Description
Title: The Changi Brownlow: An inspirational story of the Aussie team spirit – mateship and sacrifice, courage and endurance.
Author: Perry, Roland
Condition: Near Mint Plus
Edition: 1st Edition
Publisher: Hachette Australia
Publication Date: 2010
ISBN: 9780733624643
Cover: Soft Cover without Dust Jacket – 376 pages
Comments: After Singapore falls to the Japanese early in 1942, 70 000 prisoners including 15 000 Australians, are held as POWs at the notorious Changi prison, Singapore. To amuse themselves and fellow inmates, a group of sportsmen led by the indefatigable and popular ‘Chicken’ Smallhorn, created an Australian Football League, complete with tribunal, selection panel, umpires and coaches. The final game of the one and only season was between ‘Victoria’ and the ‘Rest of Australia’, which attracted 10 000 spectators, and a unique Brownlow Medal was awarded in this unlikely setting under the curious gaze of Japanese prison guards.
Meet the main characters behind this spectacle: Peter Chitty, the farm hand from Snowy River country with unfathomable physical and mental fortitude, and one of eight in his immediate family who volunteer to fight and serve in WW2; ‘Chicken’ Smallhorn, the Brownlow-medal winning little man with the huge heart; and ‘Weary’ Dunlop, the courageous doctor, who cares for the POWs as they endure malnutrition, disease and often inhuman treatment. This is a story of courage and the invincibility of the human spirit, and highlights not only the Australian love of sport, but its power to offer consolation in times of extreme hardship.
About The Author
Roland Perry is the author of a number of cricket books – ranging from biographies of Donald Bradman, Keith Miller, Steve Waugh and Shane Warne, and also accounts of other great tours and teams.
