(1943 – 2026)
Fom Helen Benton (formerly Tandem Press):
Kitty Wishart was a trailblazer in the book trade. Like most industries in the 1970’s, the book trade, both in bookselling and publishing, was dominated by men. Kitty was one of very few women but as a young woman manager (initially pregnant, then as a working mum) of a large university bookshop, she stood out. UBS Auckland was a different enterprise in those days of hard copy text books which had to be imported from all over the world.
She was voted onto the Booksellers Council (now the Board) where she served for a number of years, some as vice-president.
As if all of the above plus Broadsheet Magazine was not enough, Kitty joined Wendy Harrex in founding New Women’s Press in1982 to provide an avenue for New Zealand women’s voices to be heard and published. Her feminism underpinned so much of what she did.
Furthering this theme, in 1988 Kitty was one of a small group of book trade women (including Bridget Williams, Karen Ferns, Helen Benton) who established what was to become the huge and very successful nationwide Listener Women’s Book Festival. The fore-runner of all the literary festivals we have today, it was run by volunteer women in every corner of the country for the whole decade of the nineties. It got women’s writing mainstreamed and without what National Co-ordinator Penny Hansen described as’ Kitty’s fizzing energy for the festival’ it may never have happened.
The book trade was also very sociable and being on Council required attendance at the annual conference. The following anecdote reveals the daredevil side to the young Kitty Wishart. I think it was in 1971 when Kitty’s then boss, Phil Thwaites invited her and Bob Ross to fly with him in his Tiger Moth aeroplane from Auckland to Franz Josef where the conference was being held that year. They had an amazing flight over the Southern Alps and buzzed the conference on arrival before making a dramatic landing. I believe that on
the return trip when they had to land in a cow paddock due to fog, Kitty baled and hitched to the nearest town somewhere in Central Otago.
From Bridget Williams:
I found myself thinking about the Listener Women’s Books Festival, and the women around that table. From activist to centrist, more or less. Which is likely why it worked. But it did need that staunch feminist centre, and along with that, Kitty’s inclusive approach.
It’s hard to capture now the political vigour of UBS Auckland. I was, in equal parts, terrified and admiring of that amazing shop and its people. Created, led, made by Kitty. Oh, and a single mother at the same time. Yes, it was awesome!
From Carolyn Alexander (Unity Books, Auckland)
Around 40 years ago, Kitty Wishart gave me my start in bookselling when she employed me at the Auckland University Bookshop. At the time I was unaware of what a legend in the book trade she was. What I quickly found out was that she was a great mentor, a very loyal employer, and a staunch feminist. She also loved a good party! Kitty was passionate about books, especially New Zealand literature & she was always happy to share her knowledge. Thanks Kitty for introducing me to the best job in the world
From Rosemary Ronald:
Kitty and I were part of the group from Auckland Women’s Liberation to start Broadsheet magazine, together with Sandra Coney, Anne Else and others. We cyclostyled and stapled our Broadsheets together and walked into pubs and halls to sell them.
From the first issue in July 1972 to it’s final publication in 1997, Broadsheet was the longest running magazine of second-wave feminism in the world, apart from MS Magazine.
Broadsheet will continue to be an important resource for women into the future as all issues have just been digitised and launched in the National Library’s Papers Past.
Kitty is pictured below, alongside colleagues John Daly-Peoples (stationery/art books), Gil Hanly (textbooks) and Phil Thwaites (manager).
