That's right Dave. I'm surprised you've heard of it, let alone read it, though. They made quite a good movie out of it in the 60's (Aaahhhh, the Sixties......).
He was an Italian journalist who was supposed to come out and work in an Italian magazine's Aust. office but when he got there it had gone bust and he had to get work as a brickies labourer.
He'd learned a formal book English and had to cope with Australian "English" and get used to their rather strange lingo and stranger ways.
It was very funny.
GG
"Heavy Metal or no metal at all!"