AustLit

'Richie: The Man Behind the Legend is not a book of statistics or match reviews. Instead, it gets to the heart of Richie Benaud, the man.

'Each chapter features personal recollections of various lengths from the people who knew Richie best. Among the contributors are members of Richie's family, childhood friends, cricket greats such as Neil Harvey and Alan Davidson, fellow commentators such as Ian Chappell and Mark Taylor, prominent identities from sport, politics, the media and business, from Australia, England, France, South Africa and the Caribbean.

'The book ends with a postscript by John Benaud. The book will feature colour and black-and-white photographs, including some from the private Benaud collection. ' (Publication summary)

'He's been a fixture in Australian lounge rooms for decades - the face of sport on the Nine Network for thirty years. He has presented the sports report on the evening news, been the long-time host of The Wide World of Sport and acted as the network's anchorman at many of the world's biggest sporting events, including the summer and winter Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, Wimbledon and the US Masters.

'He has been a legendary survivor in an industry notorious for its fickleness, and has worked closely with some of the biggest names in Australian television and sport. Who could forget his almost nightly fits of giggles as Graeme Kennedy's 'straight man' co-host?

'He's also the man of many nicknames: The Male Model from Mudgee, Sexy Eyes, The Man with the Mona Lisa Smile and, most notoriously and thanks to Graeme Kennedy: Two Dogs!

'He is Ken Sutcliffe, much-loved journalist, sportscaster and personality. The story of his life also takes in many landmark events in Australian sport and television over the last thirty years, and it is one told with characteristic good humour and larrikin charm. How a boy living in a tent beside a railway line became one of our most familiar faces and respected names makes for an entertaining and revealing read. Ken's firmly-held opinions on all things sport are fascinating and insightful. His life is a great Australian story.' (From the publisher's website.)

'He was the greatest footballer that I have ever seen and the best forward the game ever saw. And he was such a bloody good bloke ... a man of his word. I can't believe he's gone. The game has lost a great friend and a great man. Tommy Raudonikis

'The sudden death of rugby league giant Arthur Beetson OAM on 31 November 2011 unleashed a wave of emotion rarely before experienced in a game that has been labelled the most demanding on the planet. Hard men cried that day, among them some of the toughest characters that Australian sport has ever produced. Beetson proved himself a rugby league genius - whether at prop forward or second row, he is acknowledged as the greatest ball-playing forward the game has seen. And in becoming both the first indigenous player to captain his country in a major sport and, later, the towering inspiration for league's great innovation of modern times - State of Origin football - he has left behind legacies that will last as long as the game is played. Big Artie is Beetson's candid autobiography, told in Beetson's typical boots'n all manner - as you would expect from a man who played 372 matches of senior rugby league, most of them at the highest, fiercest level. Most I just broke up, I just started crying ... and I'm proud of it. Fellow league legend Johnny Raper, on hearing of the death of Big Artie

'He could do it all on a football field. He was an entertainer ... and a great player. The view of the late, legendary coach. Jack Gibson on Arthur Beetson' (Source: Publishers website)

'The extraordinary life story of a woman who is not only an outstanding athlete but a committed and articulate advocate for Aboriginal rights.

'Nova Peris's first memory is of Cyclone Tracy, and her life has been stormy ever since. A child of the stolen generations, she began carving out her own path from the time she was eighteen, when she went to Perth as a single mother with a two-year-old daughter, determined to become a champion athlete.

'She is the first track and field athlete to win international gold medals in two different sports; first in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics as a member of the Australian women's hockey team, and then in the 200 m and 4 x 100 m in the 1998 Commonwealth Games.

'She has always been a forceful advocate for Aboriginal rights, and is proudest of being Australia's first runner in the 2000 Olympic torch relay, running barefoot from Uluru.

'Nova is the many-faceted story of a complex, determined woman, who has achieved a great deal for herself, for her own people, and for Australia. It covers not only her brilliant athletic career, but also the often heartbreaking stories of her family, including her first meetings with her natural parents, her abusive first marriage, the media fuelled rivalry between herself and Cathy Freeman, her passionate belief in reconciliation and a treaty between Aboriginal and white Australians.

'Above all, this is the portrait of a woman who says: "I don't have tickets on myself, but I will back myself."' (Publication summary)