Hocken Digital Collections

Finlayson, Roderick David : Literary papers

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CreatorFindlayson, Roderick David, 1904-1992DescriptionThe collection includes manuscripts of various works, some of which have not been published. Among them are novels, short stories, poems, stories for children, and non-fiction writing (including an autobiography). There are copies of some of his published works, and correspondence with publishers and other miscellaneous papers relating to his writing. The collection also includes paintings, prints and drawings by Finlayson and other artists. There is a series of political correspondence, including numerous letters to the editor and correspondence with politicians. Other correspondence includes letters from various New Zealand writers and friends from around the world, including Australian poet Bruce Beaver, academic of Caribbean literature Frank Birbalsingh, and Greek artist Lydia Sarris. There are newspaper clippings relating to his writing and to Maori and political issues, and a series of miscellaneous items. The collection also includes a large number of photographs. Unfortunately, many of these are not identified. They include photographs of friends at Pukehina, his uncle's farm at Glenbrook, and the Pacific Islands, all of which later featured in his writing.
Only a small part of this collection is digitised and available through Digital Collections. Information about other items can be found on the Hākena catalogue, through the Library Catalogues link above.History / BiographyRoderick Finlayson was born in Auckland in 1904 of Scottish and Irish heritage. He lived all his life in the Auckland district. In his youth he spent some holidays on the Glenbrook farm of his uncle, Arthur Wilson, and in the rural Maori community at Pukehina. He later spent some time in Rarotonga. These experiences, along with memories of his Ponsonby childhood, provided rich material for his writing. Finlayson married Ruth Taylor in 1936, and they had six children. On first leaving school he earned his living as an architectural draughtsman, and he later worked as a farm labourer and printing-room assistant to eke out the money he earned from his writing. His greatest success was with short stories, but he also wrote poetry and novels. Many of his early stories were about Maori life, and he later wrote a series of School Bulletins for the Department of Education on Maori life and history. Amongst Finlayson's many literary friends was the poet D'Arcy Cresswell - he wrote a critical biography of Cresswell for an American publisher in 1972. His other non-fiction writing included numerous articles for Catholic newspapers (he converted to Catholicism in 1949), and a 1940 pamphlet 'Our life in this land', a statement of his sense of the loss created by humanity's increasing distance from nature. Finlayson retained a great interest in politics throughout his life, and participated in many protest movements, notably those opposed to the Springbok rugby tour and apartheid in South Africa. Finlayson was also an artist, producing drawings, paintings and prints. He died at Weymouth, where he had lived for many years, in 1992.

Roderick Finlayson

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SubjectsPoetsAuthorsWritersNovelists

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Finlayson, Roderick David : Literary papers

Hocken Collections | Te Uare Taoka o Hākena