Few New Zealand biographies are so rich in social and personal detail. Written with the vivid touches of a novelist, The Father and his Gift completes the story of Sir John Logan Campbell, venerated in old age as the Father of Auckland, and presents a compelling portrait of Auckland. The final volume of Logan Campbell's life story traces his struggles not only to keep his businesses afloat but to preserve intact the One Tree Hill estate which he had determined to leave to the public of New Zealand. The number and intimacy of the papers left by Campbell have enabled Professor Stone to bring his subject to life in a portrait of a Victorian colonist unrivalled in its scope and depth.