Defining year in our history
War on Our Doorstep
Edited by Gabrielle Chan. Hardie Grant Books. 316pp. $29.95.
Reviewer: CPL Alisha Welch
The national significance of Gallipoli has resulted in many Australians considering 1915 to be Australia’s unofficial year of birth.

After reading this captivating account of wartime history, one can only conclude that 1942 was also a defining moment in our nationhood.

In 1942 Australia was touched physically and emotionally by world events and succeeded in repelling Japanese attempts to threaten the mainland.

War on Our Doorstep is a month-by-month account of the turbulent year as told by soldiers and civilians at the frontline. Edited by journalist Gabrielle Chan, the interesting book features disturbingly personal experiences of the war.

War on Our Doorstep outlines the mateship, desperation and determination shared by all Australians at the time.

It makes the reader shudder when realising how close Australia actually came to being invaded by the Japanese. A must read.

French fighters
French Special Forces
By Eric Micheletti. Histoire & Collections. 160pp. $71
Reviewer: PTE Simone Heyer

As a former member of the French airborne and editor of Raids, a French military magazine, Eric Micheletti is well-placed to pen this detailed account of his country’s Special Forces. The book looks at the most secretive of French SF – No. 1 Regiment Parachute Infantry Marine, naval commandos and special operations aviation assets – as well as the basic SF. It covers operations around the world, different exercises, training and day-to-day activities.

The book is comprehensive in its explanation of the role of the special forces in France, and profiles each of the regiments, clarifying their position in the greater scheme of things. You can learn about their equipment, kit weapons and operational history.

Set out like a flashy, hardcover magazine, French Special Forces is an easy but informative read, filled with amazing pictures of the boys in action.

The book is available by contacting the publishing house in Paris on 33 1 40 21 18 20 or through Internet book stores.