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1. At the Front Line: Experiences of Australian Soldiers in World War II (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996)
This book developed from my PhD thesis, which I completed at the University of Melbourne in 1991. That thesis was based on letters, diaries and other writings of more than 300 Australian front-line soldiers. Getting it published was a story in itself, and I was at the point of giving up when my wife insisted that I try the last publisher on my list of possibles: Cambridge University Press. CUP's commissioning editor at the time, Phillipa McGuinness, decided to publish it and in doing so changed my life. More than 20 years have passed since I did the research for this book and I have barely paused in my writing since then. Nevertheless, my interpretations of the way Australian soldiers reacted to the stresses of war have not changed substantially. The research I did for my PhD is still essential to my work. Many veterans of World War II helped me with this book, and two of the most important of them - Gordon Combe and Allan Jones - are the subject of the book I am currently writing. Reviews of At the Front Line With insight and compassion, Mark Johnston tells the story of front-line soldiers of the Second A.I.F. Using their words, he offers a frank account of the main aspects of their lives - the front line, the army and their mates. He blends evidence of courage and fear, sacrifice and selfishness, success and failure into a moving and memorable tribute to men at war. This book will last.’ 2. Fighting the Enemy: Australian Soldiers and their Adversaries in World War II (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2000)
This book is based on material I gathered while doing my PhD thesis. It addresses an unusual topic, and I think a worthy one. Soldiers' interactions with their enemies are central to war, and their attitudes to their enemies affect the way they fight. I wrote this book without first obtaining a contract, and while doing so hoped that Cambridge would accept the manuscript. They did, thanks again to Phillipa McGuiness. The book looks at how Australians interacted with, perceived and were interpreted by the Italians, Germans (two chapters), Vichy French and Japanese (four chapters). There is also a section on 'Fifth columnists'. My work on attitudes to the Japanese has been used by other historians. The book benefitted from having as readers two of Australia's foremost military historians: Professor Jeffrey Grey and Professor David Horner. This was my first connection with David Horner, who has been an important and beneficial person in my writing career, and whose skill, integrity and industry make him a model to all Australian military historians. This book was reissued in paperback in 2009. Reviews of Fighting the Enemy 'We are generally not supposed to be a reflective people, but Johnston’s book challenges this, reading into the very meaning of humanity and its verities. Lest we forget.’ 3. Alamein: The Australian Story (co-authored with Peter Stanley) (Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 2000)
I had first met Peter Stanley in a phone conversation in 1991, when I tried unsuccessfully to obtain a job at the Australian War Memorial. He was at the time the Principal Historian there. Five years later while I was in Canberra researching, Peter invited me to his office. It emerged in the discussion that we were both interested in writing a book about the battle of El Alamein. That battle had really captured my imagination from the time I was doing my PhD research. The epic quality of the battle, the importance of the Australian contribution to its outcome, and the exceptional physical, mental and tactical challenges the Australians faced all made me keen to write about it. When Peter said something along the lines of 'We could write it together', I rapidly accepted the chance to write about this wonderful topic with one of Australia's best historians. Through generous grants from the Australian Army, we were able to travel together to Alamein in 1998. This was a major event in my life. I also travelled alone to London and Germany to gather archival material from the British and German perspective - years of studying German at school and university paid off here. Peter and I were able to agree very quickly about the division of labour on this book, which covers July to November 1942. The book is very detailed - moreso I think than Peter originally intended - and the product of an immense amount of hard work. I am proud of it. It is currently out of print, but we hope it will be reissued. Reviews of Alamein: The Australian Story ‘This excellent new study’ ‘…demonstrates the strengths of modern Australian military history’. ‘At least five books on the battle appeared in 2002, but Alamein: The Australian story is by far the most scholarly and significant.’ 4. That Magnificent 9th: An Illustrated History of the 9th Australian Division 1940-46 (Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 2002)
In the same 1996 discussion in which Peter Stanley and I talked about writing a book on Alamein, he suggested I do a one volume history of the 9th Division. Like the battle of El Alamein, the 9th Division had fascinated me: a formation which suffered more casualties and won more decorations than any other Australian division of the war. I also knew many veterans of this division, and had some marvellous notes on the wartime writings of its men. Two veterans, Max Parsons and Charlie Lemaire, read the whole manuscript, and dozens of others contributed photos and information. I decided to base the format on that of 200 Shots, by Peter Brune and Neil McDonald. That book is driven by discussion of the photographs, which are numbered. Ian Bowring, commissioning editor at Allen & Unwin, was willing to have it published. It has appeared in hardback and paperback. The title, which many 9th Division veterans have quoted back at me, is from Field Marshal Montgomery's 1967 comment that the British 8th Army could not have won Alamein without 'that magnificent 9th Australian Division'. My father-in-law, Michael Taper, suggested the title. Reviews of That Magnificent 9th ‘This superb hard cover book’ ‘That Magnificent 9th was a great read, interesting, informative and well written and I consider it to be a “must have” for any person interested in Australian military history. Certainly no library on Australian history, or on military history in general would be complete without a copy.’ |
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5. The Silent 7th: An Illustrated History of the 7th Australian Division 1940-4
(Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 2005) Allen and Unwin enabled me to write this companion volume to the 9th Division history. It concerns an outstanding formation, famous for its role in the Kokoda and beachhead campaigns, and fully involved in other battles that are full of interest and drama. The book is at least as well researched and presented as its earlier companion, and again involved the help of numerous veterans and their previously unpublished photos. Three of them - Roger Cundell (18th Brigade), Jim McAllester (21st Brigade) and Mervyn Roberts (25th Brigade) - were tremendously helpful in lending me material and also reading the full manuscript. Unfortunately Allen and Unwin, after producing this beautiful book, did what I considered bafflingly little to promote it. Reviews of The Silent 7th ‘…this book superbly and sympathetically captures the spirit of the division’s men and the era in which they fought. This is as good a general handbook on the campaigns of the 7th Division as you will get.’ Neil James, Defender: The National Journal of the Australia Defence Association, Vol. XXII, No. 2, Winter 2005 |
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6. The Australian Army in World War II
(Osprey Publishing, Oxford, 2007) Like legions of other military history enthusiasts, I love Osprey books. When I heard that Osprey were interested in publishing Australian titles, I soon found myself exchanging letters about it with one of my favourite historians, Martin Windrow. We soon settled that I would write a book for the Osprey Elite series on the Second AIF. The title suggests that it's on the whole Australian Army, and I do discuss the PMF and CMF. However, I make it clear that the AIF 'was the army's elite' and 'is therefore the focal point of this book.' Again veterans' advice and photos were valuable here. Martin Windrow was a superb editor, and a very impressive person. Of course the focal point of any Osprey tends to be the beautiful colour illustrations and I was very lucky that they were allotted in this book to Carlos Chagas, an exceptionally gifted Brazilian artist. He did a wonderful job, and the inspiration and intense work he put into the project are very apparent. Writing this book was a great experience and I think it's a good starting point for people wanting to read an introduction to the topic. Reviews of The Australian Army in World War II ‘Few historians would be better suited to writing about the Australian soldiers’ battles, weapons and equipment during the Second World War than Mark Johnston. Over the past decade Johnston has become the leading historian on the experience of Australian soldiers during the war. Although slimmer, this book meets the high standards set by his previous works.’ ‘Thoroughly researched and written in a clear and engaging style, this book is sure to appeal to general and specialist readers alike.’ Karl James, Wartime, Issue 41, 2008. |
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7. The Proud 6th: An Illustrated History of the 6th Australian Division 1939-1946
(Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne, 2008) This book was a logical successor to my histories of the 9th and 7th Divisions, and became viable when it got the support of both Roger Lee at the Australian Army History Unit and David Horner, editor of the Australian Army History Series. It followed the same format as the other two, with over 200 photos, including some great original ones. A favourite is 9.9, a private photo showing men after a New Guinea patrol. The format is largish, with very good production standards. The numbers of veterans available to help was dwindling rapidly, but I got some remarkable assistance from vets such as Alwyn Shilton, Keith Johnston, Ivor White, and Douglas Margetts. This book had a great launch at the Shrine of Remembrance. Reviews of The Proud 6th ‘Johnston is a master of the archival evidence and sets out the combat history of the division in North Africa, Syria, Greece, Crete and Papua New Guinea as well as writing about the division as a community, with its own codes and conflicts. What makes this an important, perhaps indispensable, book for anyone interested in the army in World War II is the way Johnston uses the 200-odd illustrations… Stephen Matchett, Weekend Australian, November 8-9, 2008. |
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8. Whispering Death: Australian Airmen in the Pacific War (Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 2011)
My chance to write this book, which in some ways is my best and most important, came about by accident. Peter Stanley was visiting me in Melbourne in mid-2008 and happened to notice that I was reading Fire in the Sky, a massive book about the air war in the Pacific by Eric Bergerud. It emerged that Allen and Unwin had discussed with Peter the idea of him writing a book about the RAAF in the Pacific. Within days Peter said that he felt that he was already juggling several big writing tasks, and suggested that I might take it on. Allen and Unwin's Ian Bowring was gratifyingly willing to allow me to step into the breach thus created. From June 2008 until I submitted the manuscript on 6 July 2010 it dominated every moment that was not spent at Scotch or marking or taking school sport and other activities. I took long service leave for one term in 2010 and devoted it entirely to editing the lengthy manuscript. The result is a book of about 180,000 words. I wrote this at the height of my writing power (I hope I'm still there!) and gave an immense amount of myself to it. Although I've always loved aircraft, I am not a technical expert on them, and I was very lucky to receive help in that area from Peter Hunter, a Qantas pilot and son of a fighter pilot. Veteran pilots and the excellent work of official historians such as Alan Stephens and George Odgers proved invaluable in creating a book ranging in location from India to the Solomons and in time from the 1930s to 1945. I believe this is a good book. It's probably the one to which I devoted most time. Reviews of Whispering Death |
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‘…let me say at the outset this is an excellent read because it sets out the sacrifice and bravery of the RAAF in clear and unassailable terms.’ Warren Baker, Reveille, Vol 85, No. 2, March-April 2012
'Whispering Death highlights the courage, skill and self-sacrifice of RAAF members – sadly they were poorly equipped – and is a tribute to over 2000 airmen, who lost their lives in the battle against tyranny. This is a very detailed history and compelling reading.’ JR Bartram AM, Group Captain RAAF (Retd), Mufti, December 2011
‘Military historian Mark Johnston has compiled an excellent short history of RAAF combat operations in the Pacific War.’ ‘I found Whispering Death refreshingly honest in its approach to Australian air operations against the Japanese, giving a frank account of the RAAF’s failures as well as its many outstanding victories.’ J.H. Farrell, Australian and NZ Defender, No. 75, Spring 2011
‘This commendable work…’ ‘This work is hard to put down, the tale makes for compelling reading.’ Flightpath magazine, Vol 23, No. 2, November 2011
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9. Anzacs in the Middle East: Australian Soldiers, their allies and the local people in World War II (Cambridge University Press, Melbourne, 2013) I made my first notes for this book when gathering material for my PhD thesis, in 1988. In 2002 I began writing a book about the subject, based largely on material gathered in London at the Imperial War Memorial and the National Archives. I also wrote to British publications and appealed for veterans to tell me stories of their interactions with Australian soldiers. I received many useful replies, ranging from the damning to the laudatory. Most were in the latter category. Other projects caused me to put this book aside, and it was not until after finishing Whispering Death that I returned to it. The topic of how Australian soldiers interacted with their allies and the local people in World War II is a big one, and I soon decided to concentrate on the Middle East rather than the whole of the war, though I have the material for the Pacific War. This book was very well produced and has a lot of amusing and powerful stories in it. Reviews of Anzacs in the Middle East: |
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'Johnston reveals that he has been thinking about this book for more than 20 years and it shows. There is such a breadth of reading, such a wide range of evidence and one word springs to mind as the reader engages with the book: judicious.'
Michael McKernan, 'In defence of Aussies at War', Canberra Times, 25 May, 2013
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10. Stretcher-bearers: Saving Australians from Gallipoli to Kokoda (Cambridge University Press, Melbourne, 2015)
Just as the 9th Australian Division and Alamein were topics that struck me early on as fascinating ones, so did stretcher-bearers. Infantrymen repeatedly singled them out for praise in the Second World War. I was attracted by the way bearers routinely risked their lives to save their fellows. Peter Stanley was interested in this topic too, but I could never persuade him to join me in writing a book about them. However, for years he sent me good material on them as he come across it in his World War I research. I had been seriously thinking of this book since 2002 or earlier, and in 2012 I decided to do it. After much thinking over those years I decided on a format with full page pictures opposite text explaining the photos and driving forward the story of the war: or rather the stories of both world wars. In this book, for the first time I researched and wrote about the First World War. I really loved this topic, and I hope my passion for it comes through. Although there was much negotiation with Cambridge over its format and although not all my visions for it came to fruition, I don't think many readers could read it and remain unmoved by its visual power and the words of many of the protagonists. Some were born great, others had greatness thrust upon them, and there were some who couldn't handle it, to coin a phrase. However I am really pleased to have dipped my lid to this unusual and exceptional group of soldiers. Reviews of Stretcher-Bearers: 'This is an impressive publication dedicated to a very impressive part of our Armed forces…The author is no stranger to presenting outstanding portrayals of the various aspects of the service person’s life during armed conflict. With this title he demonstrates, yet again, dedication to detail and scouring of repositories where some of the very fine images, narratives, diaries and firsthand written accounts of these medics have been sourced…This volume is an exceptional published memorial to an exceptional type of service person.' Carl Johnson, Mufti, March 2016 |
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11. An Australian Band of Brothers: Don Company, Second 43rd Battalion, 9th Division (NewSouth Publishing, Sydney, 2018)
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Reviews of An Australian Band of Brothers:
'Johnston's access to the detailed personal accounts [of Gordon Combe, Allan Jones and John Lovegrove] offers the reader an unprecedented insight into the daily lives of these soldiers.' Peter Masters, Australian Defence Magazine, September 2018
'An Australian Band of Brothers is an excellent insight into a Second AIF Battalion's war.' J.H. Farrell, Australian & NZ Defender, No. 102
'Johnston's access to the detailed personal accounts [of Gordon Combe, Allan Jones and John Lovegrove] offers the reader an unprecedented insight into the daily lives of these soldiers.' Peter Masters, Australian Defence Magazine, September 2018
'An Australian Band of Brothers is an excellent insight into a Second AIF Battalion's war.' J.H. Farrell, Australian & NZ Defender, No. 102
