Jim Haynes has travelled far and wide to meet and interview the people whose stories make up his books. Before becoming a professional entertainer, song writer and verse writer in 1988, Jim taught writing, literature, history and drama in schools and universities from outback NSW to Britain and back again. He is the author of many Great Australian titles, including books on railways, aviation and horse racing. His is one of the country's most prolific and successful Australian authors.

Introduction..Part 1. Stranger Than Fiction..A Few Ghosts and Some Colonial Corruption..When The End of the World Was Nigh ... Perhaps..The Act That Brought the House Down..Two Incredible 'All-rounders'..The Woman Who Murdered His Wife..The Overland Mail..The Girl With Peculiar Dark Eyes..The Tumultuous, Triumphant and Tragic Life of Tom Wills..The Lonely Ghost of Lady Elliot Island..Part 2. Royal Visitors Beware!..The Prince's Braces, the Irish Madman and the Nurses..The Convict King of Iceland..The Princes Who Saw a Ghost..The Nazi 'Digger' Prince..Part 3. Lest We Forget..Private Leak, the Larrikin..Fighting Our Friends-the Battle of Brisbane..Turning the Tide..The Most Confused Battle Area in World History..The Enemy We Simply Didn't Understand..Part 4. Those Magnificent Women And Men..Some Aussie Ups and Downs..The Scandalous Flying Tassels..The Boy Who Watched the Ibis..The Girl from Hull..Acknowledgements ..