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'Kerry Stokes came into the world with no advantages. Unlike his rival magnates, he built his empire from nothing. Kerry Stokes: Self-Made Man is the real, fascinating story behind the rabbits-to-riches ascendancy of one of Australia's most powerful men.
'Plucked from an orphanage as an infant, Kerry Stokes grew up in the slums and streets of post-Depression Melbourne with his itinerant, adoptive parents. As a boy he trapped, skinned and sold rabbits to make ends meet, and seemed destined to a life of hardship and poverty.
'Today Stokes is one of Australia's most successful business moguls, with interests in property, mining, construction equipment and media. He picked the boom in China ahead of the pack, and has forged strong relationships in that country. He is a recipient of Australia's highest civil honour, and in 2013 he was a nominee for Australian of the Year. He owns what is probably the finest private art collection in the country, and has sat on the governing bodies of some of our leading cultural institutions. As the Packer family departs the media and the Murdoch clan tackles damage to its reputation on three continents, Stokes is emerging as the single most influential media proprietor in Australia.
'Yet Stokes has remained relatively low-profile, and is notoriously private. Mysterious and elusive, Stokes is the archetypal self-made man, driven by the determination to escape his past and the legacy of disadvantage. But at what cost?' (Publisher's blurb)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Not Just a Poor Boy
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18 January 2014; (p. 20-21)
— Review of Kerry Stokes : Self-Made Man 2013 single work biography -
Hot Reads
2013
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 14-15 December 2013; (p. 18-19)
— Review of The Very Brave Bear 2013 single work picture book ; Seadog 2013 single work picture book ; Ice, Wind, Rock : Douglas Mawson in the Antarctic 2013 single work biography picture book ; The Four Seasons of Lucy McKenzie 2013 single work children's fiction ; The Rules of Summer 2013 single work picture book ; The Dying Beach 2013 single work novel ; The Ballad of Dixie Lee 2013 single work picture book ; Life in Outer Space 2013 single work novel ; Refuge 2013 single work children's fiction ; The Midnight Dress 2013 single work novel ; Watching You 2013 single work novel ; The Best Australian Science Writing 2013 2013 anthology short story essay poetry autobiography ; Bitter Wash Road 2013 single work novel ; The Dunbar Case 2013 single work novel ; The Narrow Road to the Deep North 2013 single work novel ; The Night Guest 2013 single work novel ; Questions of Travel 2012 single work novel ; The Rosie Project 2013 single work novel ; The Childhood of Jesus 2013 single work novel ; Divine Comedy : A New Verse Translation Clive James (translator), 2013 single work poetry ; The Best Australian Poems 2013 2013 selected work poetry ; At the Close of Play 2013 single work autobiography ; Ned Kelly : The Story of Australia's Most Notorious Legend 2013 single work biography ; Forgotten War 2013 single work non-fiction ; Kerry Stokes : Self-Made Man 2013 single work biography ; The 39-Storey Treehouse 2013 single work children's fiction ; Twiggy : The High-Stakes Life of Andrew Forest 2013 single work biography ; WeirDo 2013 single work children's fiction ; Boomer & Me : A Memoir of Motherhood and Asperger's 2013 single work autobiography ; The Best 100 Poems of Dorothy Porter 2013 selected work poetry ; Clive : The Story of Clive Palmer 2013 single work biography ; Australian Poetry Journal vol. 3 no. 1 2013 periodical issue ; Shame and the Captives 2013 single work novel ; Coal Creek 2013 single work novel ; Barracuda 2013 single work novel -
Behind the Veil
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19 October 2013; (p. 10-13) The Age , 19 October 2013; (p. 1) The Canberra Times , 19 October 2013; (p. 1, 4)
-
Hot Reads
2013
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 14-15 December 2013; (p. 18-19)
— Review of The Very Brave Bear 2013 single work picture book ; Seadog 2013 single work picture book ; Ice, Wind, Rock : Douglas Mawson in the Antarctic 2013 single work biography picture book ; The Four Seasons of Lucy McKenzie 2013 single work children's fiction ; The Rules of Summer 2013 single work picture book ; The Dying Beach 2013 single work novel ; The Ballad of Dixie Lee 2013 single work picture book ; Life in Outer Space 2013 single work novel ; Refuge 2013 single work children's fiction ; The Midnight Dress 2013 single work novel ; Watching You 2013 single work novel ; The Best Australian Science Writing 2013 2013 anthology short story essay poetry autobiography ; Bitter Wash Road 2013 single work novel ; The Dunbar Case 2013 single work novel ; The Narrow Road to the Deep North 2013 single work novel ; The Night Guest 2013 single work novel ; Questions of Travel 2012 single work novel ; The Rosie Project 2013 single work novel ; The Childhood of Jesus 2013 single work novel ; Divine Comedy : A New Verse Translation Clive James (translator), 2013 single work poetry ; The Best Australian Poems 2013 2013 selected work poetry ; At the Close of Play 2013 single work autobiography ; Ned Kelly : The Story of Australia's Most Notorious Legend 2013 single work biography ; Forgotten War 2013 single work non-fiction ; Kerry Stokes : Self-Made Man 2013 single work biography ; The 39-Storey Treehouse 2013 single work children's fiction ; Twiggy : The High-Stakes Life of Andrew Forest 2013 single work biography ; WeirDo 2013 single work children's fiction ; Boomer & Me : A Memoir of Motherhood and Asperger's 2013 single work autobiography ; The Best 100 Poems of Dorothy Porter 2013 selected work poetry ; Clive : The Story of Clive Palmer 2013 single work biography ; Australian Poetry Journal vol. 3 no. 1 2013 periodical issue ; Shame and the Captives 2013 single work novel ; Coal Creek 2013 single work novel ; Barracuda 2013 single work novel -
Not Just a Poor Boy
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18 January 2014; (p. 20-21)
— Review of Kerry Stokes : Self-Made Man 2013 single work biography -
Behind the Veil
2013
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 19 October 2013; (p. 10-13) The Age , 19 October 2013; (p. 1) The Canberra Times , 19 October 2013; (p. 1, 4)
Awards
- 2014 shortlisted Ashurst Business Literature Prize
- 2014 longlisted Walkley Award — Best Non-Fiction Book
- 2014 winner Western Australian Premier's Book Awards — West Australian History