In 1837, on remote St Helena Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, Frenchman Franois Lelivre searches for the legendary willow tree beside Napoleons grave. A tree in which he believes Napoleons spirit is still alive, inspiring the noble ideals of the French Revolution liberty, equality and brotherhood.
With cuttings from Napoleons willow in his care, Franois journeys to Akaroa on the Banks Peninsular in New Zealand aboard a whaling ship, and plants these in this new land during a time of conflict, as the French and British compete to be the first to colonise this newly-discovered part of the country.
Around the same time, Marianne a young schoolteacher from England, sets out on a turbule ...
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In 1837, on remote St Helena Island in the South Atlantic Ocean, Frenchman Franois Lelivre searches for the legendary willow tree beside Napoleons grave. A tree in which he believes Napoleons spirit is still alive, inspiring the noble ideals of the French Revolution liberty, equality and brotherhood.
With cuttings from Napoleons willow in his care, Franois journeys to Akaroa on the Banks Peninsular in New Zealand aboard a whaling ship, and plants these in this new land during a time of conflict, as the French and British compete to be the first to colonise this newly-discovered part of the country.
Around the same time, Marianne a young schoolteacher from England, sets out on a turbulent path via the new British colonies of Sydney in New South Wales and Russell in the Bay of Islands, that leads her to the same place, looking for her own sense of liberty.
They both encounter and befriend a well-travelled and respected Maori man from Banks Peninsular, Manako-uri, who is facing his own difficulties and challenges as the newcomers plant their hopes and dreams in his ancestral land.
Based on real events and people from our colonial past, this impeccably-researched and dramatic adult fiction follows the lives of the main characters as they become entwined together in an intense story of adventure, love and loss. This novel explores not only an important chapter in New Zealands history, but also the deep and sanguine forces that drove the early settlers and pioneers to leave safe and familiar Europe to etch new lives for themselves in the far-away, unknown and often-treacherous corners of the world.
Featured in the 20 June 2016 New Zealand Newsletter.
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Alfred Street (University of Auckland Store)