Smoke Jumpers

by Paul Freeman

By the 21st century, smokers lucky enought to escape the quiche-stained vigilantes who call themselves the Air Police have been pushed into colonies. A spirited satire that turns a personal issue into a national silliness.

258 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Best known for his series of photographic monographs on the nude male, Paul Freeman's nude portraits of sports stars, Olympians and actors appeared between 1995 and 2005 in Studio Magazines' '(not only) Black And White', '(not only) Sport' and 'Blue', and in their books The Sydney Dream (2000), 'The Athen's Dream' (2004), and 'Sportbook' (2003)
In 1996 Paul wrote the best-selling biography of footballer Ian Roberts, ('Ian Roberts: Finding Out', Random House 1997).
His first monograph, 'Bondi Classic', was published to critical acclaim in 2003, and was followed by 'Bondi Urban' (2005), 'Bondi Work' (2006) and 'Bondi Road' (2007). This best-selling series, which takes its' name from Sydney's most iconic suburban beach, observes the contemporary young Australian urban male at home, at work and at play.
Equally successful has been Paul's Outback series, which uses the Australian bush and its' changing moods to explore Paul's male aesthetic, and to style and weather his subjects, varying thematic focus in each of 'Outback' ( 2008) ,' Outback Currawong Creek' (2009) , 'Outback Brumby' (2010), and 'Outback Bushmen' (2012).' Outback Dusk' has just been released.
His 2011 and 2013 books 'Heroics' and' Heroics II' are an exploration of the neo-classic nude male referencing sculpture and painting in Western European art, and even surrealist film interpretations. This work comments on attitudes to the naked male in public and art by juxtaposing our collective artistic heritage with contemporary reality and male physiques.
Many of Paul's books are available from Amazon.
Paul has made his mark in fashion and advertising, with international awards, from Cannes Lions to Clios, to his name.
He has a university degree in Arts, and studied photography at the Australian Centre For Photography in Sydney.
The New York Times art critic Robert Hughes' featured Paul's work in his 2000 documentary series Australia: Beyond The Fatal Shore.
Please go to paulfreeman.com.au for more information.

Reviews

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read this when it came out, and when I came across it the other day in our pre-move packing sessions I thought it would be a lovely way to take my breaks.

This book gets even better with age -- both the reader's and society's. In America, the country has fixated on targeting a popularly unpopular enemy (smokers). Meanwhile appearance of sensitivity, compassion and respect has become paramount in the form of ridiculously PC semantics. Tobacco crimes take precedence over real focus on crimes like rape, heroin and cocaine use and assault and battery. Likewise, changing the name of the Dallas Cowboys takes precedence over outrageous sexual harassment in the workplace.

This is worth a read. I'm against some of the language used in it, but I'm sure the author wouldn't endorse all my rants either.

When you have an issue with a smoker in the room, take another look around and see what you really ought to do something about (double points if you look in a mirror).

When you hear speech that offends you, ask the person to help you understand why that word was chosen. They may apologize, they may ignore you. The just might attempt to explain, thus turning some florid speech into a free exchange of ideas...and that's what it's all about.

[Dsalsbury Salsbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Great book. Nature, action, Love, spirituality, political commentary... Total serendipity! I already picked up "The Loop" and Horse Whisperer to read next!