Anderton biographer to speak
Kā piti to get glimpse of former Deputy PM’s ‘hell of a ride’
The man who wrote an authoritative biography on politician Jim Anderton is Friends of Kāpiti Libraries next guest speaker. “For Anderton: His Life and Times, David Grant had to work through 46 boxes from Archives New Zealand,” said Friends spokesman Anthony Dreaver.
“Each box contained at least a dozen manila folders packed with correspondence, press releases, clippings, Hansard excerpts, emails, speeches and so on, including material that was critical of Anderton.
“Grant notes that only a couple of Prime Ministers have more substantial archives,” Dreaver said. “It took him months to sift through it.”
Dreaver said Anderton was a dynamic Labour Party president who split the party over Rogernomics.
“But did he leave them or did they leave him?
“[Anderton] led three alternative parties — New Labour, Alliance and Progressive — yet [his] electorate was loyal for 27 years.
He was “an advocate for social justice who founded Kiwibank; who loved cricket and movies, yet whose personal life was tragic.”
Anderton inspired many voters yet alienated many of his followers, and condemned his party yet became Deputy Prime Minister in its Government, Dreaver said.
“The contradictions in Jim Anderton’s career were many.”
Dreaver said Grant had a record of writing on subjects who tackled life head-on. “He first became known as a writer on conscientious objectors, including Archibald Baxter in World War I and the Christian Pacifist Society. Previous biographies were of Norman Kirk and of unionist Ken
Douglas, described by critics as ‘very, very fine biography’ and vivid social history’.”
A reviewer for the Anderton book wrote: “From chequered childhood to deputy Prime Minister, it was a hell of a ride, and it makes for a hell of a book.”