Flaxroots Productions
  • Home
  • Non-fiction
  • Fiction
  • Plays
  • Other Works
  • Professional
  • Blog
  • FlaxFlower
  • Review index
  • Contact
  • Archive
  • BMCWC

A different view of our country

3/9/2021

Comments

 
Picture
Crimechurch
by Michael Botur
 

I was not aware of this author before agreeing to review Crimechurch. Apparently he has achieved quite a bit in his 37 years – the preparatory pages of the book work hard, too hard, to convince the reader of his literary credentials. I don’t read them. I don’t want to be told what to think – a book should stand on its own.
    So, straight into the story this novel tells.
    The language and the references are contemporary and set the scene for a section of society that few want to believe exists, in Christchurch or anywhere in this country.
    Crimechurch, as the title suggests, is about the underside, criminal element of Christchurch society. Not limited to one culture, the characters involved are South African,  Chinese/Samoan/Tongan, Maori – varied ethnic groups and mixtures.
     Each of the main characters tells his or her story separately, in first person narration, though all are connected.
     Marty, 15, intelligent, more privileged than some, is aware he has not made a dent in the world and  wants to make the world more aware of him. He’s hungry for something real gritty, something spicy and dangerous. He’s not alone in this.
     Jade has been broken by a harsh and judgemental upbringing that leads him to see himself as an agent of retribution.
     Mona, tells the female counterpart of such young lives. “Court honestly sux – and I’m going to change it. God, if you’re listening: that’s a promise.”
     Chong, a very hard-liner, is on probation in the care of a Mormon agency. “if I have to pretend to be some kinda Jesus freak to get probation off my back, shit, sign me up.” But not before he tests it to the extreme – “I’ll have to let them know: I’m a new breed.”
     Winston, acts the good son to gain credit while rebelling against his parents’ upper-middle class way of life. He want to do something big – bigger than his brother, bigger than his parents, “bigger than this whole tight-arse city.”
     Mama Ta’a, the “absolute gold” corrections worker for young offenders, is praised for reducing crime in the city, though she is unable to reform her own son.
     Selling weed fudge is at the very bottom of the scale of offences these young dissidents commit. Drug-dealing, alcohol abuse and the details of personal and gang-violence are not only hard to read about, but enough to shake the stability of the very city. “We’ve made God mad. We’ve bumped the pillars. The temple is toppling.”
     When the intensity of Christchurch is too much, there are places of escape – Nelson, Thailand, Australia “where Kiwis go to unfuck their lives” – but they are temporary, the city always calls them back. “This city, man. This island. This country. Like an Alcatraz planted out in the middle of the god damn Southern Ocean. There’s nowhere to go.” 
     Reading Crimechurch is challenging because of the subject matter, especially so for women, and the sense of hopelessness it invokes. The vocabulary also confronts, but it is always vibrant. It is fittingly colloquial, though more variation between characters would improve the whole. 
     After the challenges, the last section, Aftermath, is unexpected, though there is an earlier clue that supports the change, and it comes as welcome relief. 
     This reader’s judgement then – the self-promotion at the beginning of the book is not necessary, Michael Botur proves he can certainly write. 
     Where there could be much improvement is in the quality of the publication itself. The publishing standard is a step or two below professional. It could be improved by layout with wider margins and better formatting, stronger proofreading and developmental editing. And putting that promotional content, if it must be included, at the back.
     However, hats off to this author for showing us a different view of our country. I am sure we will see more writing from him.

Review by Kauri Wood
Title: Crimechurch
Author: Michael Botur
Publisher:  Rangitawa Publishing
ISBN: 978-0995116665
RRP: $30
Available: Amazon.com, RangitawaPublishing.com,  NZshortstories.com
Contact: [email protected]
Comments
    Picture

    FlaxFlower Reviews

    Reviews on this page are of New Zealand books – that is, written by Kiwi authors.   
    They are written by independent reviewers not known to the authors.

    Join the posting list
    If you'd like to receive an email when a new book review is posted, please respond via the CONTACT function above.

    If you are a Kiwi author
    and would like your book reviewed send an email via this site and you’ll be sent further details. There is no charge, but you will need to provide one book free to the reviewer.

    If you’d like to be a reviewer
    send an email via this site giving details of your experience/expertise what genres interest you, and the formats you will consider – print, ebook (Kindle, Kobo etc). If possible, include a URL of one of your published reviews.
       Offer only if you take the task seriously and are certain you will deliver the review.
    ​

    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.