In the wake of 2019’s Christchurch mosque attacks, Professor Emeritus of History at Massey University Michael Belgrave took to his desk to write a short and responsive history of inclusion and exclusion in his country.

What emerged instead was a 600-page book spanning 800 years, from the first Polynesian settlement to the 2023 election, and marking the first major national history of Aotearoa New Zealand to be published in 20 years.

He joins Ross Calman (Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāi Tahu) to discuss his Ockham NZ Book Awards longlisted landmark work, and reflect on what the narratives of the past can tell us about our country’s present, and future.