The Reds: The Communist Party of Australia from origins to illegality

The Communist Party was a major part of Australia's political landscape for more than half a century. It enlisted its members in a world-wide cause that was charged with hopes for revolutionary change and imbued with the iron discipline of warriors in a class war. It attracted fierce hostility; it inspired devotion.

Australian communism wielded an influence far beyond its size. The Party came to control many of the country's largest trade unions. Its supporters included writers and artists who influenced much of Australia's cultural life. It was active in a broad range of social movements. It became the target of sustained surveillance and penetration by state police and federal security agencies. It retains the attention of many despite the revelations of the post-Cold War era.

Stuart Macintyre's history is the first comprehensive account of Australian communism. It is based on a new range of sources and uses extensive interviews to recapture the experience of early Australian communists. Full of fascinating characters and incidents, this is the most ambitious work of a leading Australian historian.