We are thrilled to include Tobruk 1941 , a gripping account of the Siege of Tobruk from celebrated war correspondent Chester Wilmot, as a Text Classic in 2017. This is a landmark Australian war story that celebrates resistance, courage, sacrifice, mateship and sheer grit. The Siege of Tobruk was an eight-month battle between a garrison of Australian troops and Hitler's Afrika Korps--the final frontier between Germany and the vast untapped oil fields of the Middle East. The troops of Tobruk withstood the hellish conditions of the Libyan desert and for their heroism, tenacity and spirit have become enshrined in legend as the 'Rats of Tobruk'. Chester Wilmot was one of the ABC's best and most innovative war correspondents. His reportage pioneered Australian war writing. Wilmot was an embedded journalist during the siege, so his reportage is closely observed and insightful. This Text Classic edition is introduced by distinguished Australian historian Peter Cochrane.