ABC Books

From one of Australia's leading military historians and biographers, Peter Rees, comes Guts and Glory, an enthralling history of the way in which sport is ever present in the wars fought by, or involving, our Australian defence forces. The spirit of Australia can be seen so clearly in how we play and how we fight. From the famous cricket match played on the beach at Gallipoli as a decoy for the evacuation of Australian troops; to the hero of Tobruk, Changi and the Thai Burma railway, Colonel Sir Ernest Edward 'Weary' Dunlop AC, who so respected his hard-won Wallaby jersey, he insisted on being buried in it; to legendary Test cricketer Keith Miller, fighter pilot in WWII, who famously said 'Pressure is a Messerschmitt up your arse, playing cricket is not' - sport has always been part of our wars. A collection of vivid, moving, funny, powerful and poignant sporting stories from the wars fought by the Australian Defence Force ranging from WWI right through to the present day, Guts and Glory is a book about the way that sport is so often an intrinsic part of war; how sport provides a means for the diggers to cope with the pressures of the battlefield; how the lessons that we learn playing sport can be applied to the art of leadership and warfare; and how mateship and the Australian character and spirit can be seen in the way we fight and the way we play. 'This is ultimately an uplifting book, which celebrates the bonding and healing power of sport, in times of war and after it. For history buffs who can't miss Friday night footy or the Boxing Day Test, this is a book they'll devour.' Readings

'I adored this book - a wondrous compendium of Iceland's best sagas' - Hannah Kent A new friendship. An unforgettable journey. A beautiful and bloody history.This is Iceland as you've never read it before ... Broadcaster Richard Fidler and author Kari Gislason are good friends. They share a deep attachment to the sagas of Iceland - the true stories of the first Viking families who settled on that remote island in the Middle Ages.These are tales of blood feuds, of dangerous women, and people who are compelled to kill the ones they love the most. The sagas are among the greatest stories ever written, but the identity of their authors is largely unknown. Together, Richard and Kari travel across Iceland, to the places where the sagas unfolded a thousand years ago. They cross fields, streams and fjords to immerse themselves in the folklore of this fiercely beautiful island. And there is another mission: to resolve a longstanding family mystery - a gift from Kari's Icelandic father that might connect him to the greatest of the saga authors.