Larrikins or patricians, socialists or silvertails - in the century since Federation, Australia's prime ministers have been as diverse as the nation they have served. Some came from backgrounds of rural or urban poverty and were largely self-educated, looking to the ballot box as a tool of social justice; some have been drawn to politics as to their destiny; still others have regarded high office as no more than their due. One or two have demonstrated that, as well as being the art of the possible, politics is also the art of the unlikely.
In this lively and authoritative book, part profile, part political analysis, 21 historians, biographers and political analysts discuss the men who have reached Australia's highest public office and the forces that have shaped them. In doing so, the book obliquely considers the nature of Australian democratic and political power.
