Place We Call Our Home

If you were raised in the 1930s through 50s and, like the author, have fond memories of those times, or if you have entertained thoughts of moving to a rural area to live, or you are just curious to know what it was really like in the good old days, much of the content of this book will strike a chord with you. Thepowerful descriptions of the countryside and the particular beauty with which nature has endowed our shores, Aotearoa, New Zealand, are indicative of the authors empathy with the land. But that by no means sums up the collection. You may feel a tug of the heartstrings on reading poems in praise of friends and friendship. You may crack a smile at humorous vignettes of people and life that remind you of someone you know or knew. The poems touching on history throw an interesting light on aspects of New Zealand life in the early years of the twentieth century. And while you may not agree with the authors mildly skeptical stance when commenting on a range of social and administrative issues, from planning to politics, glamour to grammar,at least you will fi nd it illuminating. He isnt afraid to refl ect on diffi cult topics such as death and war either. That he can do so with some sense of direction is due to his training as a physician and a strong moral sense that is backed by his commitment to the Christian faith, which comes through clearly in several of his poems. The ethos of the poetry is, by and large, refreshingly positive in contrast to the melancholia that seems to inflict much modern writing. The author makes no apologies for basing the poems in New Zealand settings. But in order to assist the understanding of those who may not realize how far New Zealand English has migrated from English English, he has thoughtfully appended a glossary and notes. Just reading through the glossary is an interesting exercise in its own right.