Nicholas Reid
Nicholas Reid is a poet, an historian and a book and film reviewer. His writing and commentary have appeared in a range of publications, and for broadcast. He is the author of several non-fiction books, including the ecclesiastical biography, James Michael Liston – A Life (2006). He was the 2004 J. D. Stout Research Fellow at Victoria University, and in 2007 he was a finalist in the Book Reviewer of the Year Award. Many of Reid’s poems have appeared in key journals and magazines.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Reid, Nicholas (1951 –) is a poet, an historian and a book and film reviewer. His writing and commentary have appeared in a range of publications, and for broadcast. He is also the author of several non-fiction books, including ecclesiastical biographies.
Nicholas Reid was born in Howick in Auckland. He attended Sacred Heart College (1962-69), and then gained a BA double major in English and French, from the University of Auckland. It was here that he also gained higher tertiary qualifications in the subjects of English and Theology, and completed a Ph.D. in History in 2003. He worked as a secondary school teacher from 1976-2000, and was a Doctoral student and university tutor between 2001 and 2003. In 2004 he was the J. D. Stout Research Fellow at Victoria University.
He has consistently worked as a film-reviewer for many publications, and has frequently been a book reviewer in leading national publications. In 2007 he was a finalist in the Book Reviewer of the Year Award. Since 2005 he has worked variously as a copy-editor for publishers, a proof-reader, and a ghost writer. He has also held lecturing posts in the History Department at the University of Otago, and one short-term contract lecturing in Church History in the School of Theology at the University of Auckland.
His first book, A Decade of New Zealand Film – From Sleeping Dogs to Came a Hot Friday, was published in 1985. His biographies include James Michael Liston – A Life (2006), and Cardinal – The Life and Work of Reginald John Delargey (2008). In 2000 The Bishop’s Paper was released, and The University of Auckland – The First 125 Years was published in 2008.
Mike Grimshaw in the NZ Listener reviewed Reid’s biography of James Michael Liston. He wrote, ‘We have recently seen many books published with the endorsement of the late Michael King – in effect, the Guildhall endorsement for the general public. Reed’s biography includes such an endorsement, but on this occasion the endorsement is correct. This is a major text, an important text; it’s a fascinating, intelligent and well-written example of religious scholarship at its best.’
Warwick Roger also commented on the book in North & South, ‘Reid writes beautifully… one of the many things I liked about the book is the fact that Reid writes so well and yet manages to get a high fact count on nearly every page. Not every writer can do that. I admired too the fact that he doesn’t shy away from darker matters.’
His other significant publications include Othello – Critical Points in Shakespeare series (1994). He also contributed to Sons and Fathers – New Zealand Men write about their fathers (1997), and Under Review – a Selection from New Zealand Books 1990-1996 (1997).
Nicholas Reid is also a poet, and his poems have appeared in a range of literary publications including Landfall, Poetry New Zealand, NZ Books, and the NZ Listener.
MEDIA LINKS AND CLIPS
•Review of Nicholas Reid’s biography of Liston in the NZ Listener
•Nicholas Reid's profile on the Victoria University Press site
