Sir Joseph Carruthers

Here, finally, is the proud history of Australian liberalism told with clarity and panache. Zachary Gorman's biography of Joseph Carruthers is a story about liberal values and old-fashioned retail politics, drawing up clear 'lines of cleavage' to give voters a real choice at elections. He paved the way for Liberal titans, Sir Robert Menzies and John Howard. History buffs will rejoice at the telling of Carruthers' story, students will learn about the founding of Australian democracy, and politicians, present and future, would do well to remember our past in order to secure our future as a thriving democracy founded on classical liberal values. -- Janet Albrechtsen - opinion columnist with The Australian