Welcome to Litsy!

With much thanks to @Centique + @ReadingEnvy for an incredible read which is definitely 5*. The story of 3 maori brothers who as part of the NZ regiment are deeply involved in the harrowing Italian front in ww2 was told from the perspective of yngr br Tu as a narrative of the war and a reflection on their early life for his niece and nephew. Capturing the voice of a soldier it is a wonderful book and I am so glad i could discover this author. 👇

I'd never heard of this book until @Centique and @ReadingEnvy disused it on jenny's podcast recently. I'll finish it tomorrow and review it but i keep reading bits i want to share and this stood out. It is an incredible story which captures the voice of a soldier experiencing horrors which seem alarmingly routine with astonishing skill.

This book really affected me. In many ways it‘s an homage to the Maori Battalion - a battalion in WW2 who fought not just for the reasons we all know about, but also for the “honour of the people” - to gain respect back in their own land. It‘s an insight into the racism here in NZ and into the hearts and culture of Maori. A story of three very different brothers, told simply in the vernacular of the youngest, only 17 and off to war.

I‘m loving this book. It‘s the 1930s; this quote is after Pita (rural born and Maori) and his family have moved into the city.

“Belonging to the club was like an end to starvation, somewhere to go where he didn‘t feel so backward, so ignorant, so up-in-a-tree.”

#getmovin #noexcuses

One of my literary “sins” is never having read a book by Patricia Grace, who is New Zealand‘s foremost Maori female author. #noexcuses any more, just getting on and doing this! (And it‘s great so far 😊)