Description
SUMMER IN THE GRAVEL PIT
‘Mr Duggan is no mere narrator. His stories are not so much
stories as vivid pictures, reconstructions of what he has seen-or
imagined-carefully, one might almost say lovingly, built up to
form a single, consistent whole.
‘The accuracy of his observation places an undeniable stamp
of truth on his work.’
–Auckland Star
‘. . . if you have not read Mr Duggan’s stories before, the
collection is not to be missed. If you have, there is a suspended
interest in how big a step Mr Duggan may yet take.’
–Otago Daily Times
‘Mr Duggan sees his country and his countrymen through
disenchanted, though compassionate eyes. Like so many New
Zealanders, he knows the small town and the countryside as
well as he knows the city ….
‘ … his cold eye and warm heart in these stories scrutinize
ironically the procession of postulants, things and people. . . .’
–Times Literary Supplement
‘ … the admirable economy of words, inferring so much more
by being content to use one word, the right one, and the least
expected.’
–Sunday Times
‘My picture of New Zealand was rather dull-millions of sheep
and much monotonously spectacular scenery. But Maurice
Duggan . . . has changed all that. He gives a many-sided
sophisticated picture of a land well aware of intrinsic conflicts
inherited from the past, where myth and actuality collide with
shuddering force.’
–Scotsman
Maurice Duggan was born in Auckland in 1922. He attended the
University of Auckland but did not graduate. He is married with one
child, a son, and works as an advertising executive. He has published
three collections of short stories: Immanue/’s Land (1956) ; Summer
in the Gravel Pit (1965) ; O’Leery’s Orchard and other stories (1970).
Also a book for children: Falter Tom and the Water Boy (1959).
In good preloved condition. Previous owners name crossed out on first page before title page.
Paperback
176 pages
