Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) is built on an active field of 53 volcanoes and Maurice Gee used this as inspiration for his unique 1979 sci-fi novel, Under the Mountain. Twins Theo and Rachel are visiting family in Auckland and immediately sense something is off. Exploring a crater lake by canoe they smell something strange and encounter the Wilberforces, a peculiar couple who soon become truly menacing presences.

The Wilberforces begin to change their appearance – sometimes they appear as huge slug creatures – and to chase the twins. For protection, Mr Jones, another neighbour, teaches the twins telepathy. They discover a massive network of underground tunnels, and in one huge chamber there is a globe: cold, entirely grey, and muddy. It’s a grim forecast.

This is a book of vivid images, action, and palpable dread. Through symbiosis, the Wilberforces are joining with colossal worms deep under Auckland’s volcanoes, wiring them for total environmental destruction. Mr Jones, an alien, has been trying to stop them for hundreds of years. The unflinching muddying of the world feels akin to the damage we know from industry, mining, and war, and from granting amoral corporations more power than people and place. Under the Mountain ends with an understanding that efforts to save the world were worth it, despite some tragedy and an imperfect outcome. It remains an utterly enthralling tale for readers aged 9+.