John Foley has released his new book The Staff of Life, Country Recollections.
It is the latest edition in a series of social history books by Mr Foley that capture early rural and farming life in South Canterbury and more particularly, in Waimate.
Mr Foley said his new book was an extension of what he had previously written about.
"It looks at the meat, wool and agriculture industry, particularly potatoes, as well as the social environment of the time which was so different and interesting. The men and women that participated were extraordinarily hard workers, loyal, and proud of what they did.
"I thought it extraordinarily valuable that in the years to come these small records would give an understanding and provide a little tribute to those people.
"Societies were supported by generations of families, and so along the way there was time and work to turn up personalities, personalities that were colourful and enhanced the environment of the times."
He said it was important information such as that included in the book was preserved.
"It seems as the generations move on, some pay attention to what happened before and others have been very casual. The current generation are extremely ill-informed of the systems and the environment of their previous generation.
"We forget so easily and that leads to quite little tribute being given to the men and women that gave us the parks, reserves and the good political systems that we operate on now.
"I’ve been able to have the time to put down a perspective, my perspective of the social environment and a little bit of the history of those previous generations.
"Things have changed remarkably. Young people virtually can’t understand how the previous generation lived."
He very much enjoyed pulling a lot of different records and accounts together.
"Most of the information is anecdotal, bolstered by records that have been kept by the generations and checked for accuracy.
"There’s no element of being pushed to do the books because I like doing it. It’s the type of stories I find enjoyable and I would hope that other people get a little bit of fun out of reading these aspects of earlier times."
His own upbringing was what inspired him to write, he said.
"These things arise because of family and because of teachers. Our family were active socially and they faithfully kept everything that was written down, even extending to jokes.
"My father recorded and I owe a debt to the manner in which he kept records and participated in the community and to my mother for her wit.
"We’re products of doing what our parents did and the people before them. I am very pleased to be able to carry it on because it’s a little tribute to them and to the times."
Although in his 80s, Mr Foley said there were still a few stories he wished to tell.
"I’m a twin, so I would like to cover childhood stories and especially the element of growing up because looking back, it was quite extraordinary."
Mr Foley’s books can be ordered by emailing johnandsusanfoley@gmail.com
