This concise A-Z dictionary, now updated in a new expanded edition, is a quick and easy reference to understanding the words and phrases that make the New Zealand language and speech patterns so different. Language expert Max Cryer not only provides helpful definitions for the various entries, but also sheds light on their origins. Slang words feature heavily, while a key feature of the book is the large number of Maori words that have become part of the common language over the years. Popular names of sports teams are also included, while an appendix of New Zealand acronyms completes the book.
Pioneering entertainer in New Zealand television, Max Cryer was also an author of several non-fiction books. Cryer topped the New Zealand non-fiction best-seller list three times (2001, 2002 and 2012). Besides New Zealand, his books have also been published in Australia, United Kingdom, Italy, the United States, Germany and Russia.