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Tuwhare: real merit brings sales

Arts Reporter

Hone Tuwhare, a speaker at this year's Congress, has enjoyed remarkable sales of his first volume of poems, "No Ordinary Sun."

His Publishers believe it is unique in New Zealand poetry for a book of poems to go to three impressions in so short a time.

The first impression of "No Ordinary Sun," published in November, 1964, and totalling 600 copies, was sold out before Christmas, and a reprint of 600 copies issued in May, 1965, sold lout in three weeks.

The first edition was already on its way to being a collector's piece. It was one of the last works of the famous Auckland typographer Bob Lowry, designed and substantially composed by him before his death.

Mr. Tuwhare is employed as a tradesman on the Rangitaiki River hydro-electric project and is president of the Te Mahoe Local of the New Zealand Workers Union.

A socialist, he is one of several poets (including James K. Baxter land Louis Johnson) to rally to the anti-Vietnam War cause. His recent poem. "The Holy Cities," has been issued by the Auckland Committee on South-East Asia as a broadsheet.

A further reprint, including some new poems in a separate section, of 1000 copies was to have been issued before Christmas, 1965.

However Euan Campbell, of the publishing firm of Blackwood and Janet Paul, told Salient that this last impression was delayed by printing and shipping delays and will now be issued in 1966.

"Publishing poetry is very much a charitable service." Mr. Campbell said. "But in the case of Mr. Tuwhare you can see what the public interest is. We are confident that the new printing of 1000 will sell equally as well."

For comparison he gave printing figures for other books of poetry published by his firm. Five of the editions had been of 400 copies and the fifth of 500 copies. The best seller of these had sold about 80 per cent of the copies after being in print for five years, and none had reached a second impression.

Do the sales of "No Ordinary Sun" represent an increasing public interest in New Zealand poetry? Mr. Campbell does not think there is any great increasing interest in the majority of poets already published New Zealand.

But he does see an increasing emphasis in the schools and universities on New Zealand poetry which he feels will lead to a growing interest in due course. His firm is contemplating a cheap series of school texts on the major New Zealand poets.

Meanwhile Mr. Tuwhare continues to write.