Reinhold (Jack) Schuster was an illegal German immigrant. A trained soldier in the German Armeekorps, he sat out both world wars in the Australian outback of Broken Hill. Jack's story debunks the myth that salutes the mining town as the birthplace of solidarity - by exposing divisiveness, prejudice and powerlessness.
The only enemy attack to take place on Australian soil during World War I occurred in Broken Hill, and Jack was there to witness the mob violence that followed. He watched unionists stone the troop trains heading off to war and learned of brutality against his countrymen in the Torrens Island internment camp.
Christine Ellis's grandfather came to life through stories told by her mother - some of which defied belief. Christine's research confirmed them. Silver Lies, Golden Truths is Jack Schuster's story. It tells of the love between a father and his young daughter, of idyllic family times, and the cruel cost of working in the mines.
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Christine Ellis is a strategic communications consultant who maintains strong links to her hometown of Broken Hill. Christine is a director of Foundation Broken Hill, a not-for-profit organisation supporting the Silver City's transition to a diversified economy independent of its rapidly declining mining industry. Her narrative non-fiction works Silver Lies, Golden Truths and Jack's Daughter link the colourful history of Broken Hill to her family.
ISBN 9781743053508
CATEGORY Biography/Autobiography/True Stories
IMAGES 16 pp greyscale photographs
PAGE COUNT 324
DIMENSIONS 210 x 140 mm
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'This book gives a gripping account of what life was like in a mining town in the first half of the twentieth century, with the added bonus of seeing the two world wars through the eyes of an enemy alien living in Australia at that time.' - Ian Harmstorf, Journal of the Historical Society of South Australia
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'Quietly powerful and consistently fascinating, this work is a fine addition to the untold Australian story.' - Stephen Davenport, InDaily
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'A timely, heartbreaking re-imagining of war and peace in the Silver City.' - Peter Goers
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'A poignant tale about an extraordinary man, interesting and captivating.' - Nic Klaassen, Flinders Research Journal
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'A must read.' - Peter Black, Barrier Daily Truth
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'It is difficult to get to the end of the story without feeling like this is a man you know, or at the very least one you would like to meet.' - Raelke Grimmer, Transnational Literature, Vol. 8, No. 2