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Matt Murphy

Goodreads Author

Born

Sydney, Australia

Member Since

October 2013

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At school, Matt Murphy failed English and couldn't see the point of history. He became a firie and has been serving in Sydney's inner city for 38 years. He is now also a part time historian and teacher, tolerating the attitudes of kids towards history that he used to share.

He has written four books: Weight of Evidence, about what was the longest civil court case in New South Wales; Rum, about the influence of alcohol in colonial Australia; Gold, concerning the life of Edward Hargraves and his dubious claim to be Australia's gold discoverer; and Straya Day, looking at 237 other things that could instead be commemorated on Australia's national day.

Matt also can't believe they made him write his own bio. ...more

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Combine Editions
Matt Murphy’s books

Average rating: 3.87 · 146 ratings · 31 reviews · 4 distinct works • Similar authors

	Rum: A Distilled History of Colonial Australia 4.05 avg rating — 76 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gold 3.61 avg rating — 41 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Straya Day: The Unofficial History of Australia's National Day by Matt Murphy (Goodreads Author), Kaya Byrne (Narrator) 3.61 avg rating — 18 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Weight of Evidence 3.71 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2013 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

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Matt’s Recent Updates

Matt Murphy finished reading 1788: The Brutal Truth of the First Fleet by David Hill	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 20, 2026 07:04PM · like
Matt Murphy liked Genevieve's review of Gold: "I was going to give Gold two stars, but considering that the author himself incredulously leaves all of his own books a five-star review on Goodreads, he’s lucky to earn one star. Given the immaturity within this book’s pages, count me as not surpris" Read more of this review »
Sep 13, 2026 05:46PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Gold by Matt Murphy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Gold by Matt Murphy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Matt Murphy is currently reading 1788: The Brutal Truth of the First Fleet by David Hill	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Aug 13, 2026 05:06PM · like
Matt Murphy and 1 other person liked Callan Syratt's review of Rum: A Distilled History of Colonial Australia: "Thoroughly enjoyed reading through this. I'm only just getting into reading up on this time period, so it was great for getting some broader strokes of the notable events (naturally framed around its relationship with rum/alcohol). An easy and inform" Read more of this review »
Aug 08, 2026 04:41AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Rum by Matt Murphy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Rum by Matt Murphy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Matt Murphy liked Jo B's review of Straya Day: The Unofficial History of Australia's National Day: "This is such a clever way to read history and reflect on what has shaped us as Aussies - the good, the bad, the curious and the very funny! Thank you Matt Murphy. A must read! "
Jul 03, 2026 07:29PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Straya Day by Matt Murphy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Straya Day by Matt Murphy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Matt Murphy rated a book it was amazing Straya Day: The Unofficial History of Australia's National Day by Matt Murphy (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
My favourite. Not necessarily a lot of fun stories (though many are!) but great fun to research and write.
Mar 02, 2026 09:04PM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Straya Day by Matt Murphy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Straya Day by Matt Murphy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Matt Murphy joined the group Goodreads Librarians Group
Jun 01, 2025 04:21PM · like
Matt Murphy rated a book it was amazing Gold by Matt Murphy (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
better than his last one.
Mar 30, 2025 04:12PM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Gold by Matt Murphy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Gold by Matt Murphy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Matt Murphy shared a quote “History is just one f*cking thing after another” Alan Bennett
Oct 28, 2024 03:51PM · like · more quotes by Alan Bennett · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The History Boys by Alan Bennett. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The History Boys by Alan Bennett <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">