Simpson's Donkey

Based on the most famous animal in Australian history Simpon’s Donkey tells the story of the donkey’s service in Gallipoli where for three weeks he helped Simpson carry wounded men down to Anzac Cove. Author Peter Stanley tells his story—in the donkey’s own voice—taking the reader on a journey from the Aegean island of Lemnos to Gallipoli to Egypt, Palestine and then back to Gallipoli at the end of the Great War. From beast of burden to hospital pet, to desert supply carrier, the donkey’s story is an adventurous journey on which he meets courage and cruelty, and comradeship.

About The Author

Dr Peter Stanley is one of Australia’s leading military-social historians, the author of twenty books, including For Fear of Pain: British Surgery 1790–1850, Quinn’s Post, Anzac, Gallipoli, Invading Australia: Japan and the Battle for Australia, 1942 and A Stout Pair of Boots: a Guide to Exploring Australia’s Battlefields. He is also the author of Command to Colditz (Murdoch Books, 2009) and Bad Characters (Murdoch Books, 2010). Peter worked for the Australian War Memorial from 1980 to 2007, where he was Principal Historian, and is now Director of the Centre for Historical Research at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra.