For valour: Australia's Victoria Cross heroes by Nicolas Brasch
Black Dog Books, 2013. ISBN 978 1 742032 31 3.
(Age: 10+) Recommended. Picture book. War heroes. In the series, Our
Stories, comes this useful and fascinating account of some of
the remarkable stories of the ninety nine Victoria Cross heroes. The
introduction gives an account of what the Victoria Cross is and why
it is given. There follows the heroic stories of men who were given
this award for exceptional bravery during the Boer War, World War
One and the Russian Campaign, World War Two, Vietnam War and the War
in Afghanistan.
With known names such as Albert Jacka (World War One), and the
latest medal winners, Benjamin Roberts-Smith and Mark Donaldson
(Afghanistan) given a page spread, details can be assimilated by the
readers with ease. These men come to the fore as human figures,
complete with photographs augmented with bits of information which
add to their story. No longer just a list of names in a book about
Australia's involvement in war, these pages give the heroes flesh
and blood.
Before each section is a page giving an overview of the war in which
these men won their Victoria Cross, which gives an introduction
which could be used more widely in discussions about war int he
classroom. The war in Afghanistan would be well known to our
students, but not so the Boer War or Russian Campaign or even the
two World Wars and the Vietnam War.
One page which took my interest was that about Roden Cutler. I had
heard of him as Governor of NSW (1966-81)but knew little of his
exploits during World War Two as a communications officer where he
repaired telephone lines under heavy fire, and was then shot and
left to die by the enemy. His injuries necessitated the amputation
of his leg but he was still able to serve as Australian High
commissioner in New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Pakistan and later served
as Australia's delegate to the United Nations General Assembly.
This is a fascinating contribution to books about our involvement in
war, for the middle school reader.
Fran Knight