2037NZ
Carl Hoffmann
2037nz
96 pages
NZ$17.95 incl. postage
US$22.95 incl. postage overseas
Natural catastrophes and imminent civil war early in the 21st Century destroyed New Zealand to the point where its only hope of survival lay in annexation by the USA.
A billionaire saved her country by donating all her wealth to the nation, by founding a political party and by introducing drastic, innovative changes which included dispossession of all landowners, a generous immigration policy, a basic income for all, making all work voluntary, a fair justice system and freedom of choice in education.
Her ideas worked and within a few years New Zealand became prosperous, with no ethnic or racial problems.
Radio Vienna sent one of its reporters, Nora Zandler to investigate the New Zealand experience and discover any cracks in paradise.
Her great-grandfather had emigrated to New Zealand in 1938, and her mother had visited him in 1990. Their accounts allowed her comparisons between then and now, and Nora began to see the country’s history as paradise, paradise lost and paradise regained.
Funny, totally serious, philosophy too good to be true, drawing on thoughts from Genesis, Marx, Maori beliefs and Steiner, this 90-pager romps through a fantasy. For all its quirkiness this is a genuinely serious, thought-provoking gem. Are things too good – is Nirvana possible?
Hawkes Bay Today
In 2037NZ Carl Hoffmann uses a well-worn literary device (what will society be like following an upcoming disaster?) to expand a personal philosophy... valid points about our present society are aired.
Otago Daily Times
All thinking New Zealanders, who, by definition, must be worried about the present state of their country, should read this deceptively simple book. It poses, in a Socratic way, the questions which surely must be fermenting somewhere in the minds of all normally intelligent people.
Colin Rawle
For those who enjoy a thinking “What if...?” a book about New Zealand society in 2037 is an alluring prospect. In this light tale, the reader is taken along with a reporter from Radio Vienna sent to discover the secret to New Zealand’s emergence as a paradise of Earth. At the beginning of the 21st Century a billionaire donated her fortune to the country and introduced dramatic changes including making all work voluntary and the dispossession of all landowners.
Christchurch Press
Excerpt...
I felt tired and in need of a break. Tomorrow I would head off to the South Island for some sightseeing, before sampling life in Christchurch, the garden city. For now, all I could rely on were a couple of transplanted corneas and a seemingly one-track mind for feedback. “What do you think of Professor Brauer,” I asked. “Can I trust him?”
My virtual friend looked longingly at my bed and suspiciously at the cardboard box under it., before answering. “That tosser looks as mad as a meat-axe. I’d spit the dummy and sleep on it if I were you!”
“Max, you’re supposed to be my helpmate. Have you seen nothing of interest this trip?”
“I’m rapt with that ripper All Black outfit you bought me in Hamilton,” he said, running a hand through the number one haircut undertaken shortly thereafter. “I feel really up with the play in that. And the jandals and the tatts! Bloody oath, it would be crash hot if you could see yourself clear and get me a Swannie for the cooler evenings. That would be choice. I’l see you right if you do.”
“Sounds like bribery and corruption. Things don’t work that way in the new world,” I told him. “Have you not learnt anything?”
*You’re away with the fairies,” he replied. “Make it worthwhile or I’ll give you heaps. Old chrome dome is obviously a basket-case, and you’re raving about hanging out with him. I mean is this really a happening thing, Nora? Gross! You want the oil? The guy’s a loser! Pull your head in, woman!”
It was like travelling with a spoilt child. The following day I sent him back to Linda by standard delivery. She could do what she liked with him.
