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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'The little known and intriguing WWII story of an eleven-year-old Australian schoolboy who was shot by the Japanese in Rabaul in 1942 as a suspected spy - a compelling story of spies, volcanoes, history and war.
'In May 1942, in the town of Rabaul in the Australian territory of New Guinea, five Australian civilians were taken by Japanese soldiers to a pit at the base of a volcano and executed as spies.
'A mother, her brother, her husband and her friend. And her 11-year-old son.
Who were these people and what had led them to this terrible end, under the shadow of a volcano?
'Acclaimed 4th Estate author and award-winning science journalist Ian Townsend has uncovered a fascinating story that sheds new light on a largely forgotten but desperate battle fought on Australian territory. The Australian Government, unable to reinforce its small garrison, abandoned more than 1500 Australian soldiers and civilians as ‘hostages to fortune' in the face of the irresistible Japanese advance. Set against the romantic, dramatic and ultimately tragic backdrop of Rabaul in WWII, this is a wholly intriguing narrative of Australian history, military conflict and volcanology, woven together with the story of one ordinary but doomed Australian family.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Notes
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Dedication: For Kirsty
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also braille and sound recording.
Works about this Work
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Forgotten Stories : The Lost History of Australians in Papua New Guinea Ian Townsend
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: Fryer Folios , November vol. 11 no. 1 2017; (p. 18-20)'The trial and execution of an eleven-year-old Australian boy for espionage in World War Two doesn’t seem like the sort of story anyone could easily forget. As a nation, though, we have not only forgotten the story of Dickie Manson but have a broader blind spot when it comes to Australia’s shared history with Papua New Guinea. PNG’s history and culture remain what they have always been to most Australians: overlooked and often misunderstood.' (Publication abstract)
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The ‘Spies’ Who Never Came Back from New Guinea
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22 April 2017; (p. 22) -
Up Close 1 : The Boy Spy
2017
single work
interview
— Appears in: Good Reading , February 2017; (p. 16) 'ABC journalist and science writer Ian Townsend cut his teeth as a novelist in 2007 with Affection, which told the story of a plague outbreak in 1900. His next novel, The Devil’s Eye, was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Award in 2009. Now with Line of Fire, he turns his pen to narrative non-fiction to tell the story of Richard Manson, an 11-year-old boy who was accused of espionage and shot by the Japanese during World War II in New Guinea' (Introduction)
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Up Close 1 : The Boy Spy
2017
single work
interview
— Appears in: Good Reading , February 2017; (p. 16) 'ABC journalist and science writer Ian Townsend cut his teeth as a novelist in 2007 with Affection, which told the story of a plague outbreak in 1900. His next novel, The Devil’s Eye, was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Award in 2009. Now with Line of Fire, he turns his pen to narrative non-fiction to tell the story of Richard Manson, an 11-year-old boy who was accused of espionage and shot by the Japanese during World War II in New Guinea' (Introduction) -
The ‘Spies’ Who Never Came Back from New Guinea
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 22 April 2017; (p. 22) -
Forgotten Stories : The Lost History of Australians in Papua New Guinea Ian Townsend
2017
single work
essay
— Appears in: Fryer Folios , November vol. 11 no. 1 2017; (p. 18-20)'The trial and execution of an eleven-year-old Australian boy for espionage in World War Two doesn’t seem like the sort of story anyone could easily forget. As a nation, though, we have not only forgotten the story of Dickie Manson but have a broader blind spot when it comes to Australia’s shared history with Papua New Guinea. PNG’s history and culture remain what they have always been to most Australians: overlooked and often misunderstood.' (Publication abstract)
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Rabaul,
New Britain,
cPapua New Guinea,cPacific Region,
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Rabaul,
New Britain,
cPapua New Guinea,cPacific Region,
- 1942