Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Edited by Mark Johnston, NewSouth Publishing, $39.99.
One of our leading authorities on World War II Mark Johnston retells the wartime writings of Australia’s most famous fighting soldier of World War II.
This book provides extraordinary insights into the mind and the notable career of one of Australia’s most decorated and renowned servicemen. Tom ‘Diver’ Derrick VC DCM fought in five campaigns, won the highest medals for bravery and died of wounds sustained while leading his men in the war’s last stages.
His career reached its climax on the jungle-clad heights of Sattelberg in New Guinea, where he won the Victoria Cross by spearheading the capture of seemingly impregnable Japanese defences.
The diaries Derrick kept throughout his campaigns, from Tobruk to Tarakan, are among the most important writings by any Australian soldier. Those diaries and all his other known wartime correspondence and interviews are published here for the first time in their entirety. ‘Diver’ had only a rudimentary education, but his intelligence, humour, ambition and fighting outlook shine through his words.
Johnston says, “In many ways he embodies the archetypal Australian fighting soldier: a larrikin of humble origins, a sportsman whose strength and street-smarts helped him to earn high decorations on the battlefield and to rise through the ranks despite the prejudices of superior officers. Moreover, as I discovered in 1988 while researching in Canberra for my doctorate, the Australian War Memorial holds photocopies of the diaries he kept throughout the war.”
“Writing a satisfactory biography of anyone is difficult, if not impossible. While certain elements of any life incontrovertibly important, we cannot ever really grasp another person’s experience in its entirety. To write an entirely fair biography of an Australian soldier who for many epitomizes the courage and self-sacrifice of Australian diggers is probably unmanageable.”
It’s quite amazing as we can “read his thoughts … go directly into the mind”.
