Orlando Furioso was the focus for the talk delivered by Dr Jack Ross, the first of the scholars to speak at the Don Smith Symposium.
In 2024 Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections gained an important collection with the gift of 183 titles collected by the late Professor Emeritus Donald Ian Brice Smith (Don). The collection of early modern books published before 1801 comprises several hundred volumes. The collection is now housed in archival boxes, each with a label which features Don’s signature, to show the provenance from the library of Professor Smith.
To honour this significant collection Auckland Libraries invited academics from across the country to talk about books in this collection. The event took place on 8 November 2025.
All forty-six plates in this copy of Orlando Furioso can now be accessed on Kura Heritage Collections:
https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/rarebooks/id/14958/rec/1
You can read more in these Heritage et AL blogs:
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/10/discovering-dora-carrington-in-dons.html
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/12/five-hundred-years-of-books-collector.html
And additionally in this blog by Dr Jack Ross
https://mairangibay.blogspot.com/2025/10/auckland-central-library-seminar-81125.html
All content for Ngā Pātaka Kōrero - Auckland Libraries is the property of Auckland Libraries and is served directly from their servers
with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
Orlando Furioso was the focus for the talk delivered by Dr Jack Ross, the first of the scholars to speak at the Don Smith Symposium.
In 2024 Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections gained an important collection with the gift of 183 titles collected by the late Professor Emeritus Donald Ian Brice Smith (Don). The collection of early modern books published before 1801 comprises several hundred volumes. The collection is now housed in archival boxes, each with a label which features Don’s signature, to show the provenance from the library of Professor Smith.
To honour this significant collection Auckland Libraries invited academics from across the country to talk about books in this collection. The event took place on 8 November 2025.
All forty-six plates in this copy of Orlando Furioso can now be accessed on Kura Heritage Collections:
https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/rarebooks/id/14958/rec/1
You can read more in these Heritage et AL blogs:
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/10/discovering-dora-carrington-in-dons.html
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/12/five-hundred-years-of-books-collector.html
And additionally in this blog by Dr Jack Ross
https://mairangibay.blogspot.com/2025/10/auckland-central-library-seminar-81125.html
In this episode of Other Worlds, we explore some of the most iconic works of dystopian and utopian literature and the value of reading these works within the science fiction genre.
Joining Sue Berman to discuss this theme is Other Worlds exhibition curator Renee Orr. We talk about Aldous Huxley's 'Brave New World', Margaret Atwood’s 'The Handmaid's Tale', the utopian vision of Charlotte Perkins Gilman in 'Herland' and the 1970s classic, Marge Piercy’s 'Woman on the Edge of Time'.
Visit the onsite exhibition and join us in a series of events and activations:
www.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/Other-Worlds-exhibition
For recommended reads visit:
www.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/Other-Worlds-reads
Books mentioned in the podcast:
Aldous Huxley, with illustrations by Leonard Rosoman. Brave new world. London: Folio Society, 1971.
Arthur C. Clarke, Childhood’s end. London: Pan Books, 1961.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Herland. New York: Pantheon Books, 1979.
Margaret Atwood. The handmaid’s tale. London: Jonathan Cape, 1986.
Marge Piercy. Woman on the edge of time. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1976.
Music credit: https://www.melodyloops.com/tracks/space-harmony/
Image from Aldous Huxley, with illustrations by Leonard Rosoman. Brave new world. London: Folio Society, 1971.
Produced by Sue Berman and JL.
Ngā Pātaka Kōrero - Auckland Libraries
Orlando Furioso was the focus for the talk delivered by Dr Jack Ross, the first of the scholars to speak at the Don Smith Symposium.
In 2024 Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections gained an important collection with the gift of 183 titles collected by the late Professor Emeritus Donald Ian Brice Smith (Don). The collection of early modern books published before 1801 comprises several hundred volumes. The collection is now housed in archival boxes, each with a label which features Don’s signature, to show the provenance from the library of Professor Smith.
To honour this significant collection Auckland Libraries invited academics from across the country to talk about books in this collection. The event took place on 8 November 2025.
All forty-six plates in this copy of Orlando Furioso can now be accessed on Kura Heritage Collections:
https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/rarebooks/id/14958/rec/1
You can read more in these Heritage et AL blogs:
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/10/discovering-dora-carrington-in-dons.html
https://heritageetal.blogspot.com/2025/12/five-hundred-years-of-books-collector.html
And additionally in this blog by Dr Jack Ross
https://mairangibay.blogspot.com/2025/10/auckland-central-library-seminar-81125.html
