Book Description

This work presents an intriguing story based on the war of Maori. The war took place between the New Zealand Colonial government and allied Maori on one side and Maori and Maori-allied settlers on the other. The romantic novelist Rolf Boldrewood has blended the past and the period in which he wrote the book remarkably. The events described in this romance of the Maori war were of the sixties, but the people and localities belonged to 1899. The vivid descriptions and skills of the author along with the unique plot made this work stand out during its time. Excerpt from "War to the Knife;" or, Tangata Maori "Think of the grand hall, sixty feet in length, twenty-six in width, extending to the roof with its fine old oaken rafters and queer post trusses! Think of the floor of polished oak, the walls with their priceless oak panelling, with carved frieze and moulded cornice; the mullioned windows, with arched openings giving light to King Edward's corridor on the first floor, carried across one corner of the hall by the angle gallery!"