Po stopách Čechů na Novém Zélandu ...za dlouhým bílým oblakem – Nekola Martin (2021)

The author Martin Nekola is a historian who has dedicated many years to researching expatriate communities abroad. In his latest book, he focuses on the little-explored but fascinating topic of Czechs in New Zealand. At various times and for different reasons, Czechs have ventured to the other side of the world to find a new home. Adventurers at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, Jews fleeing from Hitler, exiles after the communist coup in February 1948, and after the occupation of Czechoslovakia in August 1968. The book transports readers to the most famous New Zealand village of Puhoi, founded by immigrants from Plzeň, introduces interesting personalities who have made their mark in a wide range of fields in the land of the long white cloud, and highlights artists who have significantly influenced New Zealand culture and society. Notable mentions include painter Bohumír Lindauer, architects Heinrich Kulka, Max Rosenfeld, and Vladimír Čačala, founder of the Wellington Opera Bedřich Turnovský, artistic potter Miroslav Smíšek, and many others. The book also recalls the Baťa workers, restaurateurs, and entrepreneurs, Czech expatriate associations and publications, the state visit of Václav Havel in the spring of 1995, and of course, it does not overlook the current perspective among the Czech community in New Zealand. It contains hundreds of unique and…