Media releases relating to Bleak City
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For immediate release: 31 August 2016
Media Contact: Jeremy Taylor
Email: jeremy@bleak.city
Phone: 022 186 1521
Book website: https://bleak.city
Bleak City
After a Natural Disaster Comes the Manmade Tragedy
Just in time for the sixth anniversary of the September 2010 Christchurch earthquake, a new novel tells the story of a family living through the Canterbury earthquake sequence. Bleak City follows the life of a young woman, Alice Moorhouse, as she and her family cope with life from the time of the quakes to the present day. It asks the question ‘who do you want to be, when life is unjust and unfair?’ Although titled Bleak City, it does not see a bleak future for Christchurch, but it does acknowledge that post-quake life is a struggle for many people.
The ongoing problems being experienced by the people of Christchurch inspired Marisa Taylor to tell this story of loss, frustration, anger and disappointment balanced with the tale of a family that draws closer together as events unfold. Although it tells the story of the Christchurch earthquakes, people are at the heart of Bleak City, because it’s people who matter, not buildings, not bottom lines.
This is the tagline and blurb for Bleak City:
AFTER A NATURAL DISASTER COMES THE MANMADE TRAGEDY
Alice Moorhouse is beginning to find her way as a young woman when her life is disrupted by a series of earthquakes. As she and her family deal with the physical and emotional toll of living in a broken city, their recovery is confounded by greedy insurers determined to protect their profits, bumbling bureaucrats unable to coordinate their efforts and uncaring politicians determined to spin the recovery for their own ends. How does Alice build a life in a devastated city and discover who she really is?
Author Bio
Marisa Taylor was born in Dunedin and lived there and in Wellington before moving to the United States as a six-year-old. She returned in 1986, and has lived in Christchurch for the whole of her adult life. She began writing Bleak City as a way of making sense of all the stories she was seeing and hearing around her as the city tried to recover from the 2010/2011 earthquakes. She hopes she has captured some of what it is like to live through a natural disaster in the modern world and to experience the problems created by man’s inhumanity to man.
Availability
Publisher: Taylfin Publishing. ISBN: 978-0-473-36341-3
Available from independent book stores for $34.95 incl GST: Christchurch: Scorpio Books, Smiths Bookshop, Piccadilly Books; Wellington: Unity Books; Auckland: Matakana Village Books, Poppies Remuera; New Plymouth: Poppies New Plymouth. Other book stores will stock on request.
Also available at XCHC Exchange Christchurch (376 Wilsons Road) and St Martins New World.
Available online at https://bleak.city/purchase in paperback and as an eBook.
Read an excerpt at https://bleak.city/excerpt
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 28 July 2016
Media Contact: Jeremy Taylor
Email: jeremy@bleak.city
Phone: 022 186 1521
Book website: https://bleak.city
Just in time for the sixth anniversary of the September 2010 Christchurch earthquake, a new novel takes a critical look at the actions and inactions of insurers and community leaders on the people of Christchurch.
Bleak City is a social commentary by Marisa Taylor, following the life of a young woman through the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquake sequence. It asks the question: ‘who do you want to be, when life is unjust and unfair?’ Though titled Bleak City, it does not see a bleak future for Christchurch, but it does recognise that post-quake life for many people is a struggle.
The ongoing problems being experienced by the people of Christchurch, while politicians and business people spin a tale of success, inspired Marisa Taylor to tell this story of loss, frustration, anger and disappointment as felt by many in the city. Telling the story has been a cathartic experience, helping her to process her own feelings about what has happened to the city.
This is the tagline and blurb for Bleak City:
AFTER A NATURAL DISASTER COMES THE MANMADE TRAGEDY
Alice Moorhouse is beginning to find her way as a young woman when her life is disrupted by a series of earthquakes. As she and her family deal with the physical and emotional toll of living in a broken city, their recovery is confounded by greedy insurers determined to protect their profits, bumbling bureaucrats unable to coordinate their efforts and uncaring politicians determined to spin the recovery for their own ends. How does Alice build a life in a devastated city and discover who she really is?
Bleak City will be launched on 26th August 2016. The public book launch is being held in conjunction with other creatives, in an event entitled From the Ground Up. From the Ground Up is a collaborative event with song, literature, and visual arts. The event will be at XCHC, 376 Wilsons Road, Christchurch, starting at 5:00 pm. From the Ground Up also opens the Cityscapes exhibition by Liam Dangerfield. Liam’s artwork Cashel Street features on the cover of Bleak City. From the Ground Up includes a performance by Lisa Tui, who wrote songs inspired by some of Liam Dangerfield’s earlier works of Christchurch.
Details of the XCHC event From the Ground Up can be found at:
http://xchc.co.nz/events-database/fromthegroundup
Bleak City is being independently published by Taylfin Publishing.
Bleak City will be available as an eBook for Kindle and on paperback from Amazon.com. It will also be available locally through select retailers, at a RRP of NZ$34.95.
For more information on Bleak City, visit the website https://bleak.city