The Big Fix (Albert Palazzo, Melbourne University Publishing)

In a hostile world, does Australia’s only path to national security require it to remain subservient to a global power? Generations of political leaders have said yes. Albert Palazzo puts forward a different approach in The Big Fix: Rebuilding Australia’s National Security. Across five sections, Palazzo outlines the history of our current alliances (marked by fawning subservience first to the UK, then to the US), the flaws in our current defence strategy (arguing that the real threat is not China but climate change), and a new military philosophy he calls the Strategic Defensive. With Australia’s century-long goal of sheltering under the umbrella of a wider empire no longer viable, this approach would shift our military focus from acting as the US’s deputy sheriff in the region to diversifying and strengthening our defences. Written before President Trump further undermined the US’s reputation as a reliable ally, Palazzo’s argument that ‘AUKUS has made Australia less safe instead of more so’ and that it ‘represents an unprecedented surrender of sovereignty’ feels even more compelling today. Shining a light on our seemingly doomed reliance on the US and offering a clear vision for an independent future, The Big Fix is a thought-provoking and insightful book that’s a must for anyone wanting to understand how we stumbled into AUKUS and how Australia might yet find its way towards standing on its own two feet.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Anthony Morris is a freelance reviewer, novelist, and podcaster. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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