— Tasmania 4 Degrees

Issue 91 of Tasmania 40°South is big on books. Clarissa Horwood’s About Books column offers, as usual, sage words about written words. Our New Books section, in which we show you what the book publishing side of the Forty South business has been up to, takes up four pages, reflecting a prolonged growth spurt. It’s a busy business, and growing.

Perhaps most exciting, however, is one book from Forty South released late November 2018. It is “Tasmanian Towns: A Journey through Time” I’ve never used this space to advertise Forty South books – I’d lose readers quickly if I did – but I am so excited about this one that I can’t resist sharing it with you.

Small towns can be special, and especially in Tasmania. Think of Strahan, Queenstown, Stanley, Richmond, Evandale … you see what I mean. The idea for a book on some of these towns (we chose 12 in the end) was born almost two years ago, but with the idea came the realisation that we needed a special writer to tell the stories of these towns, and a special photographer to show you what sometimes not even words can describe.

The first people we approached, Bert Spinks and Pen Tayler, said yes, at which we did a little dance and popped a large cork. Almost two years later, Bert and Pen, along with a third virtuoso artist, graphic designer Kent Whitmore, have delivered a finished product which will add enormously to the Tasmanian narrative.

I will leave you with some words by Bert Spinks, from the Introduction to the book: “I believe that our towns will be all the more interesting for the deep-map perspective we will try to offer, especially because – as I keep insisting – Tasmania is truly one of the most interesting places on Earth.”