Butcher in braille
By MATT BOWEN - Central Leader
FOR ALL TO SEE: Peter Leitch is “stoked” to see the life and times of the Mad Butcher reach a blind audience.
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Blind readers will soon have access to the Mad Butcherâs life story.
The Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind will soon record audio versions of What A Ride, Mate! and produce braille books to lend out to its members.
The Mad Butcher, Peter Leitch, isn’t sure how it came about.
"I honestly don’t know mate. But it’s a great accolade for the book mate, because they certainly can’t do every book that’s done.
"They obviously choose a select few."
The Bucklands Beach resident sees that fact as a "magnificent" accolade for writer Phil Gifford and himself.
"I’m absolutely stoked mate."
One of the things he’s noticed since the book’s launch last year is that everywhere he goes people say what a great read it is.
And that’s not ego talking either, he says. "It’s facts of life.
"I had a lady ring me yesterday, she said she’d got the book and it was just a beautiful story.
"The fact that blind people are now going to be able to share that is heartwarming for me," he says.
"There’ll be no extra commission for me. It’s a real plus – not only for the blind people but for myself."
At the foundation library, collections and access manager Marianne Kraack says the book is in high demand.
Its inclusion in public libraries and bookstores also helped sway the book selection committee, she says.
"Worldwide less than 5 percent of what’s in print is available in accessible formats like braille or audio even though the right to read is a fundamental human right."
The foundation records 120 books a year and turns a further 20 into braille for recreational use.
Foundation members will be able to access What A Ride, Mate! from March.
The Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind serves people who are blind or visually impaired and is not-for-profit.
It survives primarily off public donations.
