For caravan enthusiasts and aficionados, or even those of us who like a little nostalgia, Vintage and Retro Caravans Downunder is a must read and must keep book. Beginning with a thorough treatise on the authors’ restoration of Daisy Mae, the authors’ own vintage caravan, it profiles some of the rarest and most attractive vintage vans in both New Zealand and Australia from 1928 to 1978. It also provides some insight into the interior décor from these decades as there are caravans by the decades – pre-fifties, 50s, 60s and 70s, with chapters also covering café caravans, and tiny caravans including Teardrops and Replicas.
The authors are well qualified to write this book as they have spent 43 years caravanning and have clocked up more than 20,000 vintage caravan kilometres.
Vintage and Retro Caravans Downunder captures the very essence of the vintage-vanner lifestyle and the caravans they love. This includes tips on how to present a vintage caravan, and how to accessorise with vintage crockery and caravan ware. The chapter headings give a good insight into the playfulness of this book – ‘Too Cute for Words,’ Where’s the Steering Wheel?’ and Kiwi Pixies’ are just a few examples.
The photography in the book is beautiful and detailed, and the cover is very well done. This is a book to treasure!
REVIEWER: Iain McKenzie
TITLE: Vintage and Retro Caravans Downunder
AUTHORS: Don and Marilyn Jessen
PUBLISHER: Imagination Press
RRP: $44.99