Feedback from the author
SENIOR SCHOOL
The Last Great Australian Adventurer is a non-fiction book recounting the story of Ben Carlin , a Guildford Grammar School Alumnus , and his misadventures attempting to circumnavigate the world in an amphibious WWII army jeep that was so slow in the water that production was stopped after only a year . The lump of floating metal was so broken and brittle that Carlin had to come up with an on-the- spot solution every five seconds or so . Gordon Bass , who wrote the book , strays from the stereotypical monotone of biographies , and gives thrilling emotion on every page . He knows all of the in-depth facts and thoughts of the people involved , whether by research , talking to those who knew Ben , or from his family ’ s relationship with Ben . I found a startling comparison between Ben Carlin and Captain Ahab from Moby Dick . They both found a goal they wished to achieve , even though it strays from the purpose of what they were doing , and became obsessed and dedicated above all else to finishing that goal . While Ben was not obsessed with killing a whale , it almost seemed like he was obsessed with killing himself . Whether he be out drinking himself to oblivion , ruining his relationships with people , or roughing it out with whoever disagreed with him , he was always looking for danger , emphasized by his wish to be on the front lines of the war . Don ’ t get me wrong , Ben Carlin ’ s mind was an amazing thing , he was able to learn anything at amazing speed when he wanted to and his ingenuity is astounding , but he was a harsh man . The Last Great Australian Adventurer is packed with personality , and isn ’ t just an unemotional recounting of facts . It shows Ben as he really was , stern , confident ,
Feedback from the author
sexist , drunk , harsh , intelligent , and above all persistent . That yellow half car / half boat sitting in a perspex hut is more than just that . It was a money pit , a home , a death trap and most importantly an obsession . The Last Great Australian Adventurer is the perfect way to tell the story of this man ’ s wild life .
Marcus Outram ( Year 10 )
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Ben Carlin ’ s postwar circumnavigation of the world in his amphibious jeep Half-Safe stretched out over a decade . What started as a wild adventure for Ben and Elinore ended with Ben alone and exhausted . Gordon Bass pieces together from personal interviews and a diverse range of sources , the very human story of Carlin and those whose lives intersected with his , sometimes briefly , sometimes catastrophically .
Thank you for sharing these reviews with me ! I ’ m so impressed by the critical thinking and creative talent on display here . These students write as well as many professional reviewers , and they ’ ve done a superb job in noting the book ’ s balance between adventure and character study .
I hadn ’ t thought of Ben as being like Captain Ahab , but I think that ’ s a spot-on comparison . And I wish I ’ d written the line “ It was a money pit , a home , a death trap and most importantly an obsession .”
Merriwyn Spicer-Wensley says I described Carlin “ as a somewhat tragic figure , almost as a Shakespearean tragic hero , fundamentally flawed and ultimately undone by his own hubris .” That ’ s exactly how I feel about Ben , and I ’ m happy that it comes through in the book .
Please share my appreciation with the Senior Book Club . Guildford Grammar School clearly attracts the best and brightest .
All my best , Gordon Bass
Illustrations of Half-Safe by Guildford Grammar Preparatory School students .
Shifts in time and focus result in a wellpaced read that is filled with pathos . Readers are taken into a world that has changed in so many ways , where the colonial past ensured a welcome from embassies and foreign businesses and where borders could be crossed with a mixture of bluff and determination . Interspersed with the narrative of the journey are answers to the questions that such a journey inevitably provokes . How did Ben come to be the person he was ? How did Half-Safe become the strange vehicle she was and what did some of the people who met , befriended , loved and fought with Ben make of him ? These diversions and links back to the interviews and investigations undertaken by Gordon Bass are intriguing and add real depth to the book , making it more than just a tale of high adventure . However , the adventure is certainly there and one can ’ t help being impressed by the engineering ingenuity of Ben and entertained by some of his mad exploits .
Ben Carlin and his co-pilots accomplished seemingly impossible feats and yet a strong vein of self-sabotage and cruelty runs through his story . Bass is compassionate in his treatment of all the characters without shying away from the darker aspects of their deeds and character . In many instances readers are given insights into both sides of conflicts . Ultimately , The Last Great Australian Adventurer is a sad story of selfsabotage , bravery and endurance . Many of the individuals suffer greatly at the hands of others and as a consequence of the choices they make . You don ’ t have to be a lover of non-fiction to appreciate the oddly moving tale of Ben Carlin and those whose lives he touched .
Alison Spicer-Wensley ( staff )
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