After Port Arthur: Personal stories of courage and resilience ten years on from the tragedy that shocked the nation

Carol Altmann

Jan 2006 · Allen & Unwin

About this ebook

When the gunshots started no one could quite believe it. A beautiful day. A tranquil setting despite its grim past. It was 28 April 1996, the day of the worst civilian massacre in history. The day 35 innocent people were murdered at Port Arthur.

All Australians reeled in shock at the news. But what happens to those involved once the headlines have faded and the TV cameras have been switched off? For those who had witnessed the horror or lost loved ones, their lives had been changed irrevocably. Learning to cope with such an experience is a life-long process.

Through very personal stories, After Port Arthur documents the profound effects the event has had on the people involved. Their ongoing search to find strength in such tragedy is testament to the greater human spirit.

Ratings and reviews

Despite numerically greater horrors that have intervened, the Port Arthur massacre remains a singular and unshakeable memory for many Australians. Carol Altmann examines the consequences for those who were affected by it - survivors of the shooting, volunteers during the siege and evacuation, police officers and medical practioners. Some have found peace, others have seen their lives - personal and professional - fall apart, while some have taken sad refuge in deluded conspiracy theories. Altmann has done her research and interviewing well, and tells these stories with clarity and dignity, without sensationalism or easy psychologising. Her account of the massacre is almost unbearable to read. She documents the rapid and effective introduction of tighter gun control laws and reminds us that there are those who would see a return to the lunacy that prevailed in 1996. Her book is a moving tribute to those who died and those whose lives still bear the scars. - Sydney Morning Herald, May 6-7, 2006

Carol Altmann lived with "a beast" for three long years. "I was overwhelmed by the enormity of it all," says the former Advertiser journalist. She focuses on the aftermath, the 10 years after the Port Arthur massacre on April 28, 1996, telling stories of towering courage and the strength of a community shattered by a tragedy that shocked a nation and the world. With great compassion, Altmann gained the trust of traumatised people and what they tell is chilling and intensely touching. She gives a remarkable insight into those deeply affected by this atrocity and reveals its true impact. Altmann has turned out a truly masterful work, so much more so as it is her first book. The Advertiser - Saturday, April 29, 2006.

About the author

Carol Altmann has been a journalist for fifteen years and has a Master of Journalism degree. She began her career working for Messenger newspapers where she became Chief-of-Staff and was State Political Reporter for the Adelaide Advertiser until 1997. In 2000 she became Adelaide Bureau Chief for The Australian and in 2002 transferred to Tasmania where she was Hobart Bureau Chief. She now lives in South Australia.