A Briefcase in Transit

About the Book

A rollicking good read, this elegant book is laced with humour and interesting anecdotes about life in the Australian Foreign Service. Bruce’s subsequent work - ‘Code Name: Sentinel’ - was the ‘stand-out’ entry in a field of 78 new titles, making him… WINNER, NEWSPAPER HOUSE LITERARY AWARD, AUSTRALIA, 2012.

About the Author

Bruce Nicholls was posted as Assistant Trade Commissioner to India at just 24 years of age. From India, he went on to serve in Germany, Switzerland, China and Hong Kong. He shares intrigues of State and lets us participate in the dynamic world he observed as it evolved over the course of his postings. His book traverses the cut and thrust of trade diplomacy, with anecdotes about dignitaries and other folk who touched his life. It offers insights into life in the Foreign Service, evoking a good belly laugh whenever it can. His observations attack the senses in a delightfully readable way, bringing to life the pungency of India, the guttural, ordered society of Germany, the Maosuited throngs and ringing cycle bells of China as it opened its doors to the West, and the frenetic business climate of Hong Kong. He also explores deeper issues, like the demands a Foreign Service career can make upon marriages, the ever lurking danger of trade protectionism and the challenge of building new trade alliances and winning new markets.