FISHES Whaling –
“a chronicle of the people and events that created Greenpeace in Australia, it also seeks to understand the minds and thinking of those who hunted whales in Australia”
It’s the end of the seventies and one young reporter is bearing witness to the final days of Australia’s whaling industry.
Thirty years after the last whale was captured and slaughtered in Australia, Chris Pash tells the very human story of the characters and events that brought whaling to an end.
This fair and balanced account portrays the raw adventure of going to sea, the perils of being a whaler and the ‘crazy, but somehow magical’ commitment that leads activists to throw themselves into the path of an explosive harpoon.
Jean-Paul Fortom-Gouin, aka the Phantom, is man on an anti-whaling mission who wangles his way onto the International Whaling Commission with a snappy suit and ticket from the Panamanian Government.
Ches Stubbs, Skipper of the whaling ship Cheynes III, is known for his long range skills with a harpoon. Just like Ahab, Ches loses a leg while whaling and, just like a pirate, sails with a pet cockatoo that happens to have a penchant for gnawing on naked toes.
These are just two of the real-life characters captured with heart and humour by Chris Pash in his story about the end of whaling in Australia. The book shows a town reliant on whaling dollars pitted against a determined band of international protesters.
‘Given that whaling seems to be an eternally controversial issue it is a huge compliment to ex-journalist Chris Pash that he has managed to find an objective middle path in this engrossing story of the first Greenpeace campaign in Australia …’ Sydney Morning Herald
‘[Pash] captures the shift in the public mood that made whaling morally unacceptable … Carrying the emotional freight of the story are intriguing characters on both sides such as the Frenchman known as the Phantom …’ The Age
‘A timely reminder of how far we’ve come since the days of routine slaughter of how hard conservationists fought to bring it to an end and how vigilant we must be in making sure that the dark days of whaling are behind us forever.’ Tim Winton
‘… an important contribution to Australian history and to the protection of whales. From a historical perspective it chronicles the people and events which created Greenpeace in Australia and it also seeks to understand the minds and thinking of those who hunted whales in Australia …’ Steve Shallhorn, former CEO Greenpeace Australia Pacific