Tom Gilling

The marines on the First Fleet refused to sail without it. Convicts risked their necks to get hold of it. Rum built a hospital and sparked a revolution, made fortunes and ruined lives. In a society with few luxuries, liquor was power. It played a crucial role, not just in the lives of individuals like James Squire - the London chicken thief who became Australia's first brewer - but in the transformation of a starving penal outpost into a prosperous trading port.Drawing on a wealth of contemporary sources, Grog offers an intoxicating look at the first decades of European settlement and explores the origins of Australia's fraught love affair with the hard stuff.

DREAMLAND by Tom Gilling is a gripping and horribly convincing novel about how one little lie can turn a whole life upside down.It was just a little lie. Nick Carmody, ex-crime reporter, is an ordinary man. The most glamorous thing about him is his childhood friendship with the rich, troubled, Danny Grogan. However, there is much more trouble to come. When Danny's wealthy father offers Nick money to cover for Danny's latest minor crime, there seems no reason to refuse. But the lie soon spirals, and when Nick finds himself caught in a nightmare of perjury, threatening policemen and increasing danger, he decides that he had better disappear. This is a new departure for Tom Gilling: a genuinely compelling, intriguing novel of a very likeable man in very serious trouble. But how do you disappear? Nick finds himself lying harder, and stealing, and worse. He has to stay missing, or pretend to be someone else. And changing his identity, even temporarily, changes everything...

The gripping story of Australians' and New Zealanders' key role defeating the Axis in North Africa - a true turning point of World War II 'We were to go through and take on targets of opportunity, to shoot up anything we could. Never at any stage can I remember any plan of us coming back, none of that was ever talked about . . . We felt it was a suicide mission.' July, 1942: the North African campaign rages and the Allies have been forced to retreat from Gazala, chased through the sandy wastes by Field Marshal Rommel 'the Desert Fox' and his Panzerarmee. The Axis target is Cairo-if they take it, they control the Suez Canal and are within striking distance of the oil fields of the Middle East, tipping the balance of the war firmly in Hitler's favor. Standing in their way are the weary, battle-hardened soldiers of the 9th Australian Division and the 2nd New Zealand Division, determined to halt Rommel's relentless advance. Bestselling author Tom Gilling vividly recounts the brutal trench warfare, deadly artillery barrages and the high-stakes raids that defined their role in the North African campaign, centered on two immense clashes involving hundreds of thousands of troops: the first and second battles of El Alamein. General Montgomery's offensive will turn the tide of the war, but he will need the tenacity of the Australian and New Zealand soldiers to break the resistance of the formidable Afrika Korps. Rich in historical insight and heart-pounding action, Start Digging, You Bastards brings to life their desperate, dust-choked struggle against the Axis forces in the Egyptian desert through the eyes of the troops, whose courage and endurance were tested to their very limit.

This is the story of Australia's 3RAR in the Korean War, culminating in the Battle of Kapyong in April 1951, where an Australian battalion held back an entire division of the Chinese army and prevented Seoul from being overrun - the only time Australians have fought Chinese troops. The focus is on the first-hand experiences of the soldiers - brave and resourceful larrikins - and on their brilliant commanders, Lieutenant-Colonel Charlie Green and Major Ben O'Dowd.

The fighting had ended but for Sandakan's most notorious prisoner the war was not over. "That bastard's still alive? I'm going to kill him with my bare hands." --POW Bill Moxham At the Australian war crimes trials that followed World War II, one prosecution witness stood out: Warrant Officer Bill Sticpewich. During his three years in the infamous Sandakan POW camp, Sticpewich had seen hundreds of fellow prisoners die of starvation, sickness and overwork. Others were shot or bayoneted to death by Japanese guards on forced marches through the Borneo jungle. Of more than 2400 Allied prisoners at Sandakan at the start of 1945, only six survived. It was Sticpewich's meticulous evidence that sent Sandakan's commandant and his murderous henchmen to the gallows. But to his fellow prisoners Sticpewich was not a war hero, he was a collaborator who avoided heavy labor and obtained extra rations by ingratiating himself with the Japanese. Was Sticpewich a traitor or a man who did what he needed to stay alive? Drawing on wartime records, original interviews and the recollections of other survivors, The Witness reveals the compelling story of Australia's most notorious POW.

'The way I look at it is this...When you're behind the line and get yourself into trouble, you've got to get your bloody self out irrespective of anybody else. That's why I like it.'Scottish-born but a Queenslander to the bone, Jock McLaren was a true Australian hero. As a prisoner he escaped twice, first from Changi and later from the infamous Sandakan POW camp in Borneo. After paddling a dugout canoe across open sea, he fought for two years with American-led Filipino guerrillas, his exploits so audacious the Japanese put a price on his head.At the helm of his 26-foot whaleboat, the Bastard, McLaren sailed brazenly into enemy-held harbours, wreaking havoc with his mortar and machine guns before heading back out to sea. In early 1945 he joined Australia's secretive Z Special Unit, parachuting into Borneo to carry out reconnaissance and organise anti-Japanese resistance ahead of Allied landings. He cheated death on numerous occasions and saved his own life by removing his appendix without anaesthetic, using 'two large dessert spoons' and a razor blade.Drawing on Allied and Japanese wartime documents, Bastard Behind the Lines brings the story of a courageous digger vividly to life and throws light on a rarely explored aspect of Australia's Pacific war.

'Donald Mackay was not just an innocent victim tragically struck down by a criminal act. He was a casualty of the actual fight against organised crime ... killed on active service, as it were ... His name should never be forgotten, his passing must not be allowed to be in vain.'The assassination of Donald Mackay was meant to solve a problem for the mafia. Instead it roused the law-abiding citizens of Griffith to fight against the powerful criminal elements who had made their town synonymous with drugs and murder.Drawing on the personal diaries and memories of Terry Jones - who, as the editor of the local newspaper, knew everyone and heard everything - The Griffith Wars reveals startling new evidence about one of Australia's most notorious unsolved murders. It also powerfully recounts the struggle for the soul of a country town still battling to shake off its criminal past.

Uncover the shocking true story of a town battling the mafia's grip after a brutal assassination. The Griffith Wars plunges into the heart of Griffith, Australia, where the 1977 assassination of Donald Mackay ignited a war between law-abiding citizens and powerful criminal elements. Through the eyes of local newspaper editor Terry Jones, witness the escalating tensions, startling revelations, and the community's courageous fight for justice against corruption and murder. This gripping account exposes the dark underbelly of a seemingly peaceful town, revealing the true cost of standing up to organized crime. Is it for you? If you are interested in true crime, Australian history, and political thrillers, this is a must-read. Why buy now? Because the fight for justice never ends, and this story is a powerful reminder of the strength of community in the face of adversity.

A born storyteller, Troy Cassar-Daley has at last turned his talent to sharing his own inspiring life.'Troy's achievements are many, and perhaps the finest may be his ability to make us listen to his heart.' Joy McKeanFor the first time, Troy talks about his early life - how his parent's divorce changed things for him, about missing his Dad and growing up in Grafton surrounded by the warmth and love of his mother, Irene, his Nan and Pop and his extended Indigenous family. A larrikin at heart, Troy includes all the highs and lows on his path to stardom: the thrill of performing on stage at the Tamworth Music Festival with Jimmy Little when he was just 15; the excitement of heading off on tour with Brian Young and then discovering just how lonely life on the road could be; his first record deal; playing with the greats - Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Slim Dusty; his first album Beyond the Dancing, which blended his indigenous heritage with his rural background; meeting the woman who would steal his heart; recording in Nashville; and, finally, releasing True Believer, the album that really launched his career. The multiple Golden Guitar, APRA, ARIA and Deadlys winner also lets us in on some of the life lessons he learned the hard way, lessons that kept this prodigiously talented Aussie on the straight and narrow (most of the time). Things I Carry Around, is the warm, genuine, and inspiring story of a young indigenous Australian who had a dream and turned that dream into reality. 'Troy's a true gentleman, warm and genuine, always a pleasure to be around. He sings straight from his heart and straight from the heart of his country.' Paul Kelly