Over recent weeks, I have enjoyed the following books, etc, a mix of light and more heavy approaches to literature, which as always, I briefly comment on, and include the occasional professional review from various sources. Material read was:
- Bride of an Anzac: My Life Story’ by Queenie Sunderland;
- The Butterfly Collector, by Tea Cooper;
- My Dream Time by Ash Barty;
- Shelter From the Storm by Penelope Janu;
- The Battle of Long Tan by Peter Fitzsimons;
- The Incredible Life of Hubert Wilkins: Australia’s Greatest Explorer by Peter Fitzsimons; and,
- Quarterly Essay 89: The Wires that Bind: Electrification and Community Renewal by Saul Griffith.
28th January
‘Bride Of An Anzac’: My Life Story by Queenie Sunderland [published in 1996 [272 pages]
I picked this book up in the Studio apartment at Beechworth last week, and decided to start reading it – as a family historian myself, I found the context quite interesting, though was probably happy to get to the end eventually. Having two WW I soldiers in my own family who would marry English girls they met while serving in Europe, there was a touch of familiarity.
From the book cover and various reviews we read – ‘This is the extraordinary story of Queenie Sunderland spanning her life from 1897 to 2000. This account, written in her 100th year, glows with wit, humour and insight that only ten decades of living and a love of learning can deliver. Her amazing memory brings to life in detail the struggles, the hardships, the journeys and the joys of a century of progress through several generations of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her courage, intelligence and humour shine through on every page and her memories touch all of us with a nostalgic empathy for those small and momentous events that happen in families’.
2nd February 2023
‘The Butterfly Collector’ by Tea Cooper [Australian author], published n 2022, 363 pages] – the first of this author’s books, read over 2 days [as a change from the mammoth Family History of the World I’m trying to get through! Very enjoyable light read, which has inspired me to seek out some of her earlier novels – another great Australian writer of historical fiction, in which at the end of the book, she clearly defines the differences between action history, and the fiction she has incorporated into the story. I found it both entertaining and educational. While perhaps bordering on the fringes of a Mills & Boon style romance novel [the early influence on the author to write], I enjoyed this novel – both for the ease of reading and for the historical flavour attached to it Well worth it if looking for a bit of light reading during a quiet period in one’ daily routine!
From the various publicity blurbs:
What connects a botanical illustration of a butterfly with a missing baby and an enigma fifty years in the making? A twisty historical mystery from a bestselling Australian author.
1868 Morpeth Theodora Breckenridge, still in mourning after the loss of her parents and brother at sea, is more interested in working quietly on her art at the family’s country estate than she is finding a husband in Sydney society, even if her elder sister Florence has other ideas. Theodora seeks to emulate prestigious nature illustrators, the Scott sisters, who lived nearby, so she cannot believe her luck when she discovers a butterfly never before sighted in Australia. With the help of Clarrie, her maid, and her beautiful illustrations, she is poised to make a natural science discovery that will put her name on the map. Then Clarrie’s new-born son goes missing and everything changes.
1922 Sydney When would-be correspondent Verity Binks is sent an anonymous parcel containing a spectacular butterfly costume and an invitation to the Sydney Artists Masquerade Ball and on the same day she loses her job at The Arrow, she is both baffled and determined to go. Her late grandfather Sid, an esteemed newspaperman, would expect no less of her. At the ball, she lands a juicy commission to write the history of the Treadwell Foundation – an institution that supports disgraced young women and their babies. But as she begins to dig, her investigation quickly leads her to an increasingly dark and complex mystery, a mystery fifty years in the making. Can she solve it? And will anyone believe her if she does?
And from ‘Goodreads’, another brief synopsis of the book;
1868 and Clarrie and Sid were sweethearts when Clarrie realised she was pregnant. Sid would stand beside her, working everything out so Clarrie wasn’t left destitute. Maud was a midwife and would assist with Clarrie’s birth, then the lay-in period, and when Clarrie found work at the Breckenridge home as an all purpose maid, helping out Theodora as well as working in the house, they were happy. Sid worked at the local newspaper office – “The Morpeth Want” – and visited his newborn son as often as he could. But the day he was snatched, everything changed…
Verity Binks missed her grandpa Sid immensely, though she was grateful for the home he’d left her in Sydney. It was 1922 and Verity worked at a newspaper in the city, cycling everywhere. It was when Verity was commissioned to write a piece about the Treadwell Foundation that history reared its head and Verity’s interest was aroused, especially after she spotted a painting she recognised. She was determined to discover the secrets of the past, secrets which had affected her family as well as others. Returning to Morpeth, meeting a newspaper man there, they joined forces. But would they discover the truth? Plus Verity knew she needed proof…
Tea Cooper writes Australian contemporary and historical fiction. In a past life she was a teacher, a journalist and a farmer. These days she haunts museums and indulges her passion for storytelling.
12 February
My Dream Time’ by Ash Barty, published in 2022, 353 pages – an interesting enough read. She writes simply and with blunt honesty. Enjoyed her recollections of specific matches, sets, points, though probably aided by research and general records. My only ‘dis-quietness’ about the book – though it does run in some degree of chronological order, she jumps around in time a fair bit throughout her biography, which tended to annoy me a little. But then again, for many people and readers, that probably allowed for more enjoyment rather than a straight series of chapters from birth to marriage .
In the words of Ash herself…….: It’s a tennis story. It’s a family story. It’s a teamwork story. It’s the story of how I got to where and who I am today.
I’m only in my mid-twenties, and some might think that’s young to write a memoir. Who does that, right? But for me and my team it’s always been important to reflect on every part of the journey, especially the end. In that context, the timing is perfect to share my story, from the first time I picked up a racquet as a 5-year-old girl in Ipswich to the night I packed up my tennis bag at Melbourne Park after winning the 2022 Australian Open. This book gives me a chance to look back at every moment of the 20 years in between, and to think carefully through the highs and lows, the work and the play, the smiles and the tears.
Telling my story also gives me an opportunity to do more than simply thank those who mean the most to me – it provides a way to honour them as an integral part of that tale, as the very secret behind my success. Some of them you might know – such as my longtime coach, Craig Tyzzer – and some of them you might not – like my first childhood coach, Jim Joyce. There are mates like Casey Dellacqua and Alicia Molik. Mentors such as tennis icon Evonne Goolagong Cawley and mindset coach Ben Crowe. My parents and sisters and my husband have sacrificed as much as I have over the years – this book is also for them.
My Dream Time is about finding the path to being the best I could be, not just as an athlete but as a person, and to consider the way those identities overlap and compete. We all have a professional and a personal self. How do you conquer nerves and anxiety? How do you deal with defeat, or pain? What drives you to succeed – and what happens when you do? The answers tell me so much, about bitter disappointments and also dreams realised – from injuries and obscurity and self-doubt to winning Wimbledon and ranking number 1 in the world.
My story is about the power and joy of doing that thing you love and seeing where it can take you, about the importance of purpose – and perspective – in our lives.
25th February
‘Shelter From The Storm’ by Penelope Janu [published in 2023, 435 pages], the 7th novel by this Australia but only the first I have come across.
Purchased seeking some pleasant relief from a couple of more serious books I’m currently wading through. Another Australian novel, set in Australia, a mix of rural, environmental, and Navy related issues, which I found quite interesting, and a relaxing read.
Book blog: When Patience Cartwright is stranded in her home town, the last thing she expects is a second chance at love… Fiercely independent naval officer, Patience Cartwright has never had a place to call home, but she knows where she doesn’t belong. After an unhappy childhood and a badly broken heart, she’ll never return to the country. But to save her career, Patience is forced to accept a secondment – to an environmental team working near the town where she grew up. There she encounters once more the infuriatingly attractive biologist Hugo Halstead – the very man she’s sworn never to forgive. Given their history, Hugo, as self-assured and honest as Patience is secretive and self-contained, has vowed never to trust her again, but that doesn’t stop him feeling just as helplessly drawn to her complicated mix of courage and fragility as he ever was. As Patience recuperates from a life-threatening illness in the small country town of Horseshoe Hill, she realises the beauty of the landscape and close-knit community promise something very different to the future she’s mapped out. But could the secrets she keeps and the shadows of her past, send her adrift all over again?
As the concluding paragraph in a Review by one Amanda Barrett explains –
‘A fine cast of supporting characters, such as colleagues and family members add to the drama in Shelter from the Storm. The audience will warm to figures such as Hugo’s mum and Patience’s siblings, who are all genuinely great protagonists to meet. Community ties are potent in this novel, drawing the reader in to the very fabric of the local region. With themes of naval pursuits, careers, past secrets, homecoming, illness, personal health, belonging and support, Shelter from the Storm is a book that will secure your heart and mind for the duration that you spend with this delightful read’.
5th March 2023
‘The Battle of Long Tan’ by Peter Fitzsimons, published in 2022, 460 pages – another brilliant piece of writing by Fitzsimons, but a story that left one horrified [again] at the brutality of war, and the senselessness of it all. Of particular personal interest – had my birthday date being drawn out in hose conscription ballots of the early 1960s [essentially for service – or cannon fodder – in Vietnam], well I most likely would not be here to rite this, because somehow I doubt, that knowing my personality and humane view of the world’s people, I could not have survived – even if I’d got as far as Vietnam – not sure if I could have survived the Army discipline imposed on new recruits from the very start! And if I had returned – I somehow feel the psychological affect would have been quite severe!
What was the Battle of Long Tan about? – From ABC Conversations of 8/1/2022 – “Peter FitzSimons has written many books on Australian military history, but pulling out the remarkable stories from the Battle of Long Tan was a long process, despite the fact that many of the participants in this great defining moment are still alive. In August 1966, a company of Australian soldiers found themselves alone and separated in a Vietnamese rubber plantation, trying to survive wave after wave of enemy onslaught. While the Battle of Long Tan became Australia’s deadliest encounter in the Vietnam War, many of the men from Delta Company survived against all odds, with the help from insubordinate helicopter pilots, and dogged comrades on the ground.”
Certainly, a powerful read, quite disturbing, the author hides nothing back, and little is left to the imagination. It was noted that most of those servicemen involved in the battle – well, they didn’t think they would survive, they wanted to, but felt death was inevitable. – and for so many, it is death that came, or terrible wounds and pain. And what was it all for, what did it achieve?
As noted on page 402 – “As North Vietnam kept flooding ever more of their cadres to the South, America and her allies lost the stomach for the fight. Nui Dat was handed over to the South Vietnamese Army by November 1971 and the last Australian infantry battalion left Vietnam the following month. At the time of departure, Australian forces had suffered a total of 423 fatalities during their time in Vietnam, with 2398 wounded. Not surprisingly, the ARVN proved incapable of filling the vacuum left by the Australians and the VC soon ruled unchallenged once more”.
And on page 403: “Even by that time the very premises on which the Vietnam War had been based had been completely discredited, generating great bitterness, which exists to this day, over he USA – and Australia – being there in the first place”.
As always, I like the way in which Fitzsimons rounds up his story – with his findings and examination of where all the main characters in the story ended up. And he doesn’t hold back on the so-called military leaders, who after the war, received most of the medals and honours, in relation to the Long Tan exercise, even though in some cases, sitting back well away from the action, they procrastinated and delayed in the decisions about support for the troops in the heat of the battle. In one particular case, it was argued that the citations given “could be considered as Tantamount to perjury. After all…the idea that [one Brigadier] personally directed the battle is demonstrable nonsense, when during the course of the entire action……he was decorated for personal leadership but he should have faced a military inquiry into why he didn’t assess the intelligence he was getting’ [pages 423-424].
From page 424: “The ugly truth about Long Tan, and in fact the entire Vietnam War over decade, is that senior officers took most of the awards at the expense of soldiers who fought in action. There were 726 awards given out in those ten years, and of those Private soldiers received only 61 awards, of which just 22 were medals. Many more went to major-generals, brigadiers, colonels and lieutenants far from the action. [Just 3% medals for Privates].
Fitzsimons went on to say [on page 426] that the “Americans were faster to honour the men of Delta Company [the Australian force] than the Australian Governments, by about four decades. General Westmoreland was so enamoured by the effort of the ‘Ossies’ that he arranged a Presidential Citation for Delta Company, a rare and deserved honour, bestowed on 18 August, 1968”.
One interesting story – at the August 2016 memorial service and display of a new National Memorial Honour Roll of Vietnam veterans lost in the war, one soldier who came to pay respects to a mate who was killed during the campaign, became incensed that his mate’s name was not on the Honour Roll. When he voiced his complaint, he was told that his friend’s name was not on the Roll, because he as still very much alive He had been repatriated from Vietnam with brain damage, and was living peacefully in a psychiatric hospital in Sydney. I suppose in a way, you could call that a good story, he was regularly visited by his wife and daughter since the War, having only being married 2 weeks before he went to Vietnam, and yes returned, but a different person!!
The following is just one of many reviews about the book – from Farrell’s Bookshop – obviously a promotional exercise – but a useful summary of the contents
From the bestselling author of Kokoda and Gallipoli comes the epic story of Australia’s deadliest Vietnam War battle.
- 4.31 pm: Enemy [on] left flank. Could be serious.
- 5.01 pm: Enemy … penetrating both flanks and to north and south.
- 5.02: Running short of ammo. Require drop through trees.
It was the afternoon of 18 August 1966, hot, humid with grey monsoonal skies. D Company, 6RAR were four kilometres east of their Nui Dat base, on patrol in a rubber plantation not far from the abandoned village of Long Tan. A day after their base had suffered a mortar strike, they were looking for Viet Cong soldiers.
Then – just when they were least expecting – they found them. Under withering fire, some Diggers perished, some were grievously wounded, the rest fought on, as they remained under sustained attack.
For hours these men fought for their lives against the enemy onslaught. The skies opened and the rain fell as ferocious mortar and automatic fire pinned them down. Snipers shot at close quarters from the trees that surrounded them. The Aussie, Kiwi and Yankee artillery batteries knew it was up to them but, outnumbered and running out of ammunition they fired, loaded, fired as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army forces just kept coming. And coming.
Their only hope was if Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) could reach them before they were wiped out. The APCs did their best but low cloud and thunderstorms meant air support was stalled. A daring helicopter resupply mission was suggested but who would want to fly that? The odds against this small force were monumental…
By far the deadliest battle for Australian forces in Vietnam, the Battle of Long Tan has a proud place in the annals of Australian military history – and every ANZAC who fought there could hold his head high.
Peter FitzSimons, Australia’s greatest storyteller, tells the real story of this classic battle. He reveals the horror, the bravery, the wins and the losses that faced our soldiers. He brings to life the personal stories of the men who fought, the events leading up to that memorable battle and the long war that followed, and the political decisions made in the halls of power that sealed their fates. The Battle of Long Tan is an engrossing and powerful history that shows the costs of war never end.
In conclusion – By far the deadliest battle for Australian forces in Vietnam, the Battle of Long Tan has a proud place in the annals of Australian military history – and every ANZAC who fought there could hold his head high. Peter FitzSimons, Australia’s greatest storyteller, tells the real story of this classic battle. He reveals the horror, the bravery, the wins and the losses that faced our soldiers. He brings to life the personal stories of the men who fought, the events leading up to that memorable battle and the long war that followed, and the political decisions made in the halls of power that sealed their fates. The Battle of Long Tan is an engrossing and powerful history that shows the costs of war never end.
31st March 2023
‘The Incredible Life of Hubert Wilkins [Australia’s Greatest Explorer], by Peter Fitzsimons, published in 2021, 549 pages. This was a Christmas present at the end of 2021, and on my brother, Robert Kirk’s recommendation early in 2022, I began to read it then, but subsequently put it aside for other books. After reading ‘The Battle of Long Tan’, I decided to get back to Hubert Wilkins, of whom I knew very little about – as it seems do most Australians. – a man who generally apparently didn’t rate with the more well-known early Australian explorers.
A fabulous read of an amazing man, explorer, scientist [in mind] and adventurer, with a seemingly charmed life., His explorations of the Polar regions for had to comprehend – the isolation, and extreme weather conditions that had to be faced, made at times quite chilling reading [no pun intended]. Afterwards, I found it strange that our school history books about explorers, as far as I can recall, made little if any reference to this man – certainly deserving of much mire attention than history has given him.
From Hachette Australia, the book is described as follows.
The extraordinary, must-read story of the brave, bold Hubert Wilkins – Australia’s most adventurous explorer, naturalist, photographer, war hero, aviator, spy and daredevil – brought to life by Australia’s greatest storyteller.
Sir Hubert Wilkins is one of the most remarkable Australians who ever lived.
The son of pioneer pastoralists in South Australia, Hubert studied engineering before moving on to photography, then sailing for England and a job producing films with the Gaumont Film Co. Brave and bold, he became a polar expeditioner, a brilliant war photographer, a spy in the Soviet Union, a pioneering aviator-navigator, a death-defying submariner – all while being an explorer and chronicler of the planet and its life forms that would do Vasco da Gama and Sir David Attenborough proud. As a WW1 photographer he was twice awarded the Military Cross for bravery under fire, the only Australian photographer in any war to be decorated. He went on expedition with Sir Ernest Shackleton, led a groundbreaking natural history study in Australia and was knighted in 1928 for his aviation exploits, but many more astounding achievements would follow. Wilkins’ quest for knowledge and polar explorations were lifelong passions and his missions to polar regions aboard the submarine Nautilus the stuff of legend.
With masterful storytelling skill, Peter FitzSimons illuminates the life of Hubert Wilkins and his incredible achievements. Thrills and spills, derring-do, new worlds discovered – this is the most unforgettable tale of the most extraordinary life lived by any Australian.
‘Peter FitzSimons has done his level best to return George Hubert Wilkins to the pantheon of the greatest Australians. He has told a story for the nation.’ – Michael McKernan, The Canberra Times
One reviewer [Gary Daly] wrote: ‘History as collated by a committee of specialists and written in the style of a ‘boy’s own adventure’. It’s a rich adventure narrative and how much is this a biographical history? The telling of history and in this case the historical biography of the most incredible and unknown Australian adventurer, Hubert Wilkins. Photographer, soldier photographer WW1, polar explorer, pilot, daredevil and the luckiest man alive. Survives every bomb, every bullet, every plane crash and even in his 50s a survivor of a French Military plane shot down over occupied France in 1940. Stranded and without speaking an inch of French makes an incredible solo journey through German occupied France to safety. Not many recorded details of his work in WW2 in comparison to the massive detail that follows Hubert Wilkins from his naive journey from South Australia to Sydney and ends up a Captain in the Australian Army as Charles Bean’s official war photographer. Unbelievable and seat of your pants adventure double plus journey. Great read but I decided early on to take the well-formed narrative and enjoy it as a factualised/fictionalised reading experience. I’m positive Hubert Wilkins achieved what has been says of him, I just needed to suspend my biographical mindset in order to fully enjoy the boy’s own adventure story written’.
Certainly, one of our own, worth reading and learning about, a man seemingly without fear, sometimes even to the potential detriment of those ‘travelling’ such as the aborted attempt to take a basically unseaworthy submarine underneath the North Pole – a visionary of the future indeed.
2nd April, 2023
Quarterly Essay No. 89 – ‘The Wires That Bind: Electrification and Community Renewal’ by Saul Griffith and the responses to ‘Lone Wolf’ by Katherine Murphy [QE 88].
I found this a very interesting read, if not a little disturbing, with various statistical tables and graphs throughout the Essay……………….. The country is at a crossroads. In The Wires That Bind, inventor, engineer and visionary Saul Griffith reveals the world that awaits us if we make the most of Australia’s energy future.
Griffith paints an inspiring yet practical picture of empowered local communities acting collectively when it comes to renewable energy, and benefiting financially. He considers both equity and security – an end to dependence on foreign oil, for instance. He explores the rejuvenation of regional Australia, as well as the rise of a new populist movement driven by Australian women. And he explodes once and for all the trees v. jobs binary. This is an electrifying essay about building a better world, one community at a time.
“We need a realistic and achievable vision for the future because the future is coming fast. We have only about one-quarter of one century, twenty-five years, one human generation, to get ourselves out of this climate quandary. If we get this right, if we design the incentives and the policies and the regulations correctly, communities will thrive. Every Australian will benefit economically, socially and even health-wise. So let’s hit the road.” Saul Griffith, The Wires That Bind
Occasionally, I find these QE’s sometimes technically difficult to follow completely, this was a pleasant exception – most interesting aspect, the objective [his] of ridding us of gas use completely, and making electricity the principal use of power sources.
There were also some generally supportive response to the previous Quarterly Essay – ‘Lone Wolf’, the essay about Anthony Albanese by Katherine Murphy.[referred to in Coachbuilder Column Volume 13, Issue 1] The principal response – from the other side of politics, by former Liberal MP and Minister, Christopher Pyne.
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