The last name of Smith unites all those in this book. Smiths were among the first men to land at Gallipoli. Smiths fought and died at Pozières, Bullecourt and Passchendaele. Smiths were wounded – and treated by doctors and nurses named Smith.
At home, Smiths penned patriotic words and protested conscription. There was Grace Cossington Smith and her iconic painting The Sock Knitter, and Victor Smith, who designed a guided missile. Then there are the German-Australian Smiths, the Schmidts, who fought for Australia even as Schmidts at home were vilified and interned.
Dr Peter Stanley's book shows the great range of the lives and deaths of those sharing the most common, representative surname.