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Harold Holt: Always One Step Further
Harold Holt was a pivotal prime minister in Australian history. Ambitious, modern and telegenic, he helped bring his party and nation into the late twentieth century, following the Menzies years. Nowhere was Holt’s legacy more significant than in the 1967 referendum, and in helping to end the White Australia policy. At the same time, as the Vietnam War raged, Holt dramatically increased Australian troops, telling President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1966 that Australia was ‘all the way with LBJ’.
In this evocative, intimate and deeply researched biography, Ross Walker captures the worlds in which Holt moved and the people who were close to him. He reveals a popular, gentle, yet at times self-destructive man, whose tendency to always go one step further would have fatal consequences. This is a strikingly original portrait of Australia’s seventeenth prime minister
In this evocative, intimate and deeply researched biography, Ross Walker captures the worlds in which Holt moved and the people who were close to him. He reveals a popular, gentle, yet at times self-destructive man, whose tendency to always go one step further would have fatal consequences. This is a strikingly original portrait of Australia’s seventeenth prime minister
408 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 30, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 16, 2023
I’m afraid I found this biography of Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt disappointing.
I have several criticisms of the book mainly around some of the editorial decisions made in the book, and it’s not really clear what is due to a lack of source material or a lack of research.
My first issue with the book is one I find all to prevalent in many biographies I read and that is a lack of clear dates for when things happen. Perhaps it is the author’s reluctance to interrupt the narrative flow by mentioning such mundane things as dates but I shouldn’t have to do all the analysis myself. An example is his transition from university student to politician. Holt graduated with a Law Degree from Melbourne Uni some undisclosed time. I assume since he was born in 1908 he graduated uni around 1930 or 1931 when he was 22 or 23. Walker states he was first elected to Federal Parliament in August 1935 just after his 27th birthday. In the meantime he had an extremely short career as a legal professional. Anyway, thank goodness for his Wiki page which fills in these gaps.
Another big issue with the book is that Walker, through lack of source material or lack of research, is unable to shed any light on Holt’s political philosophy or motivation for becoming a politician. In the book the closest I could find to motivation was ‘He talked to Zara (his future wife) about the things he wanted to do if he won a seat in parliament: “There are so many things that should be done in this country and we’ve got to open it up, expand it”’ (p45). A bit further Walker states ‘… he intended to promote policies which he felt made good sense.’ (p46). It is hardly an insightful observation as I would assume that politicians of any political stripe would think the policies they pursue ‘make good sense’. When Holt entered politics he was (and is) one of the youngest people ever elected to Australian parliament but Walker does not attempt to examine the qualities the United Australia Party saw in Holt that they offered such a young and inexperienced candidate preselection in a safe conservative seat.
However, by far my biggest annoyance with the book is that Walker provides no references to support his assertions or even sources for his quotes. Surely a basic requirement of any work of non-fiction is that a reader can check the author’s sources.
The best part of the book is the sixties and Holt’s Prime Ministership. Holt became PM at a time of great change in Australia. Holt’s friendship with US President Johnson and his eagerness to go ‘All the way with LBJ’ compromised his ability to make independent decisions concerning our escalating involvement in the Vietnam War. During his leadership the 1967 referendum to recognise Aboriginal people in the census count was held, only the fifth successful referendum since Federation. Its timely to reflect on this given another referendum recognising First Nation Australians in the Constitution to be held later this year.
But clearly the culmination of the book is Holt’s premature and unusual death while PM. His love of snorkelling and scuba diving and his willingness to take risks in the sea are a recurring theme in the book, anticipating his drowning death in December 1967. Thankfully Walker steers clear of the ridiculous conspiracy theories surrounding his death but at the same time he does not really examine the impact that his death had on popular culture in the country.
Indeed, the failure to address Holt’s legacy is, for me, the last disappointing aspect of the book. There are a few mentions of memorials, at his old school, on the beach where he was last seen and even an American destroyer named after him. Strangely there is no mention of his best-known memorial, the Harold Holt Swim Centre. Perhaps Walker felt that the irony of a swimming pool being named after a drowned Prime Minister was a joke that had run its course.
As part of his legacy, the events following his death really deserve some acknowledgment and a chapter of their own. Almost as an aside, Walker mentions that his coalition partner ‘Black’ Jack McEwen served as Acting PM following his death, but in what I feel is an egregious omission, does not even mention that John Gorton became the next party leader and therefore PM. The toxic relationship between McEwan and aspiring Liberal leader William McMahon is discussed and following Holt’s death there were significant power struggles within the Liberal Party, perhaps as a result of Holt’s weak party leadership.
The author might argue that the book is about Holt not who came after him but, as a group, these men played a key role in shaping a post-Menzies Australia. I expect a politician’s biography to be about politics, and for me there was too little of that in this one.
I have several criticisms of the book mainly around some of the editorial decisions made in the book, and it’s not really clear what is due to a lack of source material or a lack of research.
My first issue with the book is one I find all to prevalent in many biographies I read and that is a lack of clear dates for when things happen. Perhaps it is the author’s reluctance to interrupt the narrative flow by mentioning such mundane things as dates but I shouldn’t have to do all the analysis myself. An example is his transition from university student to politician. Holt graduated with a Law Degree from Melbourne Uni some undisclosed time. I assume since he was born in 1908 he graduated uni around 1930 or 1931 when he was 22 or 23. Walker states he was first elected to Federal Parliament in August 1935 just after his 27th birthday. In the meantime he had an extremely short career as a legal professional. Anyway, thank goodness for his Wiki page which fills in these gaps.
Another big issue with the book is that Walker, through lack of source material or lack of research, is unable to shed any light on Holt’s political philosophy or motivation for becoming a politician. In the book the closest I could find to motivation was ‘He talked to Zara (his future wife) about the things he wanted to do if he won a seat in parliament: “There are so many things that should be done in this country and we’ve got to open it up, expand it”’ (p45). A bit further Walker states ‘… he intended to promote policies which he felt made good sense.’ (p46). It is hardly an insightful observation as I would assume that politicians of any political stripe would think the policies they pursue ‘make good sense’. When Holt entered politics he was (and is) one of the youngest people ever elected to Australian parliament but Walker does not attempt to examine the qualities the United Australia Party saw in Holt that they offered such a young and inexperienced candidate preselection in a safe conservative seat.
However, by far my biggest annoyance with the book is that Walker provides no references to support his assertions or even sources for his quotes. Surely a basic requirement of any work of non-fiction is that a reader can check the author’s sources.
The best part of the book is the sixties and Holt’s Prime Ministership. Holt became PM at a time of great change in Australia. Holt’s friendship with US President Johnson and his eagerness to go ‘All the way with LBJ’ compromised his ability to make independent decisions concerning our escalating involvement in the Vietnam War. During his leadership the 1967 referendum to recognise Aboriginal people in the census count was held, only the fifth successful referendum since Federation. Its timely to reflect on this given another referendum recognising First Nation Australians in the Constitution to be held later this year.
But clearly the culmination of the book is Holt’s premature and unusual death while PM. His love of snorkelling and scuba diving and his willingness to take risks in the sea are a recurring theme in the book, anticipating his drowning death in December 1967. Thankfully Walker steers clear of the ridiculous conspiracy theories surrounding his death but at the same time he does not really examine the impact that his death had on popular culture in the country.
Indeed, the failure to address Holt’s legacy is, for me, the last disappointing aspect of the book. There are a few mentions of memorials, at his old school, on the beach where he was last seen and even an American destroyer named after him. Strangely there is no mention of his best-known memorial, the Harold Holt Swim Centre. Perhaps Walker felt that the irony of a swimming pool being named after a drowned Prime Minister was a joke that had run its course.
As part of his legacy, the events following his death really deserve some acknowledgment and a chapter of their own. Almost as an aside, Walker mentions that his coalition partner ‘Black’ Jack McEwen served as Acting PM following his death, but in what I feel is an egregious omission, does not even mention that John Gorton became the next party leader and therefore PM. The toxic relationship between McEwan and aspiring Liberal leader William McMahon is discussed and following Holt’s death there were significant power struggles within the Liberal Party, perhaps as a result of Holt’s weak party leadership.
The author might argue that the book is about Holt not who came after him but, as a group, these men played a key role in shaping a post-Menzies Australia. I expect a politician’s biography to be about politics, and for me there was too little of that in this one.
October 25, 2022
The author writes with empathy about Harold Holt. The depth of the research does not get in the way of creating a rounded picture of this genial but risk taking man. It is through the addiction to risks that Dr Walker conveys an understanding of Holt's behaviour in the sea and in crocodile infested rivers of North Queensland and that may well be a vital factor on the final day when the Prime Minister entered the wild seas at Cheviot beach and vanished.
Harold Holt's early years were quite lonely. Boarding school offered him company, sport and the influence of a powerful headmaster.
Holt was a skilled negotiator with friends on all sides of politics and he was particularly successful as Minister for Immigration.
There is plenty of depth in the discussion of the Vietnam War years and Holt's sending conscripts to fight. He has a genuine friendship with LBJ , beginning in WW2 and enduring right to the US President's attendance at the memorial service for Holt.
This lucidly written book will appeal to readers of Australian political history and to those who appreciate a thoughtful biography.
Harold Holt's early years were quite lonely. Boarding school offered him company, sport and the influence of a powerful headmaster.
Holt was a skilled negotiator with friends on all sides of politics and he was particularly successful as Minister for Immigration.
There is plenty of depth in the discussion of the Vietnam War years and Holt's sending conscripts to fight. He has a genuine friendship with LBJ , beginning in WW2 and enduring right to the US President's attendance at the memorial service for Holt.
This lucidly written book will appeal to readers of Australian political history and to those who appreciate a thoughtful biography.
September 25, 2023
I usually don't comment on books I am not impressed with, but for some reasons that will (hopefully) be self evident, here's an exception.
This is only the second biography written about an Australian Prime Minister who was a leading player, as they say, in Australian politics before having the top job for just shy of two years before meeting an end that most people who know anything about Australian political history will be aware of.
This is a mediocre book about a mediocre man, at least that is how he is portrayed.
It has one glaring omission, at least in my edition. No footnotes. There are a lot of quotes and none of them have those cute little numbers next to them that allow the reader to attribute credence and context to them. Maybe this is the new normal, I don't know. I certainly hope not. In a number of instances, I wanted more information about the quotes, but it was unclear who said them and when and where they said them. Footnotes, please!
I haven't read the other biography by Tom Frame, but Wikipedia records that Frame concludes that two of Zara's children were Holt's. This biography tiptoes around that issue like some 1950s Hollywood biopic. Why is this relevant? Because this biography describes Holt as a constant workaholic even on holidays who could not sleep for more than 2 hours without waking up to do some of his day job. Whereas other sources suggest he was a philanderer. Good luck to him for that, but why does a modern biography pretend that this was not possible? Lyndon Johnson figures in Holt's story too and is portrayed as a single-minded workaholic too.
In terms of policy and politics there are some serious unanswered questions. Was Holt a racist? We don't know from this book, and it would be useful to know his worldview given that he was Immigration minister and a close mate of Calwell, and we know the nature of Australia's immigration during his time. If he opposed the policy of the time it would be nice to know, from, say a biography about the man.
The 1967 referendum suddenly appears in the story with no context. Along with other issues such the Vietnam escalation, events are written here as happening to him. Did he have no agency?
The subtext is that everything from his entry to parliament happened to him easily. Maybe it did. But I suspect that Holt was a more interesting and complex person than is portrayed here.
This is only the second biography written about an Australian Prime Minister who was a leading player, as they say, in Australian politics before having the top job for just shy of two years before meeting an end that most people who know anything about Australian political history will be aware of.
This is a mediocre book about a mediocre man, at least that is how he is portrayed.
It has one glaring omission, at least in my edition. No footnotes. There are a lot of quotes and none of them have those cute little numbers next to them that allow the reader to attribute credence and context to them. Maybe this is the new normal, I don't know. I certainly hope not. In a number of instances, I wanted more information about the quotes, but it was unclear who said them and when and where they said them. Footnotes, please!
I haven't read the other biography by Tom Frame, but Wikipedia records that Frame concludes that two of Zara's children were Holt's. This biography tiptoes around that issue like some 1950s Hollywood biopic. Why is this relevant? Because this biography describes Holt as a constant workaholic even on holidays who could not sleep for more than 2 hours without waking up to do some of his day job. Whereas other sources suggest he was a philanderer. Good luck to him for that, but why does a modern biography pretend that this was not possible? Lyndon Johnson figures in Holt's story too and is portrayed as a single-minded workaholic too.
In terms of policy and politics there are some serious unanswered questions. Was Holt a racist? We don't know from this book, and it would be useful to know his worldview given that he was Immigration minister and a close mate of Calwell, and we know the nature of Australia's immigration during his time. If he opposed the policy of the time it would be nice to know, from, say a biography about the man.
The 1967 referendum suddenly appears in the story with no context. Along with other issues such the Vietnam escalation, events are written here as happening to him. Did he have no agency?
The subtext is that everything from his entry to parliament happened to him easily. Maybe it did. But I suspect that Holt was a more interesting and complex person than is portrayed here.
December 28, 2022
A well-researched insight into life of Australian Prime Minster, Harold Holt.
Having inherited the Prime Ministership from Menzies, Holt had a lasting legacy on Australia. His achievements include greater engagement with Asia and the Pacific, the introduction of decimal currency, increasing immigration and his success in overseeing the 'yes' vote for the 1967 referendum. Holt also, however, brought upon unforgivable hardship with his eager involvement in the Vietnam War and Australia's blind support for President Johnson.
Having inherited the Prime Ministership from Menzies, Holt had a lasting legacy on Australia. His achievements include greater engagement with Asia and the Pacific, the introduction of decimal currency, increasing immigration and his success in overseeing the 'yes' vote for the 1967 referendum. Holt also, however, brought upon unforgivable hardship with his eager involvement in the Vietnam War and Australia's blind support for President Johnson.
March 22, 2023
I grew up in Australian with the mystery of the disappearing PM.
I had always mistakenly believed there was more to the story than met the eye.
There isn't.
I won't reveal any spoilers here, but if you want to know, read the book.
Ross Walker did a fairly good job with telling an interesting narrative of Holt's earlier life, but the minutiae of his political life towards the end of the book got a little monotonous, so I skipped a chunk of it.
All-in-all, not a bad tome.
I had always mistakenly believed there was more to the story than met the eye.
There isn't.
I won't reveal any spoilers here, but if you want to know, read the book.
Ross Walker did a fairly good job with telling an interesting narrative of Holt's earlier life, but the minutiae of his political life towards the end of the book got a little monotonous, so I skipped a chunk of it.
All-in-all, not a bad tome.
November 9, 2023
What an exceptional PM and human being, urgently needed are more biographies of the subject because the shadow of his famous predecessor is too big. Certainly this book is a good companion to the excellent biography of Tom Frame due to its more poetical views of Harold Holt
October 24, 2022
A short and nothing new but regardless fulfilling account of Australia’s former prime minister and one of our greatest political mysteries.
December 4, 2022
Enjoyable and insightful
November 23, 2024
The otter emerges eponymously from his hole. He loves water, but he also loves ballet, common sense policy, and LBJ. The otter commits the otter-form of seppuku, i.e. swimming into oblivion. The End.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews