The View From Connor's Hill
Barry Heard
Winner of the Victoria Community History Awards 2008 for best book
'It is a simple story told with artless humility and great humanity.'
(Sydney Morning Herald)'He was the knack of putting together a compelling narrative, to which he brings sensitivity, feeling for people and the environment, along with an eye for landscape.'
John Farquaharson (Canberra Times)Here is the captivating prequel to Well Done, Those Men, Barry Heard’s much-loved, deeply moving account of life as a Vietnam veteran. This memoir takes us back into the heart of Heard’s experiences as a boy and a young man in Australia during the 1950s and 1960s.
Colourful, poignant, and often very funny, The View from Connor’s Hill reveals a young man who, among the devastation of loss and constant upheaval, celebrates the joy of living in the bush, and delights in the love of his faithful dog Rover and his headstrong horse Swanee.
Capturing the detail of a lost world of country and suburban life in Australia — a world of matinees, country dances, and manual dunnies — Barry Heard delivers his memories with an unwavering honesty and candour.
Barry Heard
Barry Heard was conscripted in Australia's first national service ballot, and served in Vietnam as an infantryman and radio operator. After completing his national service he returned home, where he found himself unable to settle down. He had ten different jobs in his first ten years back, worked as a teacher for a further ten years, and then held several mid-managerial posts before succumbing to a devastating breakdown due to severe post-traumatic stress disorder.
Since recovering, Barry Heard has decided to concentrate on his writing. His first book, Well Done, Those Men, dealt mainly with his Vietnam War-related experiences. He lives with his family in rural Victoria.
Website: http://www.barryheard.com.au
Buy from Readings
Extent: 272pp
Size: 234mm x 153mm
ISBN (13): 9781921215483
RRP: $32.95
Pub date: October 2007
World
ANZ audio (Louis Braille Audio)
News