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1942: the year the war came to Australia: The bombing of Darwin and the attack on Sydney by the Japanese
The story of the bombing of Darwin and the Japanese midget sub attack on Sydney Harbour in one volume from the bestselling author of An Awkward Truth and A Very Rude Awakening.'Grose's compassionate, honest and vivid account deserves to be widely read.' Sun Herald on An Awkward Truth'About as good as any yarn can get . . . a great retelling of a great story.' Sydney Morning Herald on A Very Rude AwakeningOriginally published as the best-selling An Awkward Truth and A Very Rude AwakeningThe bombing of Darwin by the Japanese on 19 February 1942 was the first wartime assault on Australian soil. The Japanese dropped more bombs on Darwin, killed more civilians in Darwin and sank more ships in Darwin than Pearl Harbor.Three months later, on 31 May 1942, three Japanese midget submarines crept into Sydney Harbour and caused an unforgettable night of mayhem, high farce, chaos and courage. The war was no longer confined to distant deserts and jungles. It had well and truly come to Australia.Absorbing, spirited and fast-paced, 1942: the year the war came to Australia tells the story of the under-armed and unprepared soldiers and civilians who faced their toughest test on home soil.
- GenresHistory
592 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 30, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 17, 2022
Our shoreline was never invaded
Our country was never in flames – Forgotten years, Midnight Oil.
I wonder if the band sill feels ok signing these words? It is now commonly considered that the arrival of the British was an invasion of Australia. And while the later world wars did not ravage Australia as so many other places were, the story of this book shows that Australia was not unaffected. But very fortunate even so.
This book is two volumes, one recounting the bombing of Darwin in February 1942, the other, the midget sub incursion into Sydney Harbour in May of the same year. Both took Australians by surprise, despite the potential to have been pre-warned. Darwin is probably less well known, being the smaller city, then and now. Sydney on the other hand, has probably been remembered well, as is the case for my father who lent me the book, who was 3 when the attack took place and can remember the response of his parents that night. For those living around Sydney Harbour today, or in Darwin, I am sure the stories give greater significance to the places mentioned.
I am probably not overly inclined toward the kind of detailed analysis of war-time events as are recounted here. It is good that they are written up, particularly for the ancestors of key people involved, but it’s a level of detail beyond my level of interest. There is also a folksiness that is written into these stories which seemed to diminish them somehow (a little like another account of Ambon, I read a few years ago). Interestingly for me, it was the background to the Japanese motivations for war that felt new or meaningful. (Helped perhaps by a coincidental co-reading of a fiction novel set around the battle of Darwin with a Japanese pilot as a sympathetically portrayed character).
These stories are contextualised well but their main purpose is the local events which played out as Australia was attacked in 1942. The broader significance, of Australia joining or Japan being foiled in its ambitions is not explored and the subject of other accounts. Good stuff if it’s the detail you are after.
Our country was never in flames – Forgotten years, Midnight Oil.
I wonder if the band sill feels ok signing these words? It is now commonly considered that the arrival of the British was an invasion of Australia. And while the later world wars did not ravage Australia as so many other places were, the story of this book shows that Australia was not unaffected. But very fortunate even so.
This book is two volumes, one recounting the bombing of Darwin in February 1942, the other, the midget sub incursion into Sydney Harbour in May of the same year. Both took Australians by surprise, despite the potential to have been pre-warned. Darwin is probably less well known, being the smaller city, then and now. Sydney on the other hand, has probably been remembered well, as is the case for my father who lent me the book, who was 3 when the attack took place and can remember the response of his parents that night. For those living around Sydney Harbour today, or in Darwin, I am sure the stories give greater significance to the places mentioned.
I am probably not overly inclined toward the kind of detailed analysis of war-time events as are recounted here. It is good that they are written up, particularly for the ancestors of key people involved, but it’s a level of detail beyond my level of interest. There is also a folksiness that is written into these stories which seemed to diminish them somehow (a little like another account of Ambon, I read a few years ago). Interestingly for me, it was the background to the Japanese motivations for war that felt new or meaningful. (Helped perhaps by a coincidental co-reading of a fiction novel set around the battle of Darwin with a Japanese pilot as a sympathetically portrayed character).
These stories are contextualised well but their main purpose is the local events which played out as Australia was attacked in 1942. The broader significance, of Australia joining or Japan being foiled in its ambitions is not explored and the subject of other accounts. Good stuff if it’s the detail you are after.
May 9, 2023
An Australian history must-read
Peter Grose has written a well-documented and highly-readable account of two significant events in Australian history. Both in their own way are astonishing. In particular, thorough investigation of the invasion of Sydney Harbour by midget submarines is both riveting but also poignant, with considerable detail about the young Japanese boy-men who piloted these tiny subs to their certain death. I've read this book twice to remind myself of the detail about these remarkable events. Grose focuses particular attention on the personal - the night watchman who first spotted a submarine from his rowboat and harbour residents who peeked from behind house curtains in disbelief at what was going on in their home space, so far from the main action in WW2.
Peter Grose has written a well-documented and highly-readable account of two significant events in Australian history. Both in their own way are astonishing. In particular, thorough investigation of the invasion of Sydney Harbour by midget submarines is both riveting but also poignant, with considerable detail about the young Japanese boy-men who piloted these tiny subs to their certain death. I've read this book twice to remind myself of the detail about these remarkable events. Grose focuses particular attention on the personal - the night watchman who first spotted a submarine from his rowboat and harbour residents who peeked from behind house curtains in disbelief at what was going on in their home space, so far from the main action in WW2.
October 1, 2024
I was fascinated reading this
Almost comical how unprepared Australia was, even though we were at war and new an invasion was a distinct possibility
Another Australian story that not enough people are aware of.
😎👍📚✅
Almost comical how unprepared Australia was, even though we were at war and new an invasion was a distinct possibility
Another Australian story that not enough people are aware of.
😎👍📚✅
August 17, 2022
Too much repetition.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews