A collection of the funniest yarns and most colourful characters from the bestselling 'Great Australian Stories' series from beloved storyteller Bill 'Swampy' Marsh. When he'd finished playing, a solemn silence fell as Brian and the gravediggers stared down into that three-quarter-filled hole. 'I must apologise,' Brian said to the two men, 'this's the first time I've played at a pauper's funeral, and I'm a bit emotional.' 'Well,' said one of the diggers, sniffling back the tears, 'it's the first time we've ever had a piper play at one of our septic tank installations.' The Australian Outback can be harsh, but it's the kind of place where you either learn to laugh off your troubles or fold under the pressure. Bill 'Swampy' Marsh has a deep affection and respect for people living in the Australian Bush, and he's spent more than twenty years travelling to every corner of our wide brown land, talking to people from all walks of life, collecting their memories and stories. Great Australian Outback Yarns captures the funniest tales from Swampy's many books in one volume. The colourful characters in these pages are full of generosity, humour and a larrikin Aussie spirit. These true stories of life in remote and regional Australia from Australia's master storyteller will leave you grinning from ear to ear. Bill 'Swampy' Marsh is an award-winning writer and performer of stories, songs and plays. He spent most of his youth in rural south-western NSW and now lives in Adelaide. This is his twenty-fifth book.

This much anticipated collection of stories, written by Oxford University Fellow and Pain Scientist, Dr GL Moseley, provides an entertaining and informative way to understand modern pain biology. Described by critics as 'a gem' and by clinicians as 'entertaining and educative', Painful Yarns is a unique book. The stories, some of his travels in outback Australia, some of experiences growing up, are great yarns. At the end of each story, there is a section "so what has this got to do with pain?" in which Lorimer uses the story as a metaphor for some aspect of pain biology. The level of the pain education is appropriate for patients and health professionals. The entertainment is good for everyone. You don't have to be interested in pain to get something from this book and a laugh or two!

Whatever the circumstances, Australians have always found something to laugh about, laugh at or laugh off. Graham Seal has been gathering traditional stories from country towns and the outback for decades, and here he compiles the very funniest stories he has encountered. 'Graham Seal writes ripper, fair dinkum, true-blue Aussie yarns.' - The Weekly Times Australians traditionally like their humour irreverent, crude and with very sharp teeth. Perhaps you've heard of the vicious drop bears that fall on unsuspecting tourists as they walk through the bush? Or the hoop snakes that put their tails in their mouths as they roll down the hill towards you? Or how about the Citizenship Test for Aspiring Australians which begins with this question about an essential life skill: 'How many slabs can you fit in the back of a Falcon ute while also allowing room for your cattle dog?' The bush is the source of traditional Aussie humour. Pioneering, settlement and battling fire, flood and drought have produced yarns of tough cocky farmers, shearers, bush workers, swaggies and dreadful cooks. Much of this humour relates to the resilience and fortitude necessary to endure the realities of rural life. Australians took this sensibility with them to war and to work in the cities, and the tradition continues today. Whatever the circumstances, Australians have always found something to laugh about, laugh at or laugh off. 'Graham Seal has the knack of the storyteller.' - Warren Fahey AM

The bestselling story of a real-life Crocodile Dundee. the bestselling story of a real-life Crocodile Dundee. In this remarkable memoir, tom Cole tells the stories of his life in the outback during the 1920s and 1930s. With great humour and drama, he recounts his adventures as a drover and stockman in the toughest country in Australia and later on as a buffalo shooter and crocodile hunter in the Northern territory before the war. First published in 1988 and having sold over 100 000 copies, Hell West and Crooked is perfect for anyone who enjoys a classic outback yarn. 'A real-life story of the pioneering days of the top End that out-adventures anything fiction writers could hope to produce.' - tHE WESt AUStRALIAN 'tom Cole is a living legend, a real-life Crocodile Dundee. His stories paint a vivid picture of wild and exciting times in the Australian outback.' - MELBOURNE SUNDAY EXPRESS 'A story of the outback and cattlemen and women, stripped of glamour, that will become an Australian classic to rub covers with authors like Ion Idriess.' - GOLD COASt BULLEtIN

Take a journey to some of the most memorable and extraordinary pubs in Australia. Each of these outstanding country, bush and outback pubs has a unique story to tell about its surroundings, its neighbours and about its customers, both regular and occasional. Author and photographer Colin Whelan crosses Australia on his motorbike to visit these disappearing icons of outback Australia. He tells of his travels between the pubs, the marvellous stories of pioneering history and the characters and drinking culture that he uncovered.

Aussie Yarns: some serious, some funny, and some philosophical. Most are about down-to-earth country folk. Some, like ‘Rusty’ and ‘A Farmer’s Wife’ have a lesson in them. Others are even a bit romantic, for example, ‘Blind Love’ and ‘Best Friends’. In a number of cases, the story is inspired by a poem already written, and in other cases, one is written specially, but in any case, all are accompanied by a poem or two and an explanation as to how it all came about. Primarily these yarns were written with an Australian readership in mind, most of whom would understand and appreciate the slang words and phrases used, particularly by unsophisticated bushies. However, I imagine some of the terms may leave non-Australians a bit perplexed. Stick with it, and by the time you’ve read Witness for the Defence you will have probably worked out what a “sheila’ is, along with all the other words and expressions that are uniquely Australian country in origin. Enjoy the adventures of the 110 characters who play some role in these yarns.

The men and women you'll meet in this fascinating book come in all shapes and sizes, from convicts and engineers to cattleduffers and anthropologists. These remarkable Australians share an extraordinary ability to survive the rigours of the bush. In Outback Heroes, Evan McHugh brings together his favourite ripping yarns from the Australian frontier. He begins with escaped convict William Buckley, who emerged from the forest after thirty-two years in the wild; re-examines the legends of the Man from Snowy River and Waltzing Matilda; recounts one of the most stunning rescues in Australian history; and relives the 2000 Olympics Opening Ceremony. These and other true stories of courage and ingenuity remind us how the Australian character was forged – through encounters with the bush, desert and outback.