Killing the Black Dog is Les Murray's frank and poignant account of his struggle with depression. Both a courageous personal statement and a fascinating study of how the illness works, it offers insight and comfort to anyone who has encountered depression in their own life or in the life of a loved one. Murray reflects on how his life has changed in the years since he first confronted the 'black dog', and on the role depression played in some of his best writing. He describes his experiences - good and bad - along the road to recovery, and discusses the importance of contemplation, work and family. Accompanied by poems specially selected by Murray, this story, brave and perceptive, is a moving and invaluable resource.

Author Biography

Hungarian born Les developed his love of football after emigrating to Australia as a refugee in 1957. Watching a replay of the classic 1960 European Cup Final, Les' enthusiasm for the world game was launched and hasn't waned since. Following moderate success as a semi-pro player, Les also found time to indulge in his second love - rock and roll - as the lead singer in a very hip ensemble, known as 'The Rubber Band', during the 1970s. Les has been a journalist since 1971. In his years with SBS television he has played a major role in developing the distinctiveness of sport programming on the network, and was executive producer of all of SBS' major football broadcasts. Internationally respected, Les was named him one of Sydney's ten most influential people in sport by the influential French sports daily, L'Equipe. Since 2004 Les has served on FIFA's Committee for Ethics and Fair Play. Currently Les is Head of Sports and hosts SBS' nightly bulletin Toyota World Sport, The World Game on Sundays and the network's athletics coverage.