Eleven Bats: A Story of Combat, Cricket and the SAS by Anthony 'Harry' Moffitt

$34.99 AUD

Category: Military

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.   Alongside the SAS, Harry's other lifetime love is cricket. An improvised game of cr icket was often the circuit-breaker Harry and his team needed after the tension of operations. He began a tradition of organising matches wherever he was sent, whether it was in the mountains of East Timor with a fugitive rebel leader, or on the dusty streets of Baghdad, or in exposed Forward Operating Bases in the hills of Afghanistan. Soldiers, locals and even visiting politicians played in these spontaneous yet often bridge-building games. As part of the tradition, Harry also started to take a cricket bat with him on operational tours, eleven of them in total. They'd often go outside the wire with him and end up signed by those he met or fought alongside. These eleven bats form the basis for Harry's extraordinary memoir. It's a book about combat, and what it takes to serve in one of the world's most elite formations. It's a book about the toll that war takes on soldiers and their loved ones. And it's a book about the healing power of cricket, and how a game can break down borders in even the most desperate of circumstances.     ...Show more

The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell

$35.00 AUD

Category: Military

A riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war, from the international bestselling author of Talking to Strangers and host of the award-winning podcast Revisionist History Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists had a different view. This "Bomber Mafia" asked- What if precision bombing could, just by taking out critical choke points - industrial or transportation hubs - cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal? In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell delves deep into questions of how technology and best intentions collide in the heat of war.   ...Show more

Breaker Morant by Peter FitzSimons

$44.99 AUD

$49.99 (10% off)

Category: Military

The epic story of the Boer War and Harry 'Breaker' Morant: drover, horseman, bush poet - murderer or hero? Most Australians have heard of the Boer War of 1899 to 1902 and of Harry 'Breaker' Morant, a figure who rivals Ned Kelly as an archetypal Australian folk hero. Born in England and emigrating to Qu eensland in 1883 in his early twenties, Morant was a charming but reckless man who established a reputation as a rider, polo player and writer. He submitted ballads to The Bulletin that were published under the name 'The Breaker' and counted Banjo Paterson as a friend. When appeals were made for horsemen to serve in the war in South Africa, Morant joined up, first with the South Australian Mounted Rifles and then with a South African irregular unit, the Bushveldt Carbineers. In September 1901 Morant and two other Australians, Lieutenants Peter Handcock and George Witton, were arrested for the murder of Boer prisoners. Morant and Handcock were court-martialled and executed in February 1902 as the Boer War was in its closing stages, but the debate over their convictions continues to this day. Does Breaker Morant deserve his iconic status? Who was Harry Morant? What events and passions led him to a conflict that was essentially an Imperial war, played out on a distant continent under a foreign flag? Was he a scapegoat for British war crimes or a criminal himself? With his trademark brilliant command of story, Peter FitzSimons unravels the many myths and fictions that surround the life of Harry Morant. The truths FitzSimons uncovers about 'The Breaker' and the part he played in the Boer War are astonishing - and, in the hands of this master storyteller, make compelling reading.           ...Show more

Mont St Quentin: A Soldier's Battle by Bill Billett

$9.99 AUD

Category: Military

This is the story of the third significant Australian victory (after Viller-Brettoneux and Hamel)fought over 31 August to 5 September 1918. Mont St Quentin and Peronne, were both keys to German defence of the Somme River. The village of St Quentin was taken, held against counterattack, and the Australia n forces then advanced on Pronne, which was cleared street by street and house by house. This book gives a detailed account of the planning and execution of the battle, the sometimes horrific human experience of the battle, and the courage that led to eight members of the First AIF being awarded the Victoria Cross. ...Show more

Derrick VC: in His Own Words - Australia's Most Famous Fighting Soldier of World War II by Mark Johnston

$39.99 AUD

Category: Military

Tom 'Diver' Derrick VC DCM was Australia's most famous fighting soldier of World War II. Derrick fought in five campaigns, won the highest medals for bravery, and died of wounds sustained while leading his men in the war's last stages. His career reached its climax on the jungle-clad heights of Sattelbe rg in New Guinea, where he won the Victoria Cross by spearheading the capture of seemingly impregnable Japanese defences. The diaries Derrick kept throughout his campaigns, from Tobruk to Tarakan, are among the most important writings by any Australian soldier. Those diaries and all his other known wartime correspondence and interviews are published here for the first time in their entirety. 'Diver' had only a rudimentary education, but his intelligence, humour, ambition and fighting outlook shine through his words. Edited and annotated by Mark Johnston, one of Australia's leading authorities on World War II, this book provides unprecedented insights into the mind and the remarkable career of one of Australia's most decorated and renowned servicemen. ...Show more

Submarine Six: Australian Naval Heroes by Tom Lewis

$9.99 AUD

Category: Military | Series: MORTAL INSTRUMENTS

Any Australian asked to mention our war heroes could probably name General Monash and Albert Jacka VC from World War I, and then Weary Dunlop, and perhaps Field Marshal Blamey from WWII. A knowledgeable few might be able to suggest Australia's greatest fighting air ace, Clive Caldwell. But who could nam e our naval heroes? Naval conflicts take place often far from our shores. Ships and men sometimes disappear, to leave only mystery in their wake. In the 1990s the Royal Australian Navy broke with tradition, and for the first time named six submarines after six naval heroes. This book shows the true depths of their achievements. These were men whose warrior exploits stand alongside those of any from other nations. But they have been largely unrecognised, save for those submarines. Captain Hec Waller, for example, fought to the end in HMAS Perth, alongside fellow cruiser USS Houston. The Houston's Captain Rooks was deservedly awarded the Congressional Medal of Honour, America's highest honour. Captain Waller, by comparison, was given distinction, but not of the highest rank. Should he have been given the Victoria Cross? Other heroes stand alongside him. Emile Dechaineux, hero of Dunkirk and the North Sea, battling it out against Japanese kamikaze attack. John Collins, taking HMAS Sydney to victory against Italian cruisers. Hal Farncomb - the first Australian to command an aircraft carrier, in action off the French coast. But The Submarine Six also examines whether two more of its men deserve further honour. Teddy Sheean, tenacious gunner from Tasmania, fought to the end in HMAS Armidale. Robert Rankin commanded HMAS Yarra against fearful odds, dying in defence of his convoy, attacked by overwhelming Japanese forces. Are they also VC candidates? Three of the men are from Tasmania, the island state which in WWII contributed more seamen per head of the population than any other state. All of the six are men of determination, bravery, and incredible resolve. Worth analysis, worth following, and worthy of greater recognition - Australian heroes all. The Submarine Six brings forward six naval warriors to stand alongside any other military achiever. ...Show more

Failures of Command: The death of Private Robert Poate by Hugh Poate

$34.99 AUD

Category: Military

On 29 August 2012 Private Robert Poate, Lance Corporal Rick Milosevic and Sapper James Martin were killed during an insider, or green on blue, attack in Afghanistan. Their killer was supposed to be their ally but was a Taliban sleeper in the ranks of the Afghan National Army. Information provided to the families by rank-and-file soldiers after the event shocked them. When the heavily redacted internal investigation report was received the grieving families knew that it excluded a plethora of incriminating facts.This powerful book is the result of a father's quest to find out all the facts associated with the death of his son. His search reveals a labyrinth of excuses, denials, half-truths, cover-ups, contrived secrecy, incompetence, negligence, orders not followed, and lessons not learnt from the previous twelve years of war in Afghanistan. The determination of Hugh Poate and the other two families to uncover the truth would lead to a civilian Coronial Inquest into combat deaths, the first in the 120-year history of the Australian Army. Compelling and enraging, this story of the true facts surrounding the devastating loss of three soldiers continues to reverberate beyond their families to the highest levels of Defence and government.'A heartrending account of the experiences of three families devastated first by avoidable tragedy, then by inexplicable interference in their search of answers, accountability and closure. Hugh Poate has ensured that the deaths of three Australian war heroes will not have been in vain. A must read for any young Australian contemplating military service.' — Joel Fitzgibbon ...Show more

Barbarossa: How Hitler Lost the War by Jonathan Dimbleby

$35.00 AUD

Category: Military

Barbarossa, Hitler's invasion of Russia in June 1941, was the largest military operation in history, its aim nothing less than 'a war of extermination' to annihilate Soviet communism, liquidate the Jews and create lebensraum for the so-called German master race. But it led to the destruction of the Thir d Reich, and was entirely cataclysmic; in six months of warfare no less than six million were killed, wounded or registered as missing in action, and soldiers on both sides committed heinous crimes behind the lines on a scale without parallel in the history of warfare. In Barbarossa, drawing on hitherto unseen archival material - including previously untranslated Russian sources - in his usual gripping style, Jonathan Dimbleby recounts not only the story of the military campaign, but the politics and diplomacy behind this epic clash of global titans. With authority and panache, he charts the crucial decisions made in the world's capitals and the bitter struggles on the front lines, giving vivid insights into the experiences of all players, from the leaders on all sides to the men and women on the ground. Above all, Dimbleby reveals the significance of 1941 - the year in which the Soviet Union destroyed Hitler's chance of realising his demented vision - as the most important struggle in the annals of the twentieth century. The definitive book on Barbarossa, this is a masterwork for the ages. ...Show more

Rails Across Australia: A Journey Through the Continent by David Cable

$75.00 AUD

Category: Military

Rails Across Australia is an album of photographs taken by David Cable, a well-regarded British author of several albums of train pictures throughout the world. The photos were taken initially during the period between 1967 and 1973 when David lived in Adelaide, and then during several visits around the Commonwealth during the twenty-first century. The photos cover a wide variety of trains in the mainland states, from Queensland to the Pilbara region of Western Australia, and include pictures showing trains in the landscapes, as well as close-up photos of locomotives for the modelling enthusiasts. The well-known problems of different gauges originally established in the various states are illustrated by the individual classes designed for them, in addition to the newest designs for the standard gauge tracks now linking them. ...Show more

Easy Day Was Yesterday: Life, The SAS and 24 Days in Jail by Paul Jordan

$29.99 AUD

Category: Military

My SAS selection course instructor, was as hard as nails. At the start of each day’s training, he would say, ‘Men, the easy day was yesterday.’ With that, we’d all let out a silent sigh contemplating the tortures that lay ahead of us. From his cage in a putrid, ov ercrowded Indian gaol, Paul Jordan reflects on a life lived on the edge and curses the miscalculation that robbed him of his freedom. His childhood, marred by the loss of his father and brother, produce a young man hell bent on being the best of the best - an ambition he achieves by being selected to join the elite SAS. He survives the gut-wrenching training regime, deployment to the jungles of Asia and the horrors of genocide in Rwanda before leaving the army to embark on a career as a security adviser. His new life sees him pursuing criminals and gun-toting bandits in Papua New Guinea and the Solomons, protecting CNN newsmen as the US 7th Cavalry storms into Baghdad with the outbreak of the Iraq War, and facing death on a massive scale as he accompanies reporters into the devastated Indonesian town of Banda Aceh, flattened by the Boxing Day tsunami. During his 24 days in an Indian gaol, Paul Jordan discovers that friendship and human dignity somehow survive the filth and deprivation. This is a personal account of a tough, hardened fighter who suddenly finds himself totally dependent on others for his every need. The Easy Day was Yesterday is fast paced, brutally honest and raw, but laced with dark humour. The core of Paul Jordan’s eventful life, however, is the strength of his bonds with family and friends and the ability of the human spirit to survive even the direst adversity. ...Show more

Red Lead: The Legendary Australian Ship's Cat Who Survived the Sinking of HMAS Perth and the Thai-Burma Railway by Roland Perry

$29.99 AUD

Category: Military

The legendary Australian ship's cat who survived the sinking of HMAS Perth and the Thai-Burma Railway. Just after midnight on the 1st March 1942, Australia's most celebrated cruiser, HMAS Perth, was sunk by Japanese naval forces in the Sunda Strait off the coast of Java. Of the 681 men aboard, 328 survi ved the sinking and made it to shore - and one cat. Her name was Red Lead, and she was the ship's cat, beloved by the crew and by HMAS Perth's legendary captain Hec Waller. But surviving shell fire, torpedoes and the fierce currents of the Sunda Strait was only the start of the terrible trials Red Lead and the surviving crew were to face over the next three and a half years. From Java to Changi and then on the Thai-Burma Railway, Red Lead was to act as a companion, mascot and occasional hunter of food for a small group of sailors who made it their mission to keep her alive in some of the most hellish prison camps on earth.Red Lead's extraordinary story is one of courage, loyalty and love amidst battle, imprisonment and death, brought vividly to life by bestselling author Roland Perry.           ...Show more

Teddy Sheean VC - A Selfless Act of Valour by Doctor Tom Lewis

$29.99 AUD

Category: Military

No-one will ever know what made him do it. In 1942, 18-year-old Edward "Teddy" Sheean was one of the youngest and most inexperienced sailors on board the the corvette HMAS Armidale. Whilst on operation in the Timor Sea this warship came under heavy attack by Japanese aircraft. Armidale began sinking wh ile swarmed by Japanese aircraft, strafing and bombing the stricken vessel and the crew who were desperately trying to Abandon Ship. The wounded Ordinary Seaman turned back to his gun, an Oerlikon 20mm anti-aircraft cannon and strapped himself into the harness. He began firing at the attacking Japanese aircraft, a courageous young man, determined to do his best to save his mates. This selfless act of valour helped save the lives of 49 crew, before Teddy himself went down with the Armidale. No member of the Royal Australian Navy has ever been awarded a Victoria Cross. Teddy's family and many others took up his case and fought for his recognition. It took more than 70 years for Teddy to becomes the first in Australia's Naval history to receive this highest award ¬- confirming Teddy Sheean is an Australian hero. Sheean is the 101st VC awarded to an Australian ...Show more