Australia

Good book. Starts out a bit all over the place, but then as you read the book you see that the start was kind-of like giving the reader excerpts from all areas that the author then talks about in detail as you read through the chapters, so it all makes sense. Has given me insights to alot of the things I was interested to know about Australian history, most of which I had no idea ever happened (and neither did most people in Oz, it seems - you'll have to read the book to know what I'm talking about.)Recommended reading :)

A brilliant survey of recent Australian history with a few excursions into the more distant past. For me there were some surprising discoveries. I never realized how tense relations have been beween the monarchist and the A great introduction to Australiarepublican traditions or how brutally the aboriginals were treated even in my own lifetime. I am going to Australia in October. This book will definitely help me to understand the country and people.

A wonderful book. Steady historical progression through the twentieth century, often in delightful vignette form. Many explanations. Light and easy to read. Packed with interest. Surely, essential reading for anyone interested in Australia.

To give yourself an everyday, well-informed and soundly balanced knowledge of the origins of "European" Australia, I would recommend that you read this book in conjunction with Tom Kenneally's " The Commonwealth of Thieves".Both authors are native-born Australians, one from Irish , the other from English, antecedents.Any cultural baggage that they carry, however, has not resulted in serious or conscious distortion of facts.Two great reads, that spur one on to further reading about Oz.

A little repetitive and tedious, in as much as each chapter ultimately descends into a tirade of Pommie bashing, deserved or otherwise! Save your money..!