1
of
1
Unearthing
A Story of Tangled Love and Family Secrets
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 1,023 ratings, 207 reviews)
Brief Description
A STYLIST BEST NON-FICTION PICK 'A lucid and compelling memoir of family rupture and repair' Sue Stuart-Smith, author of The Well Gardened Mind 'Gorgeous and generous . . . a mind-altering journey that challenges biological determination' Naomi Klein, Esquire Three months after Kyo Maclear's father dies,...
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2999
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Unearthing
$2999
Unit price
/
Unavailable
A gripping and emotionally eloquent memoir about a family secret revealed by a DNA test, the lessons learned in its aftermath, and the transformative possibilities of growing plants
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
A STYLIST BEST NON-FICTION PICK
'A lucid and compelling memoir of family rupture and repair' Sue Stuart-Smith, author of The Well Gardened Mind
'Gorgeous and generous . . . a mind-altering journey that challenges biological determination' Naomi Klein, Esquire
Three months after Kyo Maclear's father dies, a DNA test reveals that they were not biologically related. All at once, Kyo's silver-haired mother becomes a mystery to her; she holds the story of a secret buried for half a century, but her memories are fading, and words are failing them both.
Maclear does not speak Japanese and so to unearth the past, she must turn to her mother's second fluent tongue: gardening. Unearthing is a memoir written in the wild green language of soil, seed, leaf and mulch. With exquisite illustrations by the author, this is a tribute to the ineradicable love between a mother and daughter.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781911590972
Publisher: Pushkin Press
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 13 February 2025
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: ONE
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 250g
Pages: 416
About the Author
Kyo Maclear is an award-winning novelist, essayist, and children's author. Her books have been translated into eighteen languages and published in over twenty-five countries. She is the author of the hybrid memoir Birds Art Life (2017), winner of the Trillium Book Award. Kyo holds a doctorate in environmental humanities and is on faculty at the University of Guelph Creative Writing MFA.
Also by Kyo Maclear
View all-
Noodles on a Bicycle
A vibrant historical picture book about Tokyo's bicycle food deliverers, or demae, who balanced towering trays of steaming hot noodles on their shoulders while navigating crowded city streets. A Caldecott Honor Book. A Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book. A BookPage, Kirkus Reviews, and Horn Book Best Book of the Year. When the deliverymen set off in the morning, the children wait...Hardback$5100Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks -
There's a Ghost in the Garden
A gentle, probing picture book from award-winning author Kyo Maclear and celebrated illustrator Katty Maurey about the special relationship between a grandfather and his grandson, and the many traces, memories, and even ghosts with which we live Thereβs a ghost in Grandpaβs garden. It leaves tracks by the path where there was once a cool dark stream. It makes mischief...Hardback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Unearthing
Three months after Kyo Maclear's father dies in December 2018, she gets the result of a DNA test showing that she and the father who raised her are not biologically related. Suddenly, Maclear becomes a detective in her own life, desperately seeking answers from her ailing mother, whose memories and English are failing. Maclear no longer speaks Japanese, her mother's...Hardback$4100Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
The Fog
Warble is a small yellow warbler who lives on the beautiful island of Icyland, where he pursues his hobby of human watching. But one day, a deep fog rolls in and obscures his view. The rest of the birds don't seem to notice. The more the fog is ignored, the more it spreads. When a Red-hooded Spectacled Female (Juvenile) appears,...Hardback$5100Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks -
Pre-orderA Door Is to Open
Welcome through the doorway of this picture book... about doors! From a Caldecott Honor author and a New York Times Best Illustrated artist comes a celebration of entrances and exits, thresholds and portalsβall the endless possibilities they can lead to and all those who have opened them! Some doors may give you a nervous, fizzy feeling... and also make you...Hardback$3600Unit price /UnavailableOut 4 Aug 2026Pre-order
More from Biography & Memoir
View all-
This Angry Pen of Mine
This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...Hardback$7299Elsewhere:$8999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseFamesick
Chronicling the tumultuous decade between the premiere of Girls to her 2021 shotgunΒ wedding (minus the baby, because she has no uterus), Lena Dunham takes us through herΒ journey with her trademark mix of humor, unsparing honesty, and keen eye for detail. We peek behind the scenes - of her work, her family, her relationships, and her battle to reclaim her body...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseDogs, Boys and Other Things I've Cried About
From the social media superstar behind @SimonSits, Isabel Klee--known for her heartwarming tales of dog rescue--comes an utterly winning memoir about a twentysomething woman's search for true love in New York City and the dogs who helped her find it. A Jersey girl by birth, Isabel Klee had always wanted to live in New York City. At age 20, she...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Stakes
Read our interview with author Noelle McCarthy! A darkly funny, sparkling follow-up to the authorβs bestselling memoirΒ Grand. You have to invite him in. You have to want the vampireβs badness in the house with you. Growing up in Catholic Ireland, Noelle McCarthy is captivated by Bram StokerβsΒ Dracula. The vampire is a risk-free fantasy, a suave alternative to the fraught realities...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseBuilt for This
Raised among strong women, butcher's benches, and hard ideas about what men are meant to be, Brad Poulter grows up knowing he's different long before he has the words for it. But in late '90s small-town New Zealand, 'different' isn't discussed, it's managed. Joining the Royal New Zealand Navy offers escape, certainty, and belonging. The rules are clear, the uniform...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Even the Good Girls Will Cry
Thanks to a thrown beer bottle and a fan letter to a P.O. box, Melissa Auf der Maur's first band scored an opening slot for the Smashing Pumpkins in her bohemian home town, Montreal. Sensing Melissa's talent, Billy Corgan recommended her to Courtney Love. Whisked from her local scene, Melissa joined Hole just after the deaths of Kurt Cobain and...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseAn Ocean and a Day
An utterly riveting, moving and poignant memoir of grief and loss that will speak to anyone who's ever lost someone they love. An Ocean and a Day is Hannah Richell's personal account of losing her husband, Matt, in a surfing accident on Tamarama beach in 2014. It is the story of the grief journey she travelled over the first two...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseA Place to Stand
A Place to Stand by Clare Ward is a profound memoir that delves into the life of a country doctor living and working in the Hokianga Harbour area in the far north of Aotearoa New Zealand. This region is sparsely populated and poses numerous health challenges. This thoughtful account details Clareβs thirty-year career, highlighting the people she works with and...Hardback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Rule of Lies
Written with all the pace and energy of a John Grisham novel β¦ An incredible true story and a great read! BILL BROWDER, author of Red Notice and Freezing Order An American lawyerβs brilliant, propulsive story of witnessing and playing a part in the transformation of Russia under Yeltsin and Putin. A true tale of fascinating personalities, criminal intrigue, harrowing...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips late August -
New ReleaseRory
TheΒ New York TimesΒ bestseller The #1Β Irish TimesΒ bestseller The definitive biography of Rory McIlroy, the most important, popular and confounding player of the post-Tiger era. Rory McIlroy contains multitudes. The child of a working-class family from a small town in a war-torn homeland now commutes to work in his own private jet and counts billionaires as confidants. He can overwhelm a golf...Paperback$3699Elsewhere:$4199Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseTe Kaikaukau | The Swimmer
Novelist, memoirist and playwright Witi Ihimaera β author of Pounamu, Pounamu and The Whale Rider β decided, at the age of eighty, to dive back into the water and spend a year full-time at Te WΔnanga Takiura, immersing himself in his own language, in te reo MΔori. This book tells the story of this kaikaukau, this swimmer, and his year...Paperback$3500Elsewhere:$4500Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThis Is Me: A Reckoning
This is a searingly honest and moving memoir from double Golden Globe-nominatedactress Hayden Panettiere. Hayden Panettiere has been in front of the camera since before she could talk. She roseto stardom typecasted as Hollywood's blonde girl next door. As a young celebrity,naysayers were certain she would crash and burn. Not one to disappoint, she did.Hayden Panettiere's irreverent memoir satisfies our...Paperback$3200Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
