Ratana Revisited – An Unfinished Legacy (Reed 2006)
Now rare and out of print. Copies of Ratana the Prophet are available

The thoroughly researched and referenced and widely acclaimed original work Ratana Revisited - an unfinished legacy was published by Reed in July 2006. It's pretty much sold out now but the more mainstream, more affordable version Ratana the Prophet,  January 2009, Penguin is now available directly from the author

Just over two decades ago I embarked on a challenging and rewarding history lesson, researching and compiling the history of the Ratana movement and the life of T.W. Ratana.
 
It was never my intention to write a book. I simply found myself at the right place at the right time and, on asking the right questions and making the right connections, people began sharing the little knowledge they had about this man Ratana and the movement he founded.
 
After reading everything in the public domain, I was given access to material that had been lost or hidden, and eventually a much larger picture emerged that demanded to be put down in print.

This was a fascinating and formative period of New Zealand history. It required some serious study to gain the context, including a need to understand the history of the Treaty of Waitangi and the Maori prophetic and political movement which all seemed to arrive at a conjunction in this man T.W Ratana between the two world wars.

The result was the comprehensive 700 page Ratana Revisited – An Unfinished Legacy (Reed 2006) which ultimately returned to the country, and Ratana’s followers and their families, an important New Zealand story.

Penguin which acquired Reed (Raupo) at the end of 2007 commissioned me to rework Ratana Revisited for a more mainstream audience.  The new title, Ratana the Prophet features a more narrative approach to its predecessor with additional information and new photographs.

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