of the welfare state; by two world wars and economic depression; and by both free-market policies and rapid social change in recent years. In tracing the interdependence of state and voluntary provision of welfare from 1840 to 2005, Margaret Tennant offers new perspectives on New Zealand social history. This is a rigorous analysis, but it is also a history illuminated by people. The text is illustrated with stories about the people who were moved to save, to reform, to care, to support, and the people who needed that essential sustenance. From the nun who sees a distraught woman about to throw her child into the sea, and sets out to care for 'foundlings', to city missioners, community-minded public servants, businessmen philanthropists, and the entrepreneurial organisers of floral fetes and telethons, these accounts tell us much about the history of welfare, in all its interconnections.