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Jonathan King Jonathan King i(A61248 works by)
Born: Established: 1942 Geelong, Geelong City - Geelong East area, Geelong area, Geelong - Terang - Lake Bolac area, Victoria, ;
Gender: Male
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Works By

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1 y separately published work icon The Inkberg Enigma Jonathan King , Jonathan King (illustrator), Marleston : Gecko Books , 2020 23485569 2020 single work graphic novel children's

'"Haven't you always thought there's something WEIRD about this town, Miro?"

'Miro and Sia live in Aurora, a fishing town nestled in the shadow of an ancient castle. Miro lives in his books; Sia is never without her camera. The day they meet, they uncover a secret. The fishing works, the castle, and the town council are all linked to an ill-fated 1930s Antarctic expedition. But the diary of that journey has been hidden, and the sea is stirring up unusual creatures. Something has a powerful hold over the town.

'With Sia determined to find out more, Miro finds himself putting aside his books for a real adventure.' (Publication summary)

1 1 y separately published work icon Palestine Diaries : The Light Horsemen's Own Story, Battle by Battle Jonathan King , Melbourne : Scribe , 2017 11643283 2017 anthology diary correspondence war literature

'Culminating with the cavalry charge at Beersheba on 31 October 1917, Palestine Diaries is the story of Australia's Light Horsemen of WWI, told in their own brutally honest words - day by day, battle after bloody battle.

'One hundred years after that now-legendary battle - widely considered the last great cavalry charge - Dr. Jonathan King argues that the breathtaking achievement of the 4th Light Horse Brigade should become the cornerstone of our national identity.

'The soldiers in these pages were the first to achieve incredible victories for their new nation - ahead of the Western Front, and unlike the defeats of Gallipoli. These young Australians helped demolish the centuries-old Ottoman Empire by driving the Turks from the strategic Suez Canal across the Sinai, and up through Palestine, Jordan, and Syria to be first into the enemy stronghold of Damascus - a victory that would not only change the course of the war, but would also plant the seeds of the modern Middle Eastern conflicts.

'Published together here, many for the first time, are the diaries, letters, and photos of those brave young men, whose service and sacrifice helped shape a nation.' (Publication summary)

1 2 y separately published work icon Tall Ships and Tall Tales : A Life of Dancing with History Jonathan King , Carlton North : Scribe , 2013 6723401 2013 single work autobiography

'Over the last 40 years, Jonathan King has brought history to life, re-enacting events such as the First Fleet’s voyage across the high seas to Botany Bay, the mutiny against ship’s captain William Bligh on the Bounty, Matthew Flinders’ troubled circumnavigation of Terra Australis, Ernest Shackleton’s death-defying dash across the icy waters of the Antarctic Ocean, and Marco Polo’s passage from China.

'Along the way, King has encountered a cast of mavericks, rogues, entrepreneurs, dignitaries, and politicians — a veritable who’s who of Australia and beyond. These include bushman R.M. Williams, singers Slim Dusty and Helen Reddy, actor Jack Thompson, media magnate Rupert Murdoch, great train robber Ronnie Biggs, explorer Edmund Hillary, boxer Muhammad Ali, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, rock star Sting — and even Queen Elizabeth II.

'So join this bestselling author and historian as he recounts his spectacular adventures: jackarooing on outback stations; trekking the Amazon to meet a remote tribe; sailing the perilous waters of the Atlantic; riding a traditional junk in the South China Sea; being detained by Spanish border guards; and becoming caught in an Antarctic hurricane, just metres from reaching Shackleton’s grave. These extraordinary tales will leave you breathless, dazzled, and inspired by King’s persistence and sheer courage in bringing history to life.' (Publisher's blurb)

1 form y separately published work icon Winning World War I : The Western Front Diaries Jonathan King , ( dir. Bill Leimbach ) Pyrmont : Roadshow Entertainment Lucky Country Production , 2008 Z1576997 2008 single work film/TV

Dramatisation of Australian involvement on the Western Front.

1 2 y separately published work icon The Western Front Diaries : The ANZAC's Own Story, Battle by Battle Jonathan King , Pymble : Simon and Schuster Australia , 2008 Z1576988 2008 anthology diary

Hidden under the shadow of Gallipoli for decades, the breathtaking story of what really happened on the Western Front has finally been brought into the bright light of day.

'Five times greater than Gallipoli, the Western Front had:

  • five times more soldiers (250 000 rather than 50 000)
  • more than five times the amount of men killed (46 000 compared to 8709)
  • more than five times as many battles, with troops serving there for four times longer, and
  • five times the sum of Victoria Crosses earned (a total of 53).

'Thankfully, the diggers serving in this first Australian Army Corps and under an Australian commander for the first time, actually helped win the war.

'Using hundreds of brutally honest and extraordinary eyewitness accounts of the diggers in the muddy and bloody trenches, Western Front Diaries reproduces their private diaries, letters and postcards to tell of their heart-rending experiences, battle by bloody battle.

'With its gallery of unpublished photographs, Western Front Diaries tells without embellishment the stories of the Australian soldiers and finally puts the Western Front on the map. (From the publisher's website.)

1 Waltzing Materialism Jonathan King , 2008 single work prose
— Appears in: True Blue? : On Being Australian 2008; (p. 177)
1 3 y separately published work icon Mary Bryant : Her Life and Escape from Botany Bay Jonathan King , Pymble : Simon and Schuster Australia , 2004 Z1162011 2004 single work biography
1 3 y separately published work icon Gallipoli Diaries : The Anzac's Own Story Day by Day Jonathan King (editor), East Roseville : Kangaroo Press , 2003 Z1079668 2003 anthology diary war literature

'Gallipoli, for the average Australian, is the most famous battle that our volunteer soldiers ever fought, because it was our first entry as a nation into the war, and our people were keen to prove themselves. It would be, however, a long time before the families back home, and the nation as a whole, heard of the terrible conditions on the peninsula and the waste of life that took place there. Although Gallipoli was a crushing defeat, it was, and still is, celebrated as a victory.

'In this updated commemorative edition, published 100 years after the 25 April 1915 landing, the Gallipoli story is told day by day, using the words of the diggers, drivers, soldiers, and war correspondents at the front-line. War historian Jonathan King has gathered together an unequalled series of extracts from letters and diaries, written by hundreds of Anzacs at Gallipoli, accounting for every one of the 240 days of the eight-month campaign — and even identifying the actual days of the week. Reading the men's own words, including misspellings and mistakes, we share in the soldiers' experiences.

'These Australians, of exceptional calibre and good cheer, each wrote for different reasons, although many made light of their hardships. It is all here — the fear, the frustration, and the boredom, as they scrounged for bully beef; went mad from the flies, the lice, and the stench of the unburied dead; swapped cigarettes with enemy Turks; dodged shrapnel while swimming at the beach; celebrated birthdays; sheltered from rain and shivered in snow; and waited for action while praying for deliverance.

'Although generals, historians, and war scholars have had their stories told many times, it is only now, when we read the private words of the men at the front-line, that we can glimpse what Gallipoli was really like.' (Publication summary 2014 edition)
 

1 6 y separately published work icon Gallipoli: Our Last Man Standing : The Extraordinary Life of Alec Campbell Jonathan King , Milton : John Wiley and Sons , 2003 Z1021783 2003 single work biography

'Landing on the beach at Gallipoli, Alec Campbell, aged 16, looked more like a 12 year-old in his big brothers uniform. An Australian country boy caught up in a war he knew little about, on a peninsula he couldn't even spell, he eluded snipers as he carried water up the line to the trenches of anzac cove. Eventually he succumbed to illness and was evacuated to Cairo. Back home again he went bush as a drover and jackaroo, but Gallipoli had opened his eyes to the iniquities of war and of empire, and the depression reinforced his political radicalisation. He became an active unionist, a socialist and republican. Living with the injury he sustained at Gallipoli, he devoted much of his working life to helping others with disabilities. Alec Campbell who went to war for adventure and lived to become a national icon, epitomises the Aussie larrikin and reluctant hero.' (Publication summary)

1 y separately published work icon World War I Centennial Trilogy Jonathan King , 2003 Melbourne : Scribe , 2003-2017 11643152 2003 series - author anthology diary correspondence war literature
1 Long Tail of the Blazey Meteor Jonathan King , 1997 single work obituary (for Peter Blazey )
— Appears in: The Age , 12 February 1997; (p. B2)
1 Melbourne Establishment Son Became Sydney Gay Activist Jonathan King , 1997 single work obituary (for Peter Blazey )
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 10 February 1997; (p. 5)
1 The Song that Shaped a Nation Jonathan King , 1995 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 8-9 April 1995; (p. 12)
1 The Poem that Makes Australians Feel at Home Jonathan King , 1995 single work column biography
— Appears in: The Age , 16 October 1995; (p. 4)
1 1 form y separately published work icon Waltzing Matilda : The Song that Shaped a Nation Jonathan King , ( dir. Bill Leimbach et. al. )agent Australia : Waltzing Matilda Enterprises Lucky Country Production , 1995 6493988 1995 single work film/TV

'The real story of Waltzing Matilda written by Banjo Paterson with music by a woman who may have loved him. Many celebrities tell what the song means to them and some sing it including Rolf Harris, Judith Durham and Slim Dusty.' (Publisher's blurb)

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