On 4 October 2013, HMAS Sydney led an armada of international warships through Sydney Heads to commemorate the arrival of the first RAN Fleet (led by the flagship, the battlecruiser HMAS Australia) one hundred years earlier. As on that day, many thousands of spectators lined the foreshores of Sydney Harbour to witness the fleet entry and ceremonial review. As a tribute to the Royal Australian Navy, Big Sky Publishing has produced an impressive book to record the occasion.

But the book is much more than that. It is divided into five sections: RAN History; RAN Establishments; Today’s Fleet; the International Fleet Review, and, finally ‘Our People’, (which might have more accurately been renamed ‘Our senior officers’).

This is a nicely presented book with some interesting photographs. I can see that it would be a much-cherished gift for any member of the RAN, past or present or for family members keen to know more about the RAN. For anyone keen to identify Australia’s naval vessels out on the water, it is invaluable too, since it gives a detailed description of the current fleet.

Celebrating 100 Years of Pride in the Fleet: Royal Australian Navy – International Fleet Review

Published by Big Sky Publishing

RRP $149.00 (Limited Edition Hardback); $49.99 in paperback

ISBN 9781922132932 / 9781922132949

Check out http://www.bigskypublishing.com.au to buy the book – it comes in a paperback version or in a presentation version.