Ian Middleton (1928 - October 24 2007) was a New Zealand novelist who made a made a particular mark [1] with his books set in post-Second World War Japan. Born in New Plymouth, he was the brother of noted New Zealand short story writer O. E. Middleton. Blind, he said this gave him a "special perspective but 'without limitation'", and has been attributed to the "strong metaphoric colour, sensual - often erotic - quality and lush verbal richness of his writing".[2] A full list of his publications can be seen at the University of Auckland's NZ Literature file [3]and more biographical information is at the New Zealand Book Council's website.[4]
Main works:
- Pet Shop (Waiura: A. Taylor, 1979)
- Faces of Hachiko (Auckland: Inca Print, 1984)
- (Auckland: Benton Press, 1986)
- Mr Ponsonby (Auckland: Lyndon, 1989)
- Reiko (Wellington: Moana Press, 1990)
- Harvest (Okato: Puniho Art Press, 1995)
- I See a Voice (Auckland: Flamingo, 1997)
The 'Japanese trilogy' - Faces of Hachiko, Sunflower and Reiko - describes a personal and complex portrayal of post-war Japan. Pet Shop, a novel on his early upbringing in small-town New Zealand, wartime Auckland and his experiences on a Norwegian tanker, was described by New Zealand writer Kevin Ireland as "an absorbing picture of the repressions that passed for a moral code"[5].
References
- ^ http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/middletonian.html|Book Council entry, Middletonian
- ^ The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature, edited by Roger Robinson and Nelson Wattie (Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998)| Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature
- ^ University of Auckland file
- ^ | Book Council entry, Middletonian
- ^ The Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature, edited by Roger Robinson and Nelson Wattie (Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998)
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Middleton, Ian |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Author |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1928 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | New Plymouth, New Zealand |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 24 2007 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Auckland, New Zealand |
