"These letters are in no sense a history-except that they contain the truth. They were written at the time and within close range of the events they describe. Half of the fighting, including the brave attack before Fromelles, is left untouched on, for these pages do not attempt to narrate the full story of the Australian Imperial Force in France. They were written to depict the surroundings in which, and the spirit with which, that history has been made; first in the quiet green Flemish lo...

According to Wikipedia: "Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the mainland of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous other islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.N4 Neighbouring countries include Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. For around 40,000 years before Eu...

Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean (1879-1968), historian and journalist, was born on 18 November 1879 at Bathurst, New South Wales. In 1916-18 Bean was in France to observe every engagement of the A.I.F. Some dispatches were published as Letters from France (London, 1917). The historian's task grew larger in his mind. At first he thought of one volume, but in France he conceived a grander work which would be literally a monument to the men of the A.I.F.—'the only memorial which could be worthy of...

The gripping story of the twentieth century’s greatest struggle in the modest voice of a Canadian teenager in the RAF.In 1940, nineteen-year-old Howard Hewer dreamed of being the next Billy Bishop, of piloting Spitfires or Hurricanes over Europe. His dream was shattered when he was selected instead for a career as a wireless operator in Bomber Command.But he got all the adventure he signed on for. Hewer and his crews of 218 and 148 Squadrons flew important night operations ...

During World War II fighter pilots were, at times, detailed to perform out-of-the-ordinary operations. "Duck Hunting in a Hurricane" was an event that resulted in just such an operation in order to recover the Hurricane and bring back the ducks.

A new life running a high country sheep station in New Zealand. Christine Fernyhough is well known as a leading Auckland philanthropist, having set up Books in Homes and then the Gifted Kids Programme for high achieving children in low decile schools. In 2003 she was a recent widow when she spied an advertisement for the sale of the legendary Castle Hill Station, near Porters Heights in the Canterbury alps. A woman of energy and enterprise, she bought it and so began a ne...

Great Moments in Australian History presents an exciting collection of stories about the most colourful highlights and heroes of Australia's history. Pioneering a fresh approach, award-winning author Jonathan King dramatises events to bring each moment vividly to life.Dodge Aboriginal spears as we land with early Dutch explorers; creep by night into an open boat with convict Mary Bryant as she escapes from Botany Bay; sneak into Matthew Flinders' French prison cell as he n...

'Lyndall Ryan's new account of the extraordinary and dramatic story of the Tasmanian Aborigines is told with passion and eloquence. It is a book that will inform and move anyone with an interest in Australian history.' - Professor Henry Reynolds, University of Tasmania'A powerful and insightful historical account about a unique island and its First peoples, their dispossession and their struggle for survival and cultural birth right/heritage that reaches from the deep past...

In Bligh, the story of the most notorious of all Pacific explorers is told through a new lens as a significant episode in the history of the world, not simply of the West. Award-winning anthropologist Anne Salmond recounts the triumphs and disasters of William Bligh's life and career in a riveting narrative that for the first time portrays the Pacific islanders as key players. From 1777, Salmond charts Bligh's three Pacific voyages – with Captain James Cook in the Resolution, on board the ...

The author of the #1 international bestseller, The Weather Makers, provides a stunning portrait of Australia's cultural capital.Sydney, Australia, is one of the world's most beautiful and fascinating cities, home to over five million people and a popular tourist destination. In The Birth of Sydney, scientist and historian Tim Flannery blends the writings of Australian explorers, settlers, leaders, journalists, and visitors to construct a compellin...

From the shady cover of a tropical tax haven, they hatched a billion dollar plan to raid the treasuries of the world, robbing the poor to give to the rich...A death, missing computer disks, a winebox full of secret files, a tax haven, alleged extortion, arms dealing, corruption, cover-ups and criminal fraud, billion dollar deals, kidnap attempts, espionage, secret military operations, death threats, break-ins, a maverick politician....and an investigative television team's battle t...

This book recounts the organization and deployment of one of the most important fighting armies of World War II.Australian divisions made a large and distinctive contribution to victory both in the deserts of the Middle East and the jungles of the South-West Pacific, earning for the second time a unique reputation for aggressiveness, endurance and independence of spirit.The text is illustrated with original wartime photos from all fronts; and with full colo...