Did I Ever Tell You This?

What a collection of wonderful stories. They are at times a little out of order jumping from the present to the past and back with impunity. This did need some tougher editing but perhaps why it was being written, when it was being written and who was doing the writing, allowed the unedited 'chaos' to be left as is.

The stories are delightfully honest, yet careful with other people's lives, at times outrageously funny and at others you have to close the book and swallow to keep the tears at bay.

Sam sees the whole world and at the same time the little places that matter to us all. He saves his heartfelt anger and great love for New Zealand. He expounds on the dreadful failures of right wing governments but also shares the great successes of people with equal fervour. How wonderful it is to have such a powerful voice for New Zealand artists, writers and poets.

This book is written under the cloud of his cancer diagnosis. We all have that last moment to look towards but sometimes it stands in front of us and commands our attention. But this does not overwhelm his anecdotes and stories of his family. A lot of the time it does feel as if we are in the room, in a comfy chair with a lovely cuppa, listening to him chat away. There is no pretension here, he is overtly humble, his generosity of spirit is evident as is his absolute championing of the disenfranchised, and the hard done by. A lovely read, more so because although he was born in Ireland (made in Italy) it is New Zealand he explores with honesty and care. A wonderful read.

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Diane Warrington