New Zealand Post Group

Blue Smoke by Chris Bourke wins 2011 New Zealand Post Book of the Year

Christopher Finlayson, Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage, tonight awarded music historian Chris Bourke the New Zealand Post Book of the Year, for his work Blue Smoke: The Lost Dawn of New Zealand Popular Music 1918-1964.

The judges selected for the inaugural New Zealand Post Book Awards bring with them a wealth of literary expertise as they set about choosing the country’s best books published in 2009.

This year sees an increase from three to five judges as part of a new, streamlined structure of the country’s premier book awards.