Additional information
| Weight | 428 g |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 150 × 210 mm |
| Imprint | Boolarong Press |
| ISBN | 9781923321298 |
| Page extent | 274 |
| Format | |
| Publication Year | 2026 |
| Subject | Australiana, Biography & Autobiography |
The Long Reach of Service From Longreach to Legacy (Available for Pre Order NOW)
$32.99
The Long Reach of Service: From Longreach to Legacyis the remarkable life story of David Muir—a self-described “boy from the bush” whose values were forged on a sheep property near Longreach and carried into the highest levels of national civic life. From early lessons in resilience, responsibility, and community, Muir’s journey traces how a deep sense of service can shape a life of purpose and impact far beyond its beginnings.
Available on back-order
admin (store manager) –
At a time when shrill and brutish denunciations are flung around in place of considered, respectful political debate, David Muir’s outstanding memoir reminds us there once was, and could be again, a better way.
David’s life and public-spirited career are an inspiration – one man’s dedication to causes of social equity, good governance, and a better life for all of us.
I remember being impressed by David as long ago as high school in the 1970s. We both attended the Church of England (now Anglican) Grammar School, better known to Queenslanders as “Churchie”. He was a year or two ahead of me – part of a group of several high-minded and conscientious young men. I tried to be like them but inevitably fell short. I liked that they believed in something greater than the Old School Tie, or sporting and academic achievements. They cherished “service”.
These were idealists. And David’s book confirms that they, and especially he, never gave up on those ideals.
Schools like Churchie might be expected to pump out conservative stalwarts of the Establishment, and they do more often than not. But it is also true that they sometimes produce high-minded men; independent thinkers; people who make their mark outside the bland and grey professions.
David is such a man. One whose range of causes – from Amnesty International to Voluntary Assisted Dying laws, to an Australian Republic – are so wide and varied that many people struggle to find a label. Is he a Tory or a Progressive? The answer is that he is his own man.
Was it the influence of great teachers like Gaven Vance or Ken Waller? Or mentors such as Clem Jones and Everald Compton? Or his stoic, hard-working and loving parents Donal and Shirley Muir?
Or was it the culture of the bush where hard work, independent thinking and commitment to community are paramount?
David explores all these influences and ideas through the detailed memories, notes and analysis he presents so well here.
More important- he looks forward too.
The job is not done. The hard work needs to continue on so many fronts: the Australian Republic, Indigenous Reconciliation, modernising the Constitution, and – most vital of all – bringing back (or creating afresh) respect in political debate and a universal commitment to bipartisanship where it leads to better outcomes for all.
David’s superb book offers signposts to follow, if only we would.
Bruce Woolley – Former ABC Foreign Correspondent