From There to Here

by Joe Bennett

From Willingdon to Lyttleton, a memoir about love, learning and the journey to thirty

The first 30 years - the informative ones - of one of New Zealand most popular columnists and commentators.

A childhood of fishing, cricket, dogs, games, friends, school, mild molestation, the odd death. The usual stuff. Then the long-haired gloom and vehemence of adolescence, moody, transgressional, writhing with love and sex, the intensity of which eventually receded, but which has continued as a sort of background hiss for the next fifty years.

Joe's famously irreverent prose has been published in more than 20 books. This, his first memoir, confronts and reflects on the journey from childhood to manhood, and his long and fruitless struggle against teaching for a living.

Genres: Memoir, Autobiography, Nonfiction

288 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 3, 2023

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Julian "Joe" Bennett (born 20 April 1957) is a writer and columnist living in Lyttelton, New Zealand.

Born in England, he emigrated to New Zealand when he was twenty-nine. Bennett is a columnist for Christchurch's newspaper The Press and the author of several books.

Reviews

[Keen Reader]

REVIEW OF PAPERBACK EDITION! (NO ONE HAS PUT UP THAT EDITION YET?)

Some of this may be familiar to those who have read most of Bennett’s longer form output. This is an easy, undemanding read which offers up some light entertainment. I thought some of the stories from his time in Sheffield were pretty funny and his years in Canada also threw up their fair share of memorable moments too.

Although lacking the drive and consistency of his better works, this was still good value and after a pretty slow and sluggish start this grew into a rather enjoyable memoir. Bennett is typically candid, confessional and concise and this should please long-term fans.

[Angela]

I was initially impressed with the quality of writing and I would have read it for that alone. However I knew a fair bit of Joe Bennet's life and ouevre [sp?] in NZ and would have read it for that too.
I appreciated the mix of sadness and humour.
Most of all - to recommend the book....... my husband rarely reads a whole book but finished this quite quickly and pronounced it very good. [He also immigrated to NZ from Britain.]

[Lindsay]

This was a book club pick and I wasn’t that keen to read it, but was quickly drawn in. I appreciated the author’s matter-of-fact descriptions of his adolescent failings, the moments he was not proud of. It felt honest.
I was looking forward to reading about his time in Christchurch and as a teacher at Christ College, but the story ended just as he arrived here. Oh well. Still a god read.
Reminded me a lot of On The Road.

[Jon]

Absolutely brilliant, as ever, from this wonderful writer. Like the best stand-up comedians, the humour comes from an acute understanding of the absurdity of everyday life, combined with impeccable timing. But this is Joe’s most honest and serious book as he explores his early life, growing up in England, sometimes painfully but always vividly and with a deep sense of fun. I’m already looking forward to Volume 2 !

[Sally]

Loved the quick quips early on, caught my attention, sucked me in.
Lost attention through his boyhood pranks and nasty selfishness, especially re his mother - not my thing. Moving into his homosexual experiences, I decided- not my thing.

I admired his memory for details, and his ability to make the stories come alive. Good writing👍
Wouldn’t recommend book or Read another of his.

[Jophilps1954]

If you enjoy jo Bennett you’ll really enjoy his own story . Full of humour and a great read . I look forward to his NZ chapter .

[Hungrycaterpillar]

Not Kindle, paperback.

[Jo]

I enjoyed the book. Maybe it lost its way in the middle, a bit.

Joe Bennett has a sparkling sense of humour and a very observant eye.

[Pauline Clifford]

His memoir of his earlier life, fabulous writer, lots of humour