Statue inside the National War MemorialLast week saw the launch of Pukeahu: an Exploratory Anthology, an online collection of writing and photography exploring Pukeahu/Mt Cook from historical, cultural, geographic and imaginative perspectives. Collated and published by staff and students of Massey University, it explores a part of Wellington that’s seen more than its share of anguish, conflict and grandeur.

It features work from Katherine Mansfield, Bill Manhire, Witi Ihimaera, Laurence Aberhart, Alison Wong, Hinemoana Baker, and many other names both familiar and new. It even includes an excerpt from my Notional Significance series, from where the State Highway slices across the flank of this much-damaged hill. Tales of dislocation mingle with musings on domesticity; terrifying stuffed moreporks mix with visions of buried streams; tram crashes and hate crimes give way to dawn blessings and bells of peace.