Politics, Pride and Perversion by Erik Eklund

Politics, Pride and Perversion by Erik Eklund

Frank Arkell (1929-1998) was the most successful politician of his generation; an Independent who served as Wollongong's Lord Mayor (1974-1991) and state member (1984-1991). Arkell dominated Wollongong public life with unstoppable energy, eccentric flair, and a single-minded determination to support the city through economic restructuring. Despite his popularity, at the edges of public consciousness there was growing disquiet over Arkell's private life ...

'A compelling biography ... Eklund provides a nuanced exploration of Arkell's relentless efforts to transform Wollongong from a 'steel city' to the 'Leisure Coast', as well as his connections to an extensive paedophile network exposed during the 1997 Wood Royal Commission ...'

- Associate Professor Jayne Persian, University of Southern Queensland

'Eklund discloses the tragic consequences of unbridled male lust, deep social inequality and unaccountable class power ... we have here a shocking story of sexual abuse and official corruption that brought untold suffering, political disgrace and, in the end, a brutal murder.'

- Professor Frank Bongiorno AM, author of Dreamers and Schemers: The Political History of Australia

Shortlisted, NSW History Awards, NSW Community and Regional History Prize, 2025

Longlisted, The Australian Political Book of the Year, 2025

James Bennett founded Radical Newcastle in 2010 and established the collective that has staged a number of public events to generate interest in the project and its objectives. He is a coeditor of Making Film and Television Histories: Australia and New Zealand. Nancy Cushing leads, with Erik Eklund and Julie McIntyre, the Newcastle Hunter Studies group which seeks to promote scholarly publishing on the history of the region. Erik Eklund is an award-winning historian whose work has appeared in major Australian journals and has covered a number of industrial and mining-focused regions across the country. He currently works at Federation University, a new institution with a specific focus on regional Australia.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9781760466794
ISBN 10	1760466794
Title	Politics, Pride and Perversion
Author	Erik Eklund
Series	Biography Series
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	ANU Press
Year published	2025-03-06
Number of pages	286
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.