One of the most talked about New Zealand books at the moment is Ghost Dance, the autobiography by famed choreographer Douglas Wright.

Although he retired from dance two years ago, Wright, 47, has remained in the public eye. Leanne Pooley's acclaimed documentary about him, Haunting Douglas, was shown on TV1 just under a year ago. (It aired at prime time on a Saturday night, a rare slot for an arts documentary.)

Mike Houlahan, writing for the Press Association, finds Ghost Dance intriguing:

Like one of Wright's works, Ghost Dance rushes from one side of the stage to the other. Within its highly poetic writing Wright develops a highly compelling narrative, one which despite being "autobiography" often sees its central character resting in the wings.

Wright’s book is not for sensitive souls, though:

… Ghost Dance sees Wright open, honest, and as exposed to public scrutiny as during any dance performance. He doesn't shy away from graphic details of his past, and admits he hasn't thought much about what people's reaction to the book might be.

In the Herald, Bernadette Rae adds to the praise:

Anyone familiar with Wright's choreographic style will recognise him through his writing, highly visual, brilliant and evocative, articulating in words now, instead of flying bodies, his exploration of difficult concepts and worlds just beyond our usual vision.

The Herald has also run an interview with Wright by Michele Hewitson:

… this is the first sentence: "It was after a decade of living with a disease once thought fatal that I began to suspect that somehow, somewhere along the way, without noticing it, I had already died."

Good, isn't it? So good that a mate of mine, who is a very good writer, picked up Wright's book at the pub, read that first sentence and flung it down in disgust. He muttered a charitable something about how annoying it is that some people are so good at everything.

We predict that this book will dance its way into the 2004 bestseller charts.