Stand Easy

After the Defeat of Japan, 1945

by The Australian Military Forces

Australian War Memorial, 1945, colour and black and white plates, photographs and illustrations, colour frontispiece, illustrated end papers, hardcover, dust jacket

Very Good Condition, some edge and shelf wear, some rubbing and bumping to edges and corners, previous owners details on title page,  dust-jacket shows edge and shelf wear with rubbing, bumping, creasing, chipping and tearing to edges, corners and spine  (see photographs)

“The preparation of this volume was commenced early in 1945 when members of the Army, following a practice introduced with “Khaki and Green” in 1943, were invited to take part in a competition for contributions.  This produced the usual excellent results and the book was ready for the printer early in August.
By then the Australian Army was fighting along an inland front from Bougainville to Borneo – a battle-line stretching across the north of Australia, longer than the distance from Sydney to Perth, and equal to the distance from the Normandy beaches to the Persian Gulf.  In those days the commonest phrase on the lips of Australians – servicemen and women and civilians alike – was “Up North”, and it was intended to publish the book under this title.
With the sudden ending of the war it was decided to revise the book and defer production until pictures of the final scenes in this great conflict could be included.  A change in the title was thought to be desirable.  The book was again ready for the printer late in September.  Then other causes outside the control of the editors and publishers further delayed production...”