Darryl Dymock

Stories from Bill Thirkill, William Barker, Jeff Thorpe, Trevor Armstrong, John Brown, Dave Shearer, Graham Trimble, Darryl Dymock (Editor), David Hands, Jim Pascoe and James Vernon with illustrations by Peter Darmody, Anthony Durrington, George Pugh, Brian Goeldner, Graham Murphy, and Paul Watkins.If you've seen one or both of the previous two Offcuts books from Oxley Men's Shed, you'll know what a smorgasbord of delights they serve up.Offcuts 3 is better than ever - 11 writers, 6 artists and 28 stories to entertain, stimulate and challenge us all. The stories and poems in this collection are set in almost every Australian state and territory, and internationally in Tonga, Vietnam, New Zealand, Nepal and Iran. All creatively illustrated, they cover a range of topics that show the diversity of backgroundsof the Oxley Men's Shed Writers Group. You'll be fascinated, amused and amazed in turn by tales of shipping disasters, bureaucratic bungles, tricky family relationships and remarkable holidays (including one that wasn't), not to mention a close call on a slippery roof, a wild cow hunt, a triple-O call, a loaded gun, battling prickly pear, a tender love story and... just read Offcuts 3 for yourself You won't be disappointed.

Between 1966 and 1973, while Australian troops were fighting in Vietnam, some 300 conscripted teachers were quietly posted to Papua New Guinea. Colloquially known as 'Chalkies', their task was to raise the educational level of troops of the Pacific Islands Regiment in what turned out to be critical years leading up to the country's independence. Drawing on the recollections of more than 70 of those National Servicemen, Dr Darryl Dymock, a former Chalkie, tells the story of how these young teachers responded to the challenges of a life most of them never wanted or imagined for themselves, in an exotic land on Australia's doorstep. It's a unique tale of the good, the bad and the unexpected, told with flair and insight against the background of political developments of the day. 'An educational scheme which for magnitude, scope, intensity and enlightenment is without parallel in military history.' - Brigadier Ernest Gould