Silk Clouds and Olive Trees

Books written about the Battle for Greece and the Battle of Crete, often neglect the Greek contribution to the Anzac campaign; it's as though Greece was absent of Greeks. Told with eighty-five years of reflection from a very different world, Deborah Wheeler in her heartfelt narrative Silk Clouds & Olive Trees: Stories from the Battle of Crete 85th Anniversary Edition (2026) breathes life back into the Greek campaign and its Anzac story. Wheeler reasserts the human aspect of warfare with the heavy involvement of the Greek population. For Wheeler, to forget this important part of Australian-Greek history would be tantamount to the enemy's final triumph.
In particular, Wheeler pays tribute to 12 Australian soldiers who fought in these conflicts, in particular to the remarkable Alfred Clive Carpenter OAM who passed away at Newcastle on 7th September 2022 at the age of 105years.

Review: Chris Campanaris (retired school teacher)