Journey into Australia's heart of darkness... . . . where life is lived by a different set of rules and it is easy for criminals to disappear into the vast landscape - and yet it can be difficult to remain anonymous. The worst aspects of human nature reveal themselves in the red centre. Beginning with the chilling tale of convict and cannibal Alexander Pearce, Red Centre, Dark Heart explores historic and recent true-crime in the outback, including the Belango State Forest murders and the disappearance of Peter Falconio. Read these stories and you'll discover that Australia's dark heart is frighteningly close to home. It's enough to make you run for the beach - Sunday Herald Sun From the bestselling author of Shipwrecks: Australia's Greatest Maritime Disasters, Outback Heroes and Outback Pioneers.
'For the drover's life has pleasures that the townsfolk never know.' From the High Country to the Outback, there are extraordinary stories of the men and women who have travelled across Australia behind mobs of cattle, sheep and horses. These quiet achievers, of every race and creed, forged an Australian legend. Evan McHugh brings alive the hapless convicts attempting to round up the First Fleet's escaped cattle on foot; overlanders blazing through trackless wilderness to supply the vast stations carved from the bush; stockmen who risked blizzards to bring cattle to alpine pastures; and drovers who crossed the continent behind the largest mobs of cattle the world has ever seen. These stories overflow with colourful characters: cattle-duffers like Harry Redford, renowned boss drovers like Nat Buchanan and strong women like Edna Zigenbine and Red Jack, who could measure up to any man. They lived a life most of us only dream about and came to love the beauty of Australia's most famous and infamous stock routes, including the Birdsville, Murranji and Strzelecki tracks, and the Canning stock route. McHugh's meticulous research and vivid eye for detail is the closest you'll get to saddling up your moke and poking a mob of cattle off camp. PRAISE FOR EVAN McHUGH 'McHugh tells the stories of these great achievers simply and without romantic or other embellishment, which is how these characters would have wanted it.' – COURIER-MAIL
For a town with seventy residents (on a good day), Birdsville is remarkably well known - the Birdsville Track, the rodeo, the pub, the infamous races. With its ruggedness, inaccessibility and larrikin charm, this small town on the edge of the Simpson Desert has become a symbol of the great Australian outback. What is it about Birdsville that has...
Journalist Aaron Smith's new memoir holds up a unique mirror to Australia. What he sees is at once amazing, disturbing and revealing. The Rock explores the failings of our nation's character, its unresolved past and its uncertain future from the vantage point of its most northerly outpost, Thursday Island. Smith was the last editor, fearless journalist and the paperboy of Australia's most northerly newspaper, the Torres News, a small independent regional tabloid that, until it folded in late 2019, was the voice of a predominantly Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal readership for 63 years across some of the most remote and little understood communities in Australia. The Rock is a story of self-discovery where Smith grapples to understand a national identity marred by its racist underbelly, where he is transplanted from his white-boy privileged suburban life to being a racial and cultural minority, and an outsider. Peppered with his experiences, Smith gradually and sensitively becomes embedded in island life while vividly capturing the endless and often farcical parade of personalities and politicians including Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott. Smith pulls no punches while he reflects on the history of Terra Australis incognita, dissecting what is truly Australia, and its gaping cultural and moral divide. 'A credit to regional journalism, Aaron carried on the fine tradition of the Torres News holding governments to account and telling stories of everyday life in the Straits, never shying away from controversies, lifting all the rocks and even out foxing prime minister Tony Abbott on his visit to Mabo's grave.' — Stefan Armbruster, SBS 'Aaron Smith makes a huge and extremely valuable contribution to journalism in Australia. With insight and committment he brings issues of national and international significance to audiences in Australia and beyond.' — Dr Tess Newton Cain, Griffith Asia Institute 'Aaron's journalism has provided a rare and valuable insight into issues affecting the Torres Strait Islander community. Navigating cultural protocols and geographical challenges, he has given a voice to some of Australia's most marginalised people and shared important stories that would otherwise have gone unheard.' — Ella Archibald-Binge, Sydney Morning Herald
From the first convict runaways to the spectacular showdown that ended Ned Kelly's career, Evan McHugh delivers true tales of daring exploits and audacious deeds. These are incredible stories of the men - and women - who achieved fame not just by what they did, but by the way they did it. There are those who lifted themselves from downtrodden underdogs to heroes, such as Bold Jack Donohue, brave Ben Hall and Captain Thunderbolt as well as villains like Pearce the Cannibal and Mad Dog' Morgan. Bushrangers is as fast paced as a stolen thoroughbred and as arresting as a squad of troopers. Through extensive first-hand accounts and gripping detail about Australia's lawless past, bestselling author Evan McHugh brings a life cast of roguish characters who blazed their way into Australian history.
The story of Australia, told from the woolsheds. 'For much of its history Australia has been described as riding on the sheep's back . . . but if the country rode on anyone's back, it was on the aching, creaking, flexing spines of Australian shearers.' Armed with their blades, a sense of adventure and a relentless work ethic, shearers have been a fundamental part of Australia's outback for centuries. From legendary figures such as blade shearing record-holder Jack Howe and fearless union man cum poet Julian Stuart, to today's young guns having to adapt to a rapidly changing industry, these rugged, resilient and proud characters have influenced the social landscape and folklore of the country. Shearers contributed to the formation of both the Labor and National parties, while Australia's national song, 'Waltzing Matilda', was written on a Queensland sheep station. Expert outback chronicler Evan McHugh – author of bestselling titles such as The Drovers and Outback Heroes – presents the definitive history of these men, bringing to life the toil, tumult and toughness of the shearing life, and the effect it has had on Australia's national character.
According to esoteric teachings we have an energy body of lighter, less dense material that is connected to our physical bodies. Those who can see it call it the aura and can sometimes tell the state of a person's health by the way it appears. Those who use its energy refer to the force as prana, chi, vital force, orgone or a number of other names. There are seven chakras, or energy points, where this energy collects in the etheric body. Working with the chakras and these spiritual energies can play a big part in the psychic development and enlightenment of those sensitive enough to work on these levels. This book shows you how. Subjects include a chapter on each chakra center; also Prana or Vitality, Force-Centres, Kundalini, Healing, Mediumship, Birth, Death, Mesmerism, Magnetisation of Objects, Ectoplasm, and more.
Crime fiction’s biggest names have been rounded up for a truly impressive collection of 2008’s best short stories. Featuring authors like Michael Connelly, Charlaine Harris, and 2009 Edgar Award winner T. Jefferson Parker, this volume should be on the shelf of every mystery fan.
