Review: For Love of Country

For Love of Country by Anthony Hill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Source; paperback copy courtesy of publisher

Whilst I read quite a number of memoirs, I’ve never actually read any ANZAC related ones so this is a first for me and really quite heartbreaking. The author has done a fantastic job in pulling all your interest for this particular family who has lost so, so much in building and protecting this country we call home. There were quite a few things that you could just assume from the outset but still when they happened, I felt teary just like I was part of the family.

For Love of Country tells the story of the Eddison family as they sought a new home and their struggle in and for this home. Captain Walter Eddison did not come from a wealthy family. Even though, his uncles and aunts managed to prosper in their endeavours, his father did not. And when he and Marion met, Walter also has not succeeded in any of his toils but he is not afraid of hard work. As they sought for opportunities outside of England, the war (WW1) broke out as Walter was visiting Australia. He, cajoled by his jackeroo colleagues, enlisted along with them. Thus began the family’s military journey.

Despite their struggle with the work of the land, they loved it nonetheless. And while young men are drawn by the glory of military careers, they come quickly to the realisation of how their services protect their families and home and this only spurred them further. There is no predictable outcome for the soldiers. There is no guarantee of coming home. Yet, we always hope. I wanted this so much for the Eddison family and my heart broke for them.

It does not matter if you don’t know your history well because Anthony Hill have done a marvellous job is summarising the wars and how they affected the world and more particularly, the Eddison family. ”Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13) But their deaths were for all Australians, then and now.

Thanks to Penguin Random House Australia for paperback copy in exchange of honest review

View all my reviews

The Making of Julia Gillard by Jaqueline Kent

3*

It was surprisingly very easy read.  This topic (politics) is not something I would regularly read but I picked this up for a reading challenge and am quite happy that I read and now has a little bit more understanding of politics.  Politics for me is really a concept so abstract that I just could not grasp.

This book shares with the reader of Julia Gillard (currently Prime Minister of Australia) and her past.  When the book was published, Julia Gillard was deputy Prime Minister to Kevin Rudd so it didn’t include the power struggle not long after that.

Julia was an immigrant herself.  She and her family came to Australia from Wales in search of a better life (which include warmer weather for Julia as she was a little bit sickly).  Her parents worked very hard to ensure their children’s future are given the best of opportunities.  The book continued on with her schooling, her student politics days, her legal professional days at Gordon & Slater, all the way to the day she became deputy Prime Minister.

There are a few issues on which the book itself did not delve into.  Some scandals which were previously attached to Julia on her journey to become who she is now.  Julia herself were previously ‘silent’ on these issues as they came up so I guess this continued to be her preference.  It doesn’t really bother me as I supposed, one does what one does at one time either due to stupidity / naivety / one’s beliefs at the time and one can / will change in time.  Besides I don’t think they were very big issues and Gillard did well in not dwelling on them so much so they do not blow up at all.