This is the story of a pioneering folk hero, 'Arawata Bill' - William James O'Leary. A man who emerged as one of those archetypal New Zealanders who helped to define a distinctive nationality. It is a colourful tale of adventure, discovery and survival in the remotest areas of New Zealand's Southern Alps. In this fully revised biography, Ian Dougherty has separated the man from the myth, with a warmly human portrait of an ordinary man who lived an extraordinary life.

Ian Dougherty is an author and journalist.