The Holy And The Broken
$36.99
THE HOLY AND THE BROKENWhen dehumanisation and destruction become the norm, the cycle must be broken.For over twenty years, Ittay Flescher has worked as an educator, journalist and peacebuilder in Melbourne and Jerusalem. When he woke up on the morning of October 7, 2023 to the sounds of rocket sirens over Jerusalem and later saw the devastation of Gaza in response, the grief and sadness that engulfed him - and so many others - compelled him to ask: how can we find a way forward?Following years spent facilitating dialogue between Jews, Muslims and Christians, Ittay believes that peace can only be found if we are willing to empathize with the pain of others.<em>The Holy and the Broken</em> challenges Palestinian and Israeli leaders, citizens and their supporters across the world to imagine a different reality; to look at history with a different eye; and to search for moments of engagement rather than resentment in the narratives of the past that each side tells about itself.Ultimately, it is a story that aims to comfort the troubled and trouble the comfortable.<strong>Praise:</strong>'Courageous and considered. Ittay nurtures the tender, fragile shoots of peace. The world could do with more people like him' <strong>Paul Kelly, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist</strong>'A book of rare insight and compassion, <em>The Holy and the Broken</em> offers the one thing we thought we'd lost after October 7: a glimmer of hope for meaningful lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians' <strong>Bram Presser, author of <em>The Book of Dirt</em></strong>'This is a thoughtful and thought-provoking book, heartfelt and honest. You do not need to agree with everything Flesher has to say to find the book moving and challenging' <strong>Michael Gawenda, former editor in chief, <em>The Age</em></strong>'This ability to empathize with the suffering on both sides is a core value of Flescher's reconciliation work, and the underpinning to many of the options he outlines' <strong>Dr Anne Sarzin, Jwire</strong>'As challenging and as contemporary as it is compassionate. In a world broken by war and polarisation, Ittay offers peaceful possibilities and nuanced perspectives' <strong>Rabbi Ralph Genende OAM, author of <em>Living in an Upside-down World</em></strong><em>'The Holy and the Broken</em> breaks new ground. Yet what makes it truly singular is its consistent humanity, and its centring of ordinary Israelis and Palestinians' <strong>John Lyndon, executive director, Alliance for Middle East Peace</strong>'This account of the writer's devotion to peacebuilding in our war-torn region is a shining testament to what can and should be done by those who can imagine a future peace. It lights a candle in an age of darkness!' <em><strong></strong></em><strong>Sari Nusseibeh, author of</strong><em><strong> Once Upon a Country: A Palestinian Life</strong></em>'When you finish it, you will not only know more about what's happening between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, but you will also know more about yourself' <strong>Maoz Inon, Israeli peacemaker and social entrepreneur</strong>'A powerful testament to the possibilities of reconciliation and mutual empathy during conflict, what sets this book apart is its commitment to showcasing the experiences of the diverse individuals involved - especially the integral, yet frequently overlooked, stories of women. By highlighting the gender dynamics at play, Flescher enriches our understanding of the conflict and underscores the importance of supporting a world where more voices are heard and valued' <strong>Sheila Katz, CEO, National Council of Jewish Women</strong>'When I picked this book up, I erroneously believed I already "understood" much about the ongoing, collective trauma of Palestinians and Israelis. But this thoughtful and deeply compassionate book shattered that illusion. By the time I put the book down, I was not the same person' <strong>Miriam Anzovin, creator of Daf Reactions and Jewish Lore Reactions</strong>
The Menzies Ascendency
$50.00
Menzies impact on Australian policy revolutionWas Menzies's unprecedented electoral success merely a matter of luck, or did he make fortune bend to his will? On 30 November 1954, Robert Menzies became Australia's longest serving prime minister. Between the closely fought 1954 and 1961 elections, the Coalition enjoyed a political dominance that allowed it to reshape the nation.The period saw the creation of the Reserve Bank of Australia, the signing of the landmark Commerce Agreement with Japan, vast investment in Australia's universities, the development of Canberra, the opening of Australia's first nuclear reactor, forgotten but transformative healthcare reforms, the abolition of the dictation test, forward progress on Indigenous policy, the signing of an enduring Antarctic Treaty, and more. Yet to critics this was a time when the opportunity for reform was wasted. Has Menzies's deliberate emphasis on continuity over change obscured his achievements? Is consolidated progress preferable to policy revolution? And what does the Australian public want from its leaders? All these issues are explored in the third of a four-volume history of Menzies and his world, based on conferences convened by the Robert Menzies Institute at the University of Melbourne. Contributors include Robert Bowker, Andrew Bragg, Paul Brown, Elizabeth Buchanan, Selwyn Cornish, Damien Freeman, David Furse-Roberts, Anne Henderson, Paul Kelly, Sean Jacobs, David Lee, Ted Ling, Lyndon Megarrity, Greg Melleuish, Andrew Norton, Michael de Percy, Paul Strangio and Stephen Wilks.
The Passion Of Private White
$34.99
From the bestselling author of The Bush, the highly acclaimed story of a fifty-year relationship between a Vietnam veteran and an isolated clan in north-east Arnhem Land – a unique window into Australia’s deep past and precarious present, by one of our master storytellers. ‘How to sum up this story? It’s uncontainable. It wrangles worlds. It keeps getting wider and deeper like a stone in a pond. At its heart – an extraordinary telling of an extraordinary friendship.’ Paul Kelly Longlisted for the 2023 Mark & Evette Moran Nib Literary Award Now in trade paperback, one of Australia’s favourite writers on ‘questions at the heart of Australian history, politics and identity’ (ABR). Fascinating, funny, challenging and beautifully written – ‘a truly remarkable achievement’ (Peter Carey). The Passion of Private White describes the meeting of two worlds: that of the intensely driven anthropologist Neville White, and the world of hunter-gatherer clans in remote northern Australia with whom he has lived and worked for half a century, mapping their culture and history in breathtaking detail. As White began to understand this ancient culture struggling between the demands of Western modernity and the equally pressing need to preserve their lands, customs, laws and language, he was also trying to transcend the mental scars inflicted on the battlefields of Vietnam. Eventually, scholarly observer crossed the line into activist, advocate and defender of the clans’ effort to create a safe and healthy homeland, a seat both of traditional culture and contemporary skills and education. The enterprise meant overcoming everything from insatiable mining companies and official incompetence and neglect, to customs that were fundamental in the old way of life but dysfunctional in the transition to the new. When White began taking his old platoon mates to the homeland, two wildly different groups found in each other some of the solutions and some of the therapy they both needed. Don Watson has had his own fifty-year relationship with Neville White, since meeting him as an undergraduate in Melbourne. This book is the result: moving, enlightening, devastating and inspiring, it is a towering achievement, a profound insight into both our recent and our deep history, the coloniser and colonised – indeed into the human condition itself. 'A truly magnificent achievement' – Peter Carey ‘Remarkable, wholly unexpected and original … [by] one of Australia’s finest writers. It sounds like a lugubrious farce and sometimes it reads that way. But it is a deeply serious enquiry into questions at the heart of Australian history, politics and identity. – Tom Griffiths, Australian Book Review ‘This is the tale of two tribes – one ancient, one modern, both wounded and alienated – and how they came together. It is not, thankfully, a white saviour story: in many ways, it’s Donydji who saves the vets. But it’s also a tale far messier and more interesting than that … about tenacity, commitment, listening – and humanity itself.’ – Linda Jaivin, The Saturday Paper 'A witty and compassionate book about friendship, Indigenous self-determination and people under stress.' – The Conversation
The Science Book
$42.99
The Science Book DK's bestselling guide to the "big ideas" of science - now fully revised and updatedDid the universe start with a Big Bang? Is light a wave, a particle - or both? Is a "Theory of Everything" possible?Explaining the key milestones in the field of science in a clear and simple way, The Science Book answers these questions and more besides, and is the perfect introduction to the subject. Untangling knotty theories and shedding light on abstract concepts, entries unpack each complex idea with a combination of easy-to-follow explanations, innovative graphics, and intriguing quotes.Discover the most important theories of history's greatest scientists, why Copernicus's ideas were so contentious, how Einstein developed the concept general and special relativity, and the reasoning behind Crick and Watson's proposed structure for DNA, and much more besides.Fully revised and updated with eight brand-new pages of content, The Science Book is a truly accessible and comprehensive route into a fascinating subject. Packed with scientific quotations, profiles of key figures and discoveries, and flowcharts and infographics that explain the most significant concepts clearly and simply, it is perfect for anyone with an interest in any of the sciences.
The Unknown Warrior
$36.99
The unprecedented scale and destruction of the First World War meant that hundreds of thousands of soldiers perished without being properly identified in death. Over 300,000 names were left without bodies to match; bodies, or fragments of bodies, were left without names. Three hundred thousand families waiting in vain to know what happened to their loved ones. In response to this devastation, an idea was born. A single tomb in Westminster Abbey, housing the remains of an unidentified soldier, to commemorate every one of the missing alongside the nation’s poets, artists, scientists and kings. In The Unknown Warrior, Sunday Times-bestselling author John Nichol embarks on a quest to tell the history of this idea and how it came to be realised. Along the way, he uses diaries, archives and interviews with the descendants of that lost generation to unearth the stories of some of those who died on the battlefield, and their friends who survived, often struggling with the memories of their fallen comrades and the horrors of war. He talks to contemporary experts in battle-field recovery, organising state occasions, and what it's like to lose someone you love in combat and have no body to bury. Drawing on Nichol’s own experience of combat, The Unknown Warrior is above all a search for the true meaning of camaraderie, sacrifice and remembrance.
The Wager
$24.99
THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER *LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION* 'The beauty of The Wager unfurls like a great sail... one of the finest nonfiction books I’ve ever read' Guardian ‘The greatest sea story ever told’ Spectator 'I cannot think of anyone who would not love this book . . . It is an extraordinary true story, beautifully written' Richard Osman ‘A cracking yarn… Grann’s taste for desperate predicaments finds its fullest expression here’ Observer From the international bestselling author of KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON and THE LOST CITY OF Z, a mesmerising story of shipwreck, mutiny and murder, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. On 28th January 1742, a ramshackle vessel of patched-together wood and cloth washed up on the coast of Brazil. Inside were thirty emaciated men, barely alive, and they had an extraordinary tale to tell. They were survivors of His Majesty’s ship the Wager, a British vessel that had left England in 1740 on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain. While chasing a Spanish treasure-filled galleon, the Wager was wrecked on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. The crew, marooned for months and facing starvation, built the flimsy craft and sailed for more than a hundred days, traversing 2,500 miles of storm-wracked seas. They were greeted as heroes. Then, six months later, another, even more decrepit, craft landed on the coast of Chile. This boat contained just three castaways and they had a very different story to tell. The thirty sailors who landed in Brazil were not heroes – they were mutineers. The first group responded with counter-charges of their own, of a tyrannical and murderous captain and his henchmen. While stranded on the island the crew had fallen into anarchy, with warring factions fighting for dominion over the barren wilderness. As accusations of treachery and murder flew, the Admiralty convened a court martial to determine who was telling the truth. The stakes were life-and-death—for whomever the court found guilty could hang.
Tobruk 75th Anniversary Edition
$29.99
Tobruk 75Th Anniversary EditionThe definitive account of when Australia's famed Rats of Tobruk they took on General Erwin Rommel, The Desert Fox.The classic story of 1941's Battle of Tobruk, in which more than 15,000 Australian troops - backed by British artillery - fought in excruciating desert heat through eight long months, against Rommel's formidable Afrika Korps.During the dark heart of World War II, when Hitler turned his attention to conquering North Africa, a distracted and far-flung Allied force could not give its all to the defence of Libya. So the job was left to the roughest, toughest bunch that could be mustered: the Australian Imperial Force. The AIF's defence of the harbour city of Tobruk against the Afrika Korps' armoured division is not only the stuff of Australian legend, it is one of the great battles of all time, as against the might of General Rommel and his Panzers, the Australians relied on one factor in particular to give them the necessary strength against the enemy: mateship.Drawing on extensive source material - including diaries and letters, many never published before - this extraordinary book, written in Peter FitzSimons' highly readable style, is the definitive account of this remarkable chapter in Australia's history.
