AUTHOR, journalist and former Australian rugby player Peter FitzSimons charmed a crowd of around 100 people at the Port Macquarie Library on Monday, 24 November.
FitzSimons is one of Australia’s best selling non-fiction writers, and was in town to promote his latest work, “The Courageous Life of Weary Dunlop”.
Dunlop was the heroic doctor whose leadership was a lifeline for the Australian WWII POWs on the infamous Thai-Burma Railway.
Karen Bale, who was the first to get a signed copy, was particularly moved by his story as her father-in-law was a prisoner-of-war in Changi.
The book is FitzSimons’ latest re-telling of the life of a well-known Australian figure.
His other works have included “Breaker Morant”, “Burke and Wills”, “Monash’s Masterpiece”, “Kokoda,” “Ned Kelly” and “Gallipoli”.
From the beginning of the evening, FitzSimons held the audience in the palm of his hand.
“What a splendid literary occasion this is, here in Port Macquarie,” he said.
His animated recitation of “The Man From Snowy River” (which he could do from the age of seven) set the tone for the evening and came with sound effects, character voices and action.
There were lots of laughs as he shared stories about rugby, former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam, and why Port Macquarie is important to him.
“My turn to writing started here in early 2000 when I met Nancy Wake.”
Wake, a decorated WWII resistance fighter and spy codenamed “The White Mouse”, lived in Port Macquarie between 1985 and 2001.
FitzSimons’ storytelling prowess was also evident as he reminisced about his childhood.
“My parents grew oranges, lemons, tomatoes – and children.”
”I was the youngest of those seven children.”
There are two great stories of all time, according to FitzSimons, the shipwreck of the Batavia off the coast of Western Australia in 1629 and the Catalpa Rescue about the breakout from Fremantle Prison in 1875.
His recounting of these stories was compelling.
Librarian and host for the evening Leanne Wright was left with the last words: “That was bloody brilliant.”
By Pauline CAIN
You can help your local paper.
Make a small once-off, or (if you can) a regular donation.
We are an independent family owned business and our newspapers are free to collect and our news stories are free online.
Help support us into the future.
