Alexander Turnbull - His Life, His Circle, His Collections

Published by the Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, 1974, 324 pages. Some foxing and fading to dustjacket, foxing to page edges, otherwise good secondhand condition

Alexander Turnbull was one of the notable group of New Zealanders born in the colony's first half century. After spending his formative years in England, he returned to his native country and there found the conditions for self-realization. From early childhood he had been a collector. During the period abroad he had already accumulated books and manuscripts. But it was only after he again settled in Wellington at the beginning of 1892 that his purpose crystallized. He decided to form a comprehensive national collection. For the next 25 years he expended time, effort, fortune in creating the library that now bears his name. What lay behind his passionate self-dedication? What methods did he adopt in acquiring the collection? And whence came the resources he poured our with such enlightened prodigality? These are among the questions his biographer has set out to answer in a work that spans two hemispheres and more than two generations. It traces Turnbull's origins to Lowland Scotland, describes the migration and later fortunes of his parents, and in greater detail follows Alexander's career through childhood, youth and manhood. Based on family papers and Turnbull's correspondence with a wide circle of friends, it illuminates not only one life but a whole segment of New Zealand society...