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John Tamihere: Black and White
Reed
Reviewed by Chris Hick (Courtesy of Taranaki Daily News)

I read this book several weeks ago and made a few notes about how to start my review of it. The review, however, kept getting delayed and delayed due to other interesting reads. So, with the sudden and massive media interest in Mr Tamihere's financial dealings I thought it an opportune time to submit a review of his new book, John Tamihere Black and White.

I will begin it with my opening sentence, which was written well before the current furore: This book seems to be a political manifesto on which John Tamihere will advance his career to its undoubted, lofty success. He is clearly a man of his own mind with the strength of character and sense of destiny to attain the high office from whence he can administer his ideas. Oops! Isn't a week a long time in politics?

Having said that, John Tamihere (J.T. to his friends) has always attracted controversy. And in the world of business and politics this is not always a bad thing.

This book, co-written with Helen Bain, follows the standard format for such autobiographies. We get a flavour of Tamihere's early family life in West Auckland. The 11th of the 13 children, his childhood was tough, poor and often witnessed domestic violence. The Tamihere name at school was well-known for all the wrong reasons. John, however, was destined for better things and Tamihere relates the story in an unpretentious, blokish and often humorous way.

His time at the Waipareira Trust is covered in detail, as is the murder conviction of his brother, David. His relationships and children are a thread that runs through the book, as is his tempestuous relationship with traditional iwi. His Hauraki election campaign and election as MP for Hauraki also features large.

The last chapter in the book discusses the foreshore and seabed issue. The two appendices are Tamihere's maiden speech in Parliament (February 10, 2000) and a speech prepared for the Knowledge Wave Forum (February 21, 2003).

As mentioned earlier, the book has the feel of a manifesto – this is who I am, this is what I think, this is what I want to do, this is how I will do it.

From the photo-portrait on the cover and the various photographs in the book the man, undoubtedly has charm. He has powerful friends in influential places. He can appeal as easily to the executive as the beneficiary. He can argue convincingly to pakeha or to Maori. All these things and more, however, will be needed in abundance for John Tamihere to pull through his present predicament. But I think he will.