Critics’ Reviews

Hogan traces the history of the branches and factions in this inner-city suburb of Sydney, as it changed from working class industrial heartland to gentrified latte-and-chardonnay territory. Sections headed ‘another Glebe split’, Langites swamp Glebe’, ‘graft and corruption’ and ‘the politics of stacking’ give an indication of the rich cocktail which awaits. – Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society, Vol 91 pt 2, December 2005

As a ‘view from below’, [it] gives a different account to most recently published histories. …

What is clear is that throughout the past 100 years in the Labor Party in the area, there have been differences of opinion, divison and the arising splinter organisations. … Although the early factions were not based around the formal factions of today, it certainly gives insight into how the modern Labor Party is able to function while people so bitterly disagree. The other constant message is that factions are not always built on political issues but personalities. … By far the most intersting part of the book is the description of Labor identities …

The book ends with the author detailing the use of branches and their relationship to a continuing Labor Party. It is important reading for anybody trying to digest a way forward for the Labor Party in the inner city, especially with the impact of the emergence of the Greens as a viable, significant political force. – Labor History, No 88, May 2005

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