In Whacker McCracker's Caf we first met the utterly original ex-Auckland businessman who escaped his five predatory ex-wives by moving to Waiheke Island to open a simple little caf and start a new life. Whacker's hilarious first year on the island created colourful mayhem - but that was nothing compared to what happens when his eccentric aunt moves to Waiheke from Gore and buys a new vineyard. For her piggery. then things really warm up. there's the enormous statue of Jesus with pigs that appears on the Waiheke skyline for a start, battles with bureaucracy, a rampant elephant marauding on the beach at midnight and an evil plan to turn the vineyard into a sewage plant . . . as Whacker, Wally, Mal and Big Bets drive Sergeant Jack stark raving bonkers. With his wildly creative imagination firing on all cylinders, Whacker finds and exploits some unique market gaps, poking lighthearted fun at the more pretentious end of the wine market. With loads of belly laughs and slapstick non pc fun, Whacker McCracker's Vineyard is ideal summer reading, to accompany the simultaneous re-issue of Whacker McCracker's Caf. For Whacker devotees, visit Whacker's Island on