Disclosure : This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Instructions for American Servicemen in Australia (1942)

This little book is marvellous reproduction of the original wartime guide, straight from the depths of the world-renowned Bodleian library.Nearly 1 million American soldiers passed through Australia between 1942 and 1945 as part of America`s strategy to recapture the Philippines and defeat Japan. They encountered a country full of reassuring similarities and strange differences. Here was a land of wide-open spaces, roughly the same size as the US, with a can-do, pioneering spirit, a history of swift development; a land of `funny animals` and peculiar vowel sounds. But who were the Australians and how were Americans to behave in their midst? They were, of course, `an outdoors sort of people, breezy and very democratic`, with a gargantuan appetite for swearing. In the inimitable prose of the soldier`s pocket book series, this pithy guide captures the essence of Australia and its people, their humour, vocabulary; their attitude to the Yanks, the British, the War and the world with remarkable economy and clarity. It also manages to squeeze in a small canvas of Australian history, politics, economics, sports, and musical tradition, as well as colourful lexicon of national slang, which defines for example sheila as `a babe`, cliner as `another babe`, and sninny as `a third babe`. Like any self-respecting guide to Australian culture, it contains the text of Waltzing Matilda, together with a few bon mots about its cultural significance, particularly in wartime. Unlike cricket, which is a polite game, Australian Rules Football creates a desire on the part of the crowd to tear someone apart, usually the referee. The Australian has few equals in the world at swearing…the commonest swear words are bastard (pronounced “barstud”), “bugger,” and “bloody,” and the Australians have a genius for using the latter nearly every other word.These qualities of colloquialism and directness evoke the gritty reality of war and cultural upheavals which accompanied it; they also characterise the book’™s appeal to its original readers and the newfound audience today.

Related Products:

Instructions for American Servicemen in Britain (1942) Instructions for British Servicemen in France (1944) Instructions for Servicemen (Historical Reproductions) Australia in the Great War Australia: The New New World A Naturalist`s Guide to the Snakes of Australia Frommer`s Australia Australians at the Great War 1914-1918 Ednapedia: A History of Australia in a Hundred Objects The Surfer`s Travel Guide Australia 9th Ed: The Most Comprehensive Guide Available with in-depth Descriptions for Every Major Surf Break in Australia Australia: The Cookbook Australia: Architectural Guide Rock Climbing Down Under: Australia Exposed Australians: Eureka to the Diggers: 2 The Australia Survival Guide Australians – Origins to Eureka Australia – A Traveller`s Literary Companion Living & Working in Australia Insight Guides Australia National Geographic Traveler: Australia, Sixth Edition The Making of Australia: From a Tiny Struggling Convict Settlement to the Remarkable Nation it is Today Default ThumbnailAustralia – Where to Camp Guide Directory of World Cinema: Australia & NZ Australia AmazingWorld Wall Map Baobabs of the World: The Upside-Down Trees of Madagascar, Africa and Australia Australia Hema Handy Map Birds of Australia: A Photographic Guide James Martin`s American Adventure: 80 classic American recipes An Due North: expedition through Australia from Tasmania to the Gulf The North American Bird Guide Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee : Indian History of the American West. Default ThumbnailAdmiralty Chart Folio 64 – Southwest Coast of Australia – Cape Cuvier to Great Australian Bight Default ThumbnailAdmiralty Chart Folio 65 – Southeast Coast of Australia – Tasmania from Great Australian Bight to Sydney Traveller`s History of Australia The Penguin Book of American Short Stories Australia – Culture Smart! The American Future – A History Outback Stations: Life on the Land by the People Who Live There A Naturalist`s Guide to the Lizards of Australia Australia Traveler Guide