This commentary refers to three very different books, though with a strong emphasis on history.
- ‘The Keeper of Miracles’ [Phillip Maisel];
- ‘Pride of Place: Exploring the Grimwade Collection’; and,
- Famous Visitors: To A Famous City, by Doug Bradby.
‘The Keeper of Miracles’ The memoir of a Holocaust survivor keeping alive the stories of his generation” by Phillip Maisel, published in 2020, 214 pages. This was a confronting book, but something that it is important, that current and future generations should not be allowed to forget.
Prior to writing this commentary, I posted a selection of quotations from the book, for the interest of my readers, as follows;
Some quotations to reflect upon:.
- ‘My job was to carry bags of cement and rails across to the site where they were building a narrow-gauge railway…The bags weighed twenty kilograms each, and I was already so weak from hunger I could barely lift them. If I were to stumble or fall, I would be shot on sight’.
- ‘More than three-quarters of a century after the Holocaust, the suffering of loved ones haunts me far more than the suffering I personally experienced’.
- ‘To have children is the greatest joy a person can experience in life, and this fact is not lost on any survivor of the Holocaust. Hitler, and the hatred he inspired, tried to murder me and everyone like me. He failed, and when I brought a child into the world, it was the only sensible countermeasure to that kind of hatred. Love……To hold my daughters in my arms the day they were born. To walk them to school on their first day, to walk them down the aisle on their wedding day. These moments are wonderful in the life of any parent, but imagine how precious they are to us survivors. When we were starving, freezing, and being tortured for no reason beyond hatred and prejudice, who could have imagined that life could be so good?’
- ‘But our suffering does not have to be in vain. The world must learn not to succumb to fear and hatred, not to allow cynical propagandists to commit atrocities in the name of belief…….I hope that now, my story will become part of yours. This is my greatest wish: to educate, to give people the tools they need to walk away from hatred.’
The only written response I received to these quotations stated that “It’s a pity the author’s and his countrymen’s self-pity doesn’t extend to their near neighbours”
I was not 100% certain what the writer was getting at, and I didn’t ask – I assume it was a reference to the current State of Israel and that nation’s attitude to it’s Palestinian ‘neighbours’ – that, if the case, I had some agreement with. However the words suggesting self-pity by the author – well I felt that was an offense to all current survivors to suggest they were indulging in self-pity – the aim of the book was to remind the world and future generations of the unthinkable stories of triumph and tragedy, cruelty and hope – to demonstrate the cathartic power of storytelling, and to never underestimate the impact of human kindness balanced against human cruelties. And to compare these survivors of Hitler’s hatred with the leaders of the current Israel nation is completely an unnecessary comparison – none of those leaders were likely even alive during World War II, and they would probably have almost as little true understanding of what happened, as we here on the other side of the world do..
Putting that aside, for or more than 30 years, Phillip Maisel worked selflessly to record the harrowing stories of Holocaust survivors. Volunteering at Melbourne’s Jewish Holocaust Centre, Phillip listened tirelessly to their memories, preserved their voices and proven, and time and time again, revealed just how healing storytelling can be. Each testimony of survival is a miracle in itself – earning Phillip the nickname ‘the Keeper of Miracles’. But, for Phillip, confronting and overcoming trauma is also personal. A Holocaust survivor himself, he, too, has unthinkable stories of triumph and tragedy, cruelty and hope……………………………………
Published as Phillip turns 99, he said ‘This is my responsibility and my privilege: to be custodian of their memories, to be able to pass their stories on to the next generation – for me, this will be the greatest miracle of all”.
From the Epilogue to his book, Maisel writes:
:It is important to remember that when we talk about the Holocaust, it is not only the history of what happened to the Jews. There were millions of victims from other religions, ethnic groups and minorities. It is their history too, all of the victims, as well as the history of the perpetrators and the collaborators. Each of their stories becomes a part of mine” [p. 209]
‘Pride Of Place’: Exploring the Grimwade Collection, edited by Alisa Bunbury: published in 2020: Copy No. 193; 282 pages, my attention initially drawn to the book from a review in the August issue of Australian Book Review. Russell Grimwade was born in 1879, less than fifty years after Europeans first settled in what was to become Victoria. His father was one half of the highly successful chemical and drug company Felton and Grimwade, formed in 1867.
This was another highly interesting ‘Coffee Table’ style book full of early Australian [European] history covering a whole range of genres – I guess like myself [though on a much smaller and cheaper scale] Grimwade was a collector with a broad spectrum of interests. Throughout the book, I continued to go back to my own situation, especially in relation to my own extensive book collection, and my thoughts about how I wanted to preserve that collection, beyond my passing!
Of special interest to me were the sections relating to the early settlement years and beyond of Melbourne and district, and some of the early photos, eg, the 1855 depiction of ‘The City of Melbourne’, a hand-coloured etching and engraving painting [p.129] – created less than twelve months after my Australian ancestors were married in the top end of Bourke Street, shown on the extreme right-hand side of the picture.
I was also interested in the descriptions and comments about the Victorian Black Thursday fires of 6 February, 1851 ‘which burnt perhaps one quarter of the nascent colony of Victoria’ [p.194-195]. The Suttie side of the family were up in the Boort area at the time and had recollections of that time. Meanwhile, the artist, William Strutt [whose work is referred to at various stages in describing the Grimwade Collection] was quoted as recalling those fires – “ The heat had become so terrific early in the day that one felt almost unable to move. At the breakfast table…was melted into oil, and bread…turned to rusk…Everything felt hot to the touch, even the window panes in the shade…The sun looked red all day, almost as blood, and the sky the colour of mahogany. We felt in town that something terrible [with the immense volumes of smoke] must be going on up country and sure enough messenger after messenger came flocking in with tales of distress and horror” [p.194].
The book also includes references and collections relating to Cook’s journals of his three voyages, accounts of early European discoveries, and the exploration and settlement of the Australian continent, and the early years of Victoria’s settlement and development.
In any case, the variety of interests which formed the basis of Grimwade’s collection was best described in an article from the Melbourne University Press, of 1st December 2020. [and also reprinted in The Australian Arts Review of the 4th February, 2021]:
‘The Russell and Mab Grimwade Bequest comprises a rich and sometimes unexpected variety of art, books and objects. A scientist, businessman and philanthropist, Sir Russell had wide-ranging interests embracing industry, history and botany. In all of these he was strongly supported by his wife Mab. The core of the bequest is Russell’s collection of visual and textual material, which provides a perspective on the European exploration of the Pacific and the British colonisation and settlement of Australia. His keen interest resulted in an extensive body of prints, drawings, watercolours and books, as well as oil paintings, decorative arts and personal records. These are jointly housed by the University of Melbourne’s Ian Potter Museum of Art, Special Collections (Library) and University Archives. Pride of Place is the first publication to explore the diversity of this remarkable collection. In this beautifully illustrated book, numerous experts share their interpretations of its highlights, responding to past historical attitudes and offering twenty-first century insights.
From the ‘Australian Book Review’ [ABR], August 2021:, the reviewer notes that “Pride of Place describes in detail a selection of the outstanding collection of Australian books, paintings, photographs, and prints that Russell and Mabel Grimwade donated to the University of Melbourne. The main focus is on Russell, but they were clearly a team with shared interests in Australian native trees and plants and the European history of Australia”.
Most likely, Grimwade’s passion behind the development of his subsequent collection, was partially as a consequence of the fact that his talents and interests were so wide. As noted in the ABR review, ‘He served on numerous educational and cultural committees, travelled widely, and was a skilful amateur photographer. An early conservationist, he campaigned for the preservation of Australian forests. Using native timbers, he was a skilled wood worker and cabinet-maker..” All of these things, and much more, including a strong interest in the botanical exploration of Australia from initial settlement years, are revealed through the descriptions of his collections. The text, which accompanies all of the varied illustrations, describes the various items within the context of their time, and how these can be used by historians and scholars today. And while it was not part of the University collection, Grimwade was responsible for the purchase of, and transfer to Australia of ‘Captain Cook’s Cottage’, now located in the Fitzroy Gardens, in Melbourne. The ABR does query the suspect link between Cook and Victoria – the cottage had belonged to his parents, and there is no evidence that Cook actually lived there? There are various references to Cook’s voyages and findings, in the book, and the ABR suggests that Grimwade’s interest in the cottage had to do with his collecting philosophy, his civic-minded philanthropy, and the general public consensus on what an historical monument was, something that is much contested today’.
As for the Editor, Alisa Bunbury has been Grimwade Collection Curator at the University of Melbourne since 2017. Prior to this she was Curator of Prints and Drawings at the National Gallery of Victoria and the Art Gallery of South Australia for many years. She has researched and curated exhibitions on numerous topics and now specialises in Australian colonial art. She also undertakes independent work and has received fellowships from State Library Victoria and the National Library of Australia.
Another valuable addition to my literary collection.
Famous Visitors : To A Famous City, edited by Doug Bradby, published in 2021, 32 pages. This is another in the small historical series ‘Ten Delightful Tales’, with a new little edition coming out every two months. This little booklet talks about a number of prominent persons who visited the city of Ballarat, in Victoria, from the times it was a gold mining town of muck and mullock [early 1850s] to the modern ‘Garden City’ of grandeur and beauty. An intriguing little publication, although I did note that a couple of the personalities mentioned didn’t ‘actually get to Ballarat’ but they were there ‘by association’ and the intention of a visit was there!!
I thought the following description published in the 25th October edition of the ‘Golden Plains Times’, and written by Edwina Williams, does the best justice in describing this booklet.
‘Famous Visitors to a Famous City looks at the interesting people who historically took a trip to Ballarat in the 19th and 20th centuries, including Charles Kingsford Smith, ‘Wizard’ Stone, Agnes Grace, Sir John Monash, Robert Baden-Powell, Sir Douglas Mawson and Henry Parkes.
Bradby said the latest volume of his series is less analytical, and full of “gorgeous stories” that emphasise the joys of community life, and “mutual backslapping.”
“We said they were terrific, they said Ballarat was terrific, both sides were genuine, and everyone had a lovely day,” he said.
“Travel was risky, expensive and time consuming. If you were a visitor, there was something different about you; money and time.
“Visitors’ journeys were much the same, up Sturt Street, around the lake, to a few mines, and back to Craig’s Royal Hotel for dinner.”
Bradby said the most popular visitor was operatic soprano Dame Nellie Melba, who sang the city’s praises, and was “adored and loved” by the Ballarat people.
“She loved the South Street competitions, which were nationally important. They’d run into trouble financially… so she put on a concert, raising £800.
“She was brilliant with the press, saying ‘a day in Ballarat is the finest tonic in the world’,” Bradby said.
Captain John Bulwer Godfrey and his crew visited Ballarat during the gold rush, after a 77-day on-water journey from London via the ‘great circle route,’ past Antarctica.
The captain described the busy mining hub as an ‘ant heap.’
“He gave Ballarat the greatest possible compliment. He said, ‘this is more exciting than The Great Exhibition of London’,” Bradby said.
Prime Minister Joseph Cook stayed at Craig’s in August of 1917. It was in the hotel dining room on the evening of 2 August that he realised the magnitude of the upcoming First World War, and that Australia’s involvement was unavoidable.
Katie Gold, a stewardess on the Titanic, arrived in Ballarat three months after the liner sank, to be with her uncles.
She was the last woman to be rescued from the ship, finding safety in the final lifeboat, number 11.’
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