Ryan Butta: The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli

Next date: Saturday, 02 November 2024 | 02:00 PM to 04:00 PM

The Friends of Kiama Library invite you to a talk with Ryan Butta about his new book, The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli - a fascinating and immersive investigation into a forgotten hero and a grievous historical wrong.

Please join us for afternoon tea after the talk, when books will be available for purchase and signing.

$8 FOKL members/ $10 guests (includes afternoon tea). Everyone welcome.

Tickets are available online, at the library, or call 02 4233 1133.

 

The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli

The many lives and tragic death of Harry Freame, the Anzac hero betrayed by his nation

Harry Freame was the first Australian soldier to win the Distinguished Conduct Medal at Gallipoli. He risked his life again and again to scout the battlefield, reporting invaluable intelligence and relieving stranded soldiers. Some say he should have got the VC but didn't because he was half-Japanese, a fact he tried hard to conceal.

After the war, Harry (real name Wykeham Henry Koba Freame) became a soldier settler and champion apple grower. But in the lead-up to World War II, he was recruited into Australian intelligence. Extraordinarily, this fact was leaked by the Australian press, and the Japanese secret police tried to assassinate Harry not long after his arrival in Tokyo in 1941. He died back in Australia a few weeks later.

Harry was the first Australian to die on secret service for Australia, but his sacrifice has never been officially acknowledged.

The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli is a fascinating and immersive investigation into a grievous historical wrong.

Reviews

'Deftly turns the spotlight on an intriguing character and some shadowy corners of White Australia.' – Chris Masters

'Ryan Butta's dogged pursuit of the truth about Harry Freame is more than a virtuouso piece of archival sleuthing - although it's certainly that. It's an act of dedication to a forgotten Australian, the restoration of a discarded legacy. There is much to learn in here about the ways we mythologise ourselves, and the lies we repeat down the generations. Through compassion and careful scholarship, Butta has found a vital parable at the root of multicultural Australia.' – Jock Serong

'A thrilling biography of one of Australia's forgotten heroes. Butta is a gifted storyteller, exploring the lives of Australia's forgotten heroes. Beautifully written, the story reads more like a gripping, high stakes adventure than [a] historical biography. Butta returns Harry Freame - fearless Gallipoli scout, intrepid spy and devoted patriot - to his rightful place: the centre stage of our collective memory and history. Butta explores the socio-political forces of Australia that celebrate some heroes and erase others.' – Shankari Chandran

Ryan Butta

After starting out life on the opal fields of western NSW, Ryan was raised among the vineyards and horse studs of the Hunter Valley. His first work of historical non-fiction, The Ballad of Abdul Wade, recounted the previously untold story of the Afghan men that came to Australia in the 1800s to work in the mining and wool industries. The Ballad of Abdul Wade was longlisted for the Indie Book Awards non-fiction book of the year for 2023. Ryan's latest work, The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli, retells the remarkable life story of Harry Freame, a Japanese-Australian adventurer, soldier of fortune, Anzac, orchardist and spy.

Ryan's feature writing has appeared in the Good Weekend Magazine and he is a regular contributor to Galah Press, writing about the people and places of regional Australia. Ryan’s works of historical non-fiction look to reveal and understand the hidden and forgotten stories of Australia, and the Australians who, like his own family, came across the seas to make their home here. Ryan believes that only by dismantling the myths of the past can we build the country of the future. Ryan now lives on Dharawal country on the NSW South Coast.

When

Location

Kiama Library Auditorium, 7 Railway Parade, Kiama, 2533, View Map