The Bouncer

Heath Lander’s debut book is a captivating, exciting, and gritty exploration of his descent into the dangerous underbelly of Melbourne night life as a young university graduate. His prose captures the physicality of his journey from the first tentative steps into martial arts as a defense against low self-esteem to the camaraderie underpinning the bristling, barely contained violence of nightclub security. An unlikely candidate for the crowd control industry, Heath Lander recounts his journey from a hippy upbringing into the gritty and dangerous world of nightclub bouncing. As a university student, he takes up Kung Fu, a decision that gives him entry into the dark and brutal world of nightclub security. His introduction is by way of his instructor, a part-time bouncer at a pub in Brunswick Street, Melbourne. Graduating from university, his ambition to teach and paint takes second place to his obsession with "making it" in this new world. Without realizing it, Heath slides into a dark place with no real friends and plenty of potential enemies. The more proficient Heath becomes at his job, the more he gains the respect of his bosses and clients. Then one night, after five years as a bouncer, the almost fatal punch he delivers to a belligerent drunk causes a crisis of conscience. He realizes that his life has lost purpose and he quits his job, determined to "make it" once again, this time in the world of daylight.