John Curtin has been lauded by many Australians, regardless of political affiliation, as the most significant Australian political leader of the twentieth century.
In this remarkable biography, David Day traces the journey of Curtin from his peripatetic childhood in small-town Victoria to his courageous and dramatic leadership of the nation in the darkest hours of the Second World War.
What emerges is a diptych-like portrait of a complex, brilliant man wounded by his personal failures and disappointments, but energised by his political and social achievements.
This is a timely and long overdue reassessment of a man who did so much to shape Australia's destiny and whose impact on Australian politics and the Australian character is still felt today.
