Tag: A Man, A Woman, and the War to End All Wars Review

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(More customer reviews)TAG (A MAN, A WOMAN, AND THE WAR TO END ALL WARS) by Barry Heard
Scribe Publications Pty Ltd ISBN (13): 9781921372766 [...]
Barry Heard, author of the bestselling Vietnam War memoir Well Done, Those Men, has
written his first novel, TAG, based on the experiences of a WW1 digger, whom Heard knew
as a boy. TAG is not just for military personnel, it has the ability to cross over to a wider
audience with this beautifully written anti war story.
TAG is the story of Tag Wardell and his mates who grew up in the High Country of Eastern
Victoria around the turn of the century. It chronicles Tag's experiences as a young
Blacksmith before the "War to end all Wars", and his involvement in WW1.
Growing up in the bush, Tag becomes a legend around the district with his horse whispering
talents and his love of horses. For Tag and his mates war begins as a great adventure. On
board the troopship, Tag is called upon to work closely with the distressed horses that are to
be used during the war.
Heard describes the hardships that Tag faced along with his boyhood mates in the trenches of
Gallipoli and the battle fields of the Western Front. Heard brings to life the horror and
extremely difficult task that the Australians had to endure in the trenches and field hospitals
at Gallipoli. During his time in Gallipoli on the front line, Tag brings about changes to the
handling of horses under fire. This is evident when Tag is shipped off to the Western Front to
face more madness working with the horses used for battlefield clearances.
While on leave in Egypt, Tag meets Jill, an Australian Nurse. Their romance blossoms
despite the chaotic surroundings of war, however their courtship is cut short with Tags
impending orders for Gallipoli. It is here where Heard reveals his talent for research, evident
with his graphic descriptions of the conditions and courage of the Australian Nurses. I believe
he could have another novel waiting here.
Heard made me forget that TAG was a novel. With all its mayhem, madness, appalling
carnage and war time love, I felt like I was in the trenches of Gallipoli and the Western Front
with Tag, Tiger, Bucket and Golly. Heard brings the reader to a deeper level of
understanding of the exceptional work our diggers did under a great deal of stress, both
physically and emotionally.
Reviewed by Gordon Traill
Iraq Veteran
Editor@peacekeepers.asn.au
[...]

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As a lad in the high country of eastern Victoria, Tag Wardell shows an extraordinary gift with animals-he is followed to school by his pets; his rapport with his horse, Dimble, becomes the talk of the district; and when he becomes a blacksmith, locals come to watch him at work, amazed at his ability to calm the meanest of nags. But 1914 brings war, and the government's patriotic fervor entices Tag and his friends to join the Light Horse Brigade. Tag's life soon spirals into a battle for survival in the day-to-day madness of the trenches, and he faces conditions that are terrible for man and beast, discovering the hardship and joy that accompany wartime love along the way. Based on the real-life experiences of a World War I veteran, this deeply moving, fiercely antiwar novel blazes with authenticity, revealing new insights into the Gallipoli legend and Australia's battles on the Western Front. A bush tale, a family saga, and a romance combined, this unforgettable revelation demonstrates the human spirit's ability to survive war's inhumanity.