Fromelles : Australia's Bloodiest Day at War

The first shots were fired at 11 a.m. on 19 July 1916. The Battle of Fromelles lasted less than 24 hours. When it was over, more than 5,000 Australian soldiers had been killed, wounded or taken prisoner — more soldiers died at Fromelles than in the Boer, Korean and Vietnam wars combined.

What was the point of this bloody loss of life?

And why, almost a century later, did the attention of the world once again turn to Fromelles?

The story of this battle, and the men who took part in it, is told with compassion and respect, without glorifying war. The weapons and tactics of World War I are explained, and though the story is told mainly from the point-of-view of the Australian soldiers, it is not forgotten that others were involved in this part of history — the British, the French peasants who lived in the area, and on the other side of the trenches, the Germans.

About The Author

Carole was born in England in 1950. Her family moved to Australia when she was 12. She now lives in Melbourne, with her husband John.

Carole didn't start writing until she was nearly 40. Before that, she worked as a laboratory assistant, working with a lot of blood and brains. Once she’d decided to try and become a writer, she went to university. She wrote a lot while she was there including her first novel. She showed it to a friend who worked in publishing who asked if she could write a teenage novel. Her first published book was based on something her daughter, who was at high school at the time, was doing.