Matthew Flinders’ Cat

Bryce Courtenay, Penguin Australia. $19.95

Bestselling author Bryce Courtenay tells a tale of a drunk, a boy and a cat. Billy O’Shannessy, once a prominent barrister, is now on the street where he sleeps on a bench outside the State Library. Above him on the window sill rests a bronze statue of Matthew Flinders’ cat, Trim. One morning Billy meets Ryan, a 10-year-old street kid heading for the usual trouble. The two form an unlikely bond. Through telling Ryan the story of Flinders’ circumnavigation of Australia as seen through Trim’s eyes, Billy is drawn deeply into Ryan’s life and into the Sydney underworld, in this touching tale of friendship and redemption.

Peter Cochrane, The Western Front 1916-1918. ABC Books/Allen & Unwin. $39.95

This is an absorbing and moving photographic record of Anzacs during World War I.

For all the significance attached to the brave, doomed heroism at Gallipoli, it was in northern France and Belgium that Australian soldiers died in their greatest numbers during World War I. Of the 60,000 who died in the course of the war, 45,000 were lost on the Western Front. In a matter of weeks, more Australians were slain there in one or two battles than in the entire eight months at Gallipoli.

Peter Cochrane – author of Simpson and the donkey: the making of a legend (1992) – looks at the major battles of the campaign on the Western Front, the grim conditions endured by the soldiers, the heroic efforts of stretcher-bearers and medical workers and, finally, the run of victories under General John Monash in which Australian soldiers distinguished themselves beyond their numerical presence.

In this powerful visual record of Anzacs on the Western Front, Cochrane includes many “unofficial” photos, smuggled out of the battle zone by soldiers anxious to preserve something of their experiences.

Michael Smith, Station X: The Codebreakers of Bletchley Park Pan Macmillan. $25.

Station X tells the true story of the amazing achievements of the codebreakers working at Bletchley Park, England, in World War II. In 1939, several hundred people – students, professors, international chess players, junior military officers, actresses and debutantes – reported to a Victorian mansion west of London: Bletchley Park. This was to be “Station X”, the Allies’ top-secret centre for deciphering enemy codes.

Their task was to break the ingenious Enigma code used for German high-level communications. The settings for the Enigma machine changed continually and each day the German operators had 159 million million million different possibilities. Yet against all the odds this gifted group achieved the seemingly impossible.

Through interviews with surviving members of Bletchley Park, Michael Smith has revealed what life was like there. In this chaotic and isolated environment they found time for drama performances, music recitals, orchestras and love affairs.

These people shortened the war by several years (they were essential to victory in the Atlantic and North Africa and to the masterminding of the D-Day landings). Moreover, Station X was also the birthplace of the world’s first programmable computer.

Oliver Green and Matthew Keon, Hopeless Romantic: A romance manual for men. Penguin Australia. $9.95

Want to put a bit of sizzle into that jaded romance? Oliver Green and Matthew Keon show you how. In this original and hilarious volume, they offer helpful advice and well-tested (usually by them) truths to show the modern man how to woo, win and hold onto the girl of his dreams.

Where do you find romance, then? First, stop looking in the red-roses-and-chocolates aisle of the petrol station when you are half-cut on the way home at 11pm after “a couple of work drinks” – you won’t find romance there.

The authors’ formula is: Effort + Creativity = Romance.

One of their ingenious ploys is to plant a Love Mine (a little bomb of romance) in the washing basket. Grab a pair of jeans that need a wash, then put a small gift and a note in the pocket and leave the jeans lying around in the dirty-clothes basket. Because she is a woman – and women tend to do things properly – your wife or partner will check the pockets before she throws your jeans into the machine. And when she does she’ll find the Love Mine – boom!

With a copy of this book, any unlucky-in-love man can turn himself from being hopeless at romance to being a hopeless romantic.

Penny Attiwill, The Nappy Bag Book: the complete resource guide for parents with children aged 0-5 years. 2004 edition. Nappy Bag Publishing/Pan Macmillan. $19.95

Revised, expanded and now in its sixth year, this book is an invaluable and entertaining resource guide for parents with children. With over 20 categories ranging from health, maternity, furniture and clothing, to where to eat out with children and family-friendly holidays, it is packed with information on products and services available to new and expecting parents. It also contains invaluable advice from other parents, profiles on celebrity and working mums from all walks of life, and editorials from experts on topics such as birthing choices, finding a bargain, nutrition for infants and safety tips when buying toys and furniture. A resource section contains over 1,500 listings on various products and services. A journal section includes first milestones, growth charts and memories.

Stella Tarakson, Raising Kids… without breaking the bank: The parent’s guide to money. Allen & Unwin. $24.95

For a parent, the monetary demands of having children can be overwhelming. Designer-label baby clothes, the latest pram with suspension wheels, school fees, tennis lessons, birthday parties – the costs of having kids can really add up. Whether you’re expecting your first child, or juggling the demands of three teenagers, everyone can do with a little money advice when it comes to raising kids.

This book helps you to:

• Weigh up the real costs of returning to paid work (eg. paying for child care).
• Find out what, if any, government assistance or tax breaks you qualify for.
• Budget for the big ticket items, such as setting up the nursery, paying for school fees and orthodontic treatment.
• Decide how much pocket money to give your children.
• Save money on all those enticing extras – dance lessons, summer camp and school tutoring.

With a little sensible planning, you’ll find that you can give your kids the best in life without breaking the bank.

AFL 2004: the official statistical history of the AFL.

AFL Publishing/Pan Macmillan. $39.95

An annual publication since 1996, this volume is a must-have for every AFL fan. It contains a wealth of facts and figures that date back many decades.

It features football statistics, facts and historical connections, draft selections, player profiles for 2004, and season reviews for 2003. Whether you want information on every grand final since 1987 or the words to your club theme song, AFL 2004 has it all.

Bridget Jones, Winter Cooking. Lorenz/Pan Macmillan. $17.95

On long cold winter nights by the fire, warm yourself with slow-cooked casseroles, steaming bowls of noodles, and family roasts that become an all-day affair.

This book features over 30 tempting recipes, from quick and easy meals for people with busy lifestyles, to hot and tasty seasonal main courses such as marmalade-glazed goose and rich, filling desserts such as Moroccan rice pudding.

Beautiful photography is combined with over 30 in-depth recipes, serving suggestions and a detailed guide to seasonal ingredients to ensure that your dishes capture the essential flavours of the season.

Kate Whiteman, Maggie Mayhew and Christine Ingram, Five-a-Day Fruit and Vegetable Cookbook. Lorenz/Pan Macmillan. $29.95

This inspirational and comprehensive illustrated guide explains all there is to know about fruit and vegetables and how best to enjoy them. Government advice, backed up by leading nutritional experts from all over the world, is that five portions of fruit and vegetables per day will extend and improve the quality of life for all. This book shows how to get them in the most delicious form.

1001 Home Hints & Tips. Lorenz/Pan Macmillan. $29.95

Assembled in this handy volume are all sorts of information on all the key topics – from good housekeeping practices and basic first aid to maintaining your home in tip-tip condition.

Illustrated with colour photographs and diagrams, this volume provides clear and concise advice on how to achieve success with every project – be it repairing torn wallpaper, using colour and soft furnishing to create your ideal home, or hosting a dinner party.

It also provides valuable information on how to cut costs, save time and become more energy-efficient.

The Definitive Bob Dylan Songbook. Omnibus Press/Pan Macmillan. $59.95

Here, gathered for the first time in one volume, are over 325 songs drawn from every period in the unique career of this master songwriter – hits such as All Along the Watchtower; Lay Lady Lay; Hurricane; Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door; Mr Tambourine Man; The Times They Are a-Changin’; and I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.

Each song includes melody, guitar chords and complete lyrics. The book is designed so that when it is opened, it will “fall flat” against your music stand to make the pages easily readable.

Stephen Jay Schneider (ed.), 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. ABC Books/Allan & Unwin. (With foreword by Margaret Pomeranz and David Stratton). Hardback: $65

Whether you want to know the background to a favourite movie, or you just want to know what to watch tonight, 1001 Movies will prove indispensable.

Editor Stephen Jay Schneider has brought together commentaries on 1001 movies, written by leading film critics and journalists.

A dozen genres are covered: musicals, thrillers, westerns, science-fiction, comedy, war, horror, epics, film noir, art-house, romance, and social drama, arranged in chronological order. Older classics such as Some Like it Hot, Singin’ in the Rain, Casablanca, On the Waterfront, Psycho and High Noon jostle for position with contemporary classics such as Goodfellas, Saving Private Ryan, Braveheart and Star Wars.

Derek Hand, The Coroner: Matters of life and death. ABC Books/Allen & Unwin. $29.95

When the telephone rings in the middle of the night, it is usually bad news. When the telephone rings in the middle of the night and you are the State Coroner, it is invariably someone else’s bad news.

The NSW State Coroner for 20 years, Derek Hand conducted a number of high profile post mortems including Michael Hutchence’s, French photographer Roni Levi’s and those of the victims of the Thredbo disaster. In this fascinating book, he takes us behind the scenes of his investigations and shows us how he pieced together the puzzles thrown up by death.

Special book offer

For your chance to win a free copy of one of the following four books, put your details on the back of an envelope and send it to Book Comp, SA Police Journal (168):

• D.W. Buffa, Star Witness (2003).
• Harlan Coben, No Second Chance (2003).
• Robert Ludlum and Gayle Lynds, The Altman Code (2003).
• Peter Rees, Killing Juanita: A true story of murder and corruption. (Juanita Nielsen killing. Reviewed in Police Journal, February 2004).

Conditions: Limit of one competition entry per person. Entrants must indicate clearly their first and second book preferences.