The story of extraordinary Australian, Ross Smith, who rode to war at Gallipoli on horseback and by the end of the war, was one of the most highly awarded fighter pilots. In the smouldering aftermath of the First World War a young Australian pilot and his crew prepare to attempt the inconceivable: a flight, halfway around the globe, from England to Australia. The 18,000 kilometre odyssey will take 28 days and test these men and their twin-engine biplane to the limit. It is a trans-continental feat that will change the world and bring the air age to Australia. It will also prove to be the culminating act in the extraordinary and tragically brief life of its commander, Captain Sir Ross Smith. Raised on a remote sheep station in the dying days of Australia's colonial frontier, there was little in Ross Smith's childhood that suggested a future as one of the world's great pioneering aviators. He went to war in 1914, serving with the light horse at Gallipoli and in the Sinai before volunteering for the fledgling Australian Flying Corps. In a new dimension of warfare, Ross Smith survived two gruelling years of aerial combat over Palestine to emerge as one of the most skilled and highly decorated Australian pilots of the war. In 1919 he was a pilot on the first ever mission to survey an air route from Cairo to the East Indies, before gaining international fame as the winner of the government's ãA¹10,000 prize for leading the first aircrew to fly from England to Australia. His attempt to exceed this by circumnavigating the world by air in 1922 would end in disaster. Drawing on the rich and extensive collection of Ross Smith's private papers, Anzac and Aviator tells, for the first time, the gripping story of a remarkable aviator, the extraordinary times in which he lived and the air race that changed the world.
"Life is not defined by the bad things that happen to us. It certainly isn't for me." Written for her young son so that he would know what had happened to his mother, Cynthia Banham's inspiring family memoir uncovers a true picture of what survival means: "This book tells a story that I tried to write many times before, but couldn't. For a long time, it was too painful to tell. It is also one I hadn't known how to tell. It had to be more than a story about surviving a plane crash, a random event without intrinsic meaning." Unable until now to write her own story, Cynthia found that the lives of her Italian grandfather, Alfredo, and his intriguing older sister, Amelia, resonated with her own. Discovering their sacrifice, joy, fear, and love, from Trieste to Germany and America, and finally to Australia, their stories mirror and illuminate Cynthia's own determination and courage in the face of overwhelming adversity. From a remarkable writer, and told with unflinching honesty and compassion, A Certain Light speaks to the heart of what really matters in life.
"The answer to our success was family." In 1935, the Australian family confectionery company, Darrell Lea, was a sensation. Delicious chocolates, marshmallows, nougat, and much more were displayed colorfully and plentifully in line with the family's motto, "Stack 'em high, watch 'em fly." It was at this time that Montague Lea met the vivacious and confident Valerie Everitt. Although still a young woman, Valerie knew exactly what she wanted from life. Monty fell hard for her and, despite strong family opposition on both sides, they later married. Valerie was keen to have a family and, despite difficult pregnancies, Val gave birth to four children. But these children seemed neither to satisfy her desire for a large family nor her notions of child rearing. In 1947 she adopted the first of three more children who were designated to be playmates for her own. Rocky Road is the story of this chocaholic family and the woman who dominated. Behind the irresistible sweetness of Darrell Lea Chocolates lay a family who made bitter sacrifices to succeed at the candy business.
On the night of 31 May 1942, Sydney was doing what it does best: partying. The theatres, restaurants, dance halls, illegal gambling dens, clubs and brothels offered plenty of choice to roistering sailors, soldiers and airmen on leave in Australia's most glamorous city. The war seemed far away. Newspapers devoted more pages to horse racing than to Hitler. That Sunday night the party came to a shattering halt when three Japanese midget submarines crept into the harbour, past eight electronic indicator loops, past six patrolling Royal Australian Navy ships, and past an anti-submarine net stretched across the inner harbour entrance. Their arrival triggered a night of mayhem, courage, chaos and high farce which left 27 sailors dead and a city bewildered. The war, it seemed, was no longer confined to distant desert and jungle. It was right here at Australia's front door. Written at the pace of a thriller and based on new first person accounts and previously unpublished official documents, A Very Rude Awakening is a ground-breaking and myth-busting look at one of the most extraordinary stories ever told of Australia at war.
A celebration of the healing nature and delights of gardens, written by well-known garden writer Lynda Hallinan, beautifully photographed by Sally Tagg, and packaged in a stunning hardback.
Funny true stories about the everyday dramas that can make or break friendships, cooking, housekeeping and the domestic chaos that always threatens to get the upper hand, written in the tradition of Nora Ephron. 'A glorious account of how the little things of life are, of course, the big things' -Richard Glover 'Every failed domestic goddess will rock with laughter.' Shona Martyn My mother wasn't much of a housekeeper. She wasn't much of a cook either, although she tried. She longed to live a more unconventional life. Admirably high-minded, but it meant I never learnt to fold a towel. In these funny, sometimes poignant, stories, award-winning feature writer Fenella Souter celebrates the highs and lows of domestic life - from her attempts to run the house like a grown-up, to lessons in good cooking; from accidentally killing her wisteria, divorcing the cat and shirt-fronting bossy tradies, to wondering if the 'hostess gift' is still a thing or why some people have impeccable taste. With their distinctive wit, they will leave you smiling with recognition at the everyday dramas and dilemmas that can make or break friendships and marriages, turn a house into a home, or let chaos get the upper hand. 'Chuck out all your self-help guides to gratitude, mindfulness and finding meaning. This book is all you need.' - Charlotte Wood 'Sweet, wise and very funny.' - Danny Katz
Australia's best-loved film critic shares the movies which are his personal favourites of all time, as well as titbits and insights from the leading directors and actors he has met over half a century. Wondering what to watch next? Discover a new movie or a new director among David Stratton's personal favourites! These are the movies Australia's best-loved film critic, David Stratton, has watched again and again. There are dramas, comedies, thrillers, musicals, westerns and arthouse classics from a century of filmmaking. From Casablanca to The Big Sleep, On the Waterfront to Lorenzo's Oil, and Jaws to Animal Kingdom, here are hundreds of hours of great entertainment. Each movie is reviewed, with details and behind-the-scenes stories that will enhance your experience of movies you have seen before. David has met many of the directors and actors, and he includes anecdotes and memories you won't find anywhere else. Keep David Stratton's My Favourite Movies on your coffee table, and you'll find yourself dipping into it time and time again.
At the end of WWI 45,000 Australians had died on the Western Front. Some bodies had been hastily buried mid-battle in massed graves; some were mutilated beyond recognition. In some cases their next of kin had been informed of the death of their loved ones; but in most instances men were listed as 'Missing in Action', because nobody knew for sure. Now that the guns were silent, a loud clamour arose from Australia for information and for the dead to be buried respectfully. But the men put in charge of this exercise and those engaged in 'body divining' were deeply flawed men, many of them with their own personal reasons for preferring to remain in France unearthing bodies rather than being demobilised and sent home. In the end there was a great scandal, with allegations of 'body hoaxing' and gross misappropriation of money and army possessions. There were two highly secretive inquiries. This is the untold story of those dark days and darker deeds. It makes for a compelling narrative by one of our best literary sleuths and story-tellers, Marianne van Velzen.
A thrilling and provocative account of unfolding tensions between China and the West, filled with the people, stories and sticky situations from Bill Birtles' five years as Australian Broadcasting Company correspondent. 'People abroad always thought things were much scarier in China than they really were. What threw me, though, was the urgency of the diplomats in Beijing. They live it, they get it. And they wanted me out.' Bill Birtles was rushed out of China in September 2020, forced to seek refuge in the Australian Embassy in Beijing while diplomats delicately negotiated his departure in an unprecedented standoff with China's government. Five days later he was on a flight back to Sydney, leaving China without any Australian foreign correspondents on the ground for the first time in decades. A journalist's perspective on this rising global power has never been more important, as Australia's relationship with China undergoes an extraordinary change that's seen the detention of a journalist Cheng Lei, Canberra's criticism of Beijing's efforts to crush Hong Kong's freedoms, as well as China's military activity in the South China Sea and its human rights violations targeting the mostly Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang province. Chronicling his five-year stint in China as he criss-crossed the country, Birtles reveals why the historic unraveling of China's relations with the West is perceived very differently inside the country. The Truth About China is a compelling and candid examination of China, one that takes a magnifying glass to recent events, and looks through a telescope at what is yet to come.
Say goodbye to lousy sleep with this six-week, step-by-step program to help you kick insomnia to the curb forever. Bad sleep sucks. Sleep deficiency defies our biology and sabotages our days. Yet more than a third of us struggle to get to sleep or stay asleep at night. We can shake off the odd sleepless night, but when sleep difficulties persist, things start to unravel. Sleep debt takes its toll on our mood, energy, and productivity. It affects our behavior around food and exercise as well as eroding our immunity, even our mental and physical health. As our best efforts to help ourselves fail, or perpetuate the problem, we can feel disillusioned, disempowered and frustratingly stuck. You're not alone, and there is a way through. This six-week, step-by-step guide will help you sleep easy. Bernice Tuffery, fed up after years of compromised sleep, made it her mission to learn how to sleep well again. She'd tried early nights, warm baths, a bit of yoga and meditation, but nothing worked. Even natural supplements, over-the-counter sleep aids, melatonin, and at times sleeping pills, failed to deliver a sustainable solution. As a qualitative market researcher, she was determined to know how to sleep naturally again. She discovered a proven, natural, and very learnable way to improve chronic sleep difficulties. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for insomnia (CBTi) is recognized internationally by sleep experts as the gold-standard treatment for insomnia. But with a lack of awareness, a severe shortage of experts offering it and virtually no public funding for treatment in New Zealand and Australia, it's hard and expensive to access. From her discussions with sleep professionals, extensive research and her lived-experience of restoring her own sleep, Bernice shares her knowledge with humor and heart. Confident that CBTi can be self-taught, she offers this practical and inspiring insiders' guide to getting a good night's sleep.
Funny and poignant stories from the labour ward and from the frontline of campaigns for women's reproductive rights, from Australia's best known obstetrician.
He was a legend of Australian rock, the front man who lived as hard and as wildly as he performed . . . this is his story
Following a lifetime observing Australia and its people, Tom Keneally turns inwards to reflect on what has been important to him. 'When I was born in 1935 I grew up, despite the Depression and World War II, with a primitive sense of being fortunate . . . The utopian strain was very strong . . . if we weren't to be a better society, if we were simply serfs designed to support a system of privilege, what was the bloody point?' Thomas Keneally has been observing, reflecting on and writing about Australia and the human condition for well over fifty years. In this deeply personal, passionately drawn and richly tuned collection he draws on a lifetime of engagement with the great issues of our recent history and his own moments of discovery and understanding. He writes with unbounded joy of being a grandparent, and with intimacy and insight about the prospect of death and the meaning of faith. He is outraged about the treatment of Indigenous Australians and refugees, and argues fiercely against market economics and the cowardice of climate change deniers. And he introduces us to some of the people, both great and small, who have dappled his life. Beautifully written, erudite and at times slyly funny, A Bloody Good Rant is an invitation to share the deep humanity of a truly great Australian. Praise for A Bloody Good Rant: 'Keneally enchants with beautiful prose . . . Moving, funny, angry and explorative, this book is far more than a series of rants, in the sense of mindless shouting. Keneally's breadth of interests, and the energy with which he involves us in them, makes for a volume of great interest. The reader may wish to engage with it more than once.' -Canberra Times 'This book stirs the emotions . . . This book is, at times, deeply personal and will be controversial.' -The Australian 'A Bloody Good Rant charms and beguiles in equal measure. Ranting Keneally is a marvellous creation.' Sydney Morning Herald 'insightful and entertaining . . . Keenly perceptive, wise and witty' -The Chronicle 'The problem with Tom Keneally's latest book is where to stop. After several starts and stops, this reviewer is convinced that the best solution is to ration it out to yourself: at a few chapters a week, it will last two months. And you will need that time to absorb his philosophy. Not because it is dense or presented in convoluted prose, but because he raises so many interesting explanations of current or historical events.' -Tintean
From the bestselling author of Drugs, Guns & Lies, comes Keith's story of what it was really like to be a tactical police officer in the violent and corrupt eighties
The extraordinary true story behind New Zealand's most infamous career criminal and prolific escapee.
A powerful collection of personal essays on displacement, being different and living between two worlds, told with humour and self-reflection.
Confronting, confessional and wildly entertaining, Sunshine lays bare the business of stripping and what goes on in the backrooms of 'gentlemen's clubs'.
This is not a self-help book or a memoir. It's definitely not the Australian Devil Wears Prada.
Generous, erudite, optimistic and candid...Hugh Mackay encourages us to find the best in ourselves and in our society in both good and troubled times.
Passionate and compelling, Greg Sheridan, bestselling author of God is Good For You, examines the role of Christianity in our modern world.
Kate Kelly has always been overshadowed by her famous brother Ned, but the talented young woman was a popular public figure in her own right. This moving biography tells her astonishing story in full for the first time.
He escaped from Singapore's Changi prisoner of war camp to become one of Australia's great World War II guerrilla fighters.
An inspirational personal development book including helpful tips and cute illustrations to aid with anxiety, overthinking and depression.
Long-buried family secrets surface in a compelling new novel from the author of The Teacher's Secret...
One of the most talked-about and widely praised articles of our time becomes the water-cooler book of the #MeToo era.
The highs and lows, joy and heartache of owning a dog are told in this beautifully written story of life in and around a dog park.
An incredible and moving account of one man's journey into the world of lions, why they are fast disappearing and what can be done to save them from extinction and thus save Africa, whose delicate ecosystem depends on these apex predators to keep everything in balance.
Anthony 'Harry' Moffitt spent more than twenty years in the SAS. His decades of service and his multiple tours in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan made him one of the regiment's most experienced and recognised figures.
On January 10, Ben touched the hearts of Australians with the reading of his poem To My Country in response to the Australian bushfires. This gorgeous 4 colour book combines Ben's heartfelt words with stunning illustrations by Bruce Whatley.
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