If you like your fiction straightforward and obvious, then this book is not for you. It is a collection of short stories, observations and poetry that is based in mysticism, that alludes to occurrences and that leaves you with impressions rather than facts. It is also fun in places, clever all over and intriguing throughout. I get the feeling that Hulme loves language and loves playing with it.

A few stories stood out:
Getting It
A city council is in session to hear submissions from interested parties regarding a development in a coastal region. The usual suspects object, and also some local spirits- one with demonic "wholly red" eyes and nails, another who is 2.5 metres tall and covered in red hair. Naturally, they hold the audiences attention, but they also have some warnings for those who wish to mess with sacred land.

Sometimes I Dream I am Driving
A story true to its title it describes dreams of driving, but is interlaced with what reads like real memories of car trips, childhood anecdotes and familiar landmarks like the Rakaia Bridge, "all nine-eighths of a mile of it". A short story that holds a lot of history.

Hinekaro Goes on a Picnic and Blows Up Another Obelisk
This made no sense to me at all, and is memorable for that reason. I took my own advice and read it again after a few wines which, unfortunately, did not help. Parts of this story read like a newspaper and a science fiction novel have had all their words cut out, and been mixed up in an air forced Lotto ball mixing machine and then thrown onto a page to be recorded where they fell. Kooky- maybe it was written under the influence of peyote, who knows.

Some Foods You Should Try Not To Encounter
A section whereby various foods are ascribed characteristics and personalities which make you laugh. The "Extremely Pickled Onion" made me laugh the most, and the "Quiet Blue Chilli" ("this one is not a skite"- like all those bright red ones) came a close second.

A strong love of the land comes through the stories and there is a dystopian bent to some of them. I found myself a tad bewildered nearing the end of the collection, perhaps more a case of consuming too much at once than of the material. But overall I loved the places these words took me. ( )