book repairer Bill Tito

On Sunday two of us visited well-known book repairer and binder Bill Tito in his very attractively situated studio in the Akatawara Valley north of Upper Hutt.   Despite being 70 he is still active in repairing valuable old books that are falling apart, and despite the fact that his fees are far from cheap, he gets plenty of business -- in fact he must be one of the few people who makes a good income from books in NZ now. website

He is a bit of a character and isn't reticent about expressing his opinions, as might be obvious from his "bullshit deflector" business card -- which has a slot enabling you to fit it over your ear. His studio has pictures on the walls of him with like-minded NZ personalities, and on the entrance door there is a poster of a Muslim female with the caption, "If you wear a burqa - F**K OFF".