The Washington Diaries of Owen Dixon 1942-1944

These are the complete and unredacted diplomatic diaries of Sir Owen Dixon, Australia's ambassador ("Minister") to the United States through the war years 1942-1944. Private and never previously published, they take us into the heart of FDR's Washington through those momentous times and significantly affect our understanding of the wartime relations of the United States and Australia. They vividly illustrate, in addition to the two nations' shared engagement in the war effort, their differences and diverging interests. They take us not only into the diplomatic scene but into the intricate day-to-day business of the State Department, the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs of Staff as these impinged on Australia's engagement in the war. Philip Ayres, who is also Dixon's biographer, has provided a detailed commentary on the daily diary entries and a substantial introduction. This is an important reference work that can be read straight through as a personal narrative. It is deeply researched and the editing is to the highest standards.