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So Far, For Now

So Far, For Now

Evocative, wry and thought-provoking, this is a rewarding journey with one of our finest writers.

It is a little over a decade since Fiona Kidman wrote her last volume of memoir. But her story did not end on its last page; instead her life since has been busier than ever, filled with significant changes, new writing and fascinating journeys. From being a grandmother to becoming a widow, from the suitcase-existence of book festivals to researching the lives and deaths of Jean Batten and Albert Black, she has found herself in new territory and viewed the familiar with fresh eyes. She takes us to Paris and Pike River, to Banff, Belfast and Bangkok, searching for houses in Hanoi and Hawera, reliving her past in Waipu and creating new memories in Otago.

These locations and experiences – among others – have shaped Fiona’s recent years, and in this lively book she shares the insights she has picked up along the way.

Mine alone

Chapter 1. So far, for now

Chapter 2. About grandparents

Chapter 3. Finding home

Chapter 4. North River

Chapter 5. On writing memoir

The outsiders

Chapter 6. Albert Black

Chapter 7. Pure Duras

Chapter 8. Quardling around Glover

Chapter 9. Some other girl: the case for Jean Batten

Chapter 10. Flying places

The body’s sweet ache

Chapter 11. On being massaged

Chapter 12. Playing with fire

Chapter 13. In the time of Covid

Going south

Chapter 14. At Pike River

Chapter 15. 99 Albany Street

This new condition

Chapter 16. Truffles

Chapter 17. The blue room

Chapter 18. On widowhood

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