Owen Marshall's first collection of poetry. There's a wide range of subjects here, and the language is strong and bare and laid back, with the odd wry touch and sly humour. The poem he wrote about sneaking condensed milk for a tasty treat - I've done that (and I'm not sorry!), so it made me laugh.

The poems I connected most with were those written about southern New Zealand - I lived there for many years myself and so a lot of it was familiar to me. "God / Don't let me die in Auckland." Quite.