Experience the rich tapestry of life in Canterbury with Eric Beardsley's *Sliding Down the Hypotenuse*. This brand new memoir, biography, and history book offers an engaging journey through eight decades of New Zealand's cultural and political landscape. Measuring at a convenient 152 x 228 mm and containing 224 pages, this book is perfect for readers who cherish authentic storytelling.

Beardsley, a veteran journalist and broadcaster, shares captivating tales from his colorful childhood in Aranui during the Jazz Age and the Great Depression. His memorable accounts of schooldays, including the hard realities of the Sugarbag Years, resonate deeply with those interested in New Zealand's history. As a night messenger, reporter, and later an information officer for the University of Canterbury, Beardsley's insights illuminate the evolution of both journalism and academia in New Zealand.

Rich in humor and observation, *Sliding Down the Hypotenuse* not only captures Beardsley’s life but also reflects the essence of a province and its university. Ideal for history buffs, memoir enthusiasts, and anyone keen on understanding the socio-political dynamics of Canterbury, this book is a delightful must-read.

Delivered from our Auckland location, this product is in stock in NZ, ensuring fast shipping with no unexpected import charges, custom duties, or tax. We happily combine shipping to make your experience even smoother. Dive into this extraordinary narrative today!

CONDITION: Brand New
Dimensions: 152 x 228 mm
Pages: 224

Author: Eric Beardsley Publisher: Canterbury University Press
Publication Date: 01-07-2011

In the 80 years since veteran journalist and broadcaster Eric Beardsley arrived in Christchurch from the West Coast, he has lived a full and varied life and devoted much time to observing the Canterbury scene, its people, politics, conflicts and progress. The result is Sliding Down the Hypotenuse, an eclectic and wholly delightful mix of memoir, biography and history. Beardsley gives a breezy account of a satisfyingly free-range childhood spent in the wasteland of sandhills and scrub that was Aranui in the Jazz Age of the 1920s and the miserable Great Depression days of the 1930s. His is a story of distant and different schooldays when strap and cane ruled, where the Sugarbag Years dominated the lives of the workless poor, and of a career as night messenger, reporter, sub-editor and leader writer at the Press - work that did not always sit comfortably with his more radical outlook on life. As information officer for the University of Canterbury, he slipped readily into academic life for nearly a quarter of a century and used his journalistic skills to tell the university's story both to itself and to the city and province as it expanded into the spacious new Ilam campus, and began to turn from being a teaching to a learning institution intent on research. Superbly written and rich in humour and piquant, punchy observation, Sliding Down the Hypotenuse will bring lasting pleasure in its vivid portrait of a life well lived, of a province and its university, and of New Zealand over the last eight decades.

We are happy to combine shipping. Smartfox is a NZ owned business located in Auckland. This product is in stock in NZ which means no unexpected import charges, custom duty or tax.