Author(s): Paul Daley

Travel

A unique literary and pictorial portrait of a tumultuous, exciting and enduringly dangerous part of the world. Armageddon. Nazareth. Damascus. The names of these places come straight from the Bible. They are the lands of the Pharaohs, the Crusaders, Lawrence of Arabia. But the forbidding deserts and mysterious cities of the Middle East were also the lesser-known backdrop for the battles of the Australian men and boys who served there during the First World War. Paul Daley and Michael Bowers follow in the footsteps of the Australian Light Horse divisions, bringing us closer to the realities of those times. As they pick up shrapnel, bullet casings and even the odd human bone, the musings and black humour of these two mates recall the laconic spirit of the diggers. Illustrated with both archival photographs and contemporary photography, Armageddon is part travelogue, part history - a compelling story about the tragic road the Australians fought to victory. Evocative, sometimes funny, frequently sad and often disturbing, Armageddon is two men on a fading Anzac trail.