Australia Books

I've been searching for a book other than a tourist's guide to New Zealand to learn more about my husband's home country. This is the book! Filled with lots of relevant (and recent) information, including gorgeous photos, this book is amazing. I can't wait to visit this beautiful country with him and see it for myself!

I recently bought my first copy of this book in the Auckland airport. I ordered my second copy for a friend. In addition to being a beautiful "picture book" with photos the quality that I wish I had taken while there, this book provides extensive text with factual information on most aspects of life in New Zealand ranging from the land and its climate, its fauna and flora to its history and the quality of life there today. This is a great book for anyone planning a visit or wishing to recall the special beauties of this wonderful country after returning from a visit. Or you may "visit" this country through this book. It is a very up-to-date publication, we even recognized photos of some of the same Maori performers we saw in concert during our recent visit! This is a very comprehensive publication, I think that it is outstanding!

I was recommended this book by a friend. I must say I was a bit apprehensive as I am not normally into Travelogs, but I must say I really enjoyed it. My only criticism, is that it could have done with some photos of the places that were visited, but other than that... a great read. Australia is certainly more wacky than I realised.

I very much enjoyed this novel and found it to be a real page-turner in that it was a tale of endeavour and continually emergent experiences. This novel touched on an area most Australian's seem to be little aware of and seem themselves to experience almost as a foreign country most notably the centre and north of this massive country/continent. Indeed an area that most of us won't experience whilst traversing the urban parts so well advertised by the brochures. As such I found it a fascinating contrast from that given by the rather conservative and urbanised travelogues I'd read on this country by Bill Bryson's `Down Under' although in itself an interesting travelogue. Bill Bryson's travelogue was the last book I bought for my brother when he left for Australia three years ago, this will be my next one.

I just finished reading Tigana today and I must say that I loved it.

The first chapter starts very slowly. But I slogged through it, and by the time I was a few chapters in I was totally hooked. The story builds slowly, but it does build, and by the last chapter of the book I could hardly breathe because I was so eager to find out what happened.

The story is not predictable. I like complex stories like this that take lots of twists and turns, and contain significant surpises. I also like books like this that mostly deal with shades of grey instead of black and white, because they make you think. Often while reading Tigana I had to put the book down to think for a few moments if a character had been justified for doing something. I felt every bit as much sympathy for Brandin and Dianora, because their deplorable actions were done with love in mind, as I felt for Alessan and his group. This is like real life, where bad guys and good guys rarely exist.

Kay's writing contains a message of compassion for all people. But there was one character I really disliked and could feel no sympathy for: Alberico, not only because he killed so many innocent people gruesomely because he seemed to have no feelings at all, no soul, only a cold meaninless ambition. He didn't care about anything except his desire to be Emperor.

As well as the dark and pensive themes of the book, I enjoyed Kay's writing style as always. Although his poetic prose sometimes borders on melodrama he has the power to take my breath away. Rarely do I read a book and want to read certain lines over and over again because they're so beautiful.

The book is full of memorable scenes that are dripping with strong emotion. I felt everything along with the characters: the fear, the pain, the helplessness, the love and elation. I don't think I've ever read another author who conveys such depths of emotion as Kay.

If you like shocking surprises you'll like this book, because it contains quite a few. My jaw dropped open more than once!

All in all a great book that I'll always remember. Kay is a master of emotional, poignant writing that also makes you think. If you're willing to dedicate some time to this book (it's on the long side) as well as some mindpower (it's not something you can breeze through) then you won't be sorry.

I have just finished "Tigana" & feel a deep sense of loss. I can't bring myself to read anything else at present. The book developes complex characters & explores their struggles in a world where good & evil are intermingled in ways which don't allow for simplistic judgements.

I'm a fan so I think all hers are great (though her short stories don't inspire as much). When you finish you'll sit back and say "can you believe that?!" Surprise ending teaches that in life things may not always be what you think. The family dynamics and descriptions are so vivid you feel as if you have been injected with emotion

This may be the best Hospital I've read. The title is from a line by T. S. Eliot and describes the patriarch of a family, Edward Carpenter, a retired school principal. The novel is set in a small town in Massachusetts around 1990 (though written in 1983)when Edward's wife is planning their fiftieth wedding anniversary party. She will invite of course, in addition to friends and former colleagues, their three children; Victoria, who is in a mental institution; Jason, a therapist in New York and Emily, a concert violinist living in England, along with her eight year old son Adam, whom her father Edward has never seen and didn't know existed until three years ago when Emily gave her first concert in the United States.

The novel is all about families: how easily we as family members hurt each other; what happens when we don't forgive one other; the awfulness of hypocrisy; how we can redeem ourselves; that we can never really know our parents; that though we travel far away, we never get far from where we came; the roads not taken, lost opportunities; and, finally, that we never stop wanting to be loved by our family.

The plot has many unexpected twists, and there are many beautifully written, powerful scenes. In Chapter XIII Edward and Elizabeth travel to New York to hear Emily give her first concert in the U. S. This is one of the most moving passages I have read anywhere in a long time. I read and reread and read it yet again. Great fiction doesn't get better than this.

Tom Roberts was published on the occasion of the Tom Roberts retrospective organised by the Art Gallery of South Australia in conjunction Art Exhibitions Australia touring 1996-1997. It contains twelve essays, a Biographical Timeline, a Catalogue, End Notes, Contributing Authors and a Selected Bibliography. Measuring 11.25" x 9.5" it contains 224 pages.

The first few assays concentrate on the artist himself including his place in art in Australia and the progress of his career. The remainder concern themselves more specifically with various aspects of his work including portraits and a very short one on etchings. Three essays each discuss a particular painting or two: Shearing the Rams 1888-90 / The Golden Fleece 1894; A Break Away! 1891; Bailed Up 1895-/1927.

There are around 100 full-colour images mostly up to full page size, occasionally there are two to a page, and there are a few double page spreads; the total includes several detail mages of selected paintings. The colour plates are arranged to accompany the relevant essay, and one appears on each right-hand page throughout the essays. The range of work includes Impressionist style landscapes, portraits, people working, scenes of London and a still life. The Catalogue section also includes black and white thumbnails of the paintings. A handsome well produced hardcover book, the front and back cover of which each caries a picture of a painting.

There were only two painters who truly understood the unique Australian light - Arthur Streeton and Tom Roberts. Contemporary with Monet, Tom Roberts was the leader of a group of Australian painters who knew their subjects very well (the Australian outdoors) and understood its unique sunlight.

Roberts' paintings glow with the burning white light of an Australian summer; gum trees are hazy through the heat of midday; thirsty sheep stampede to a waterhole with the dust rising through the heat; a stage-coach is held up under a burning noon-day sun; elegantly dressed 1890's couples picnic under the shade of a gum tree; shearers hard at work sweat under the roof of an outback shearing shed, the burning white sun scorching the landscape outside.

This book captures these magnificent paintings beautifully. The text is well-written and easy to understand, giving an insight into Roberts' pioneering 'plein aire' technique which he learnt while in Europe during the heyday of the Impressionists. The modern reader is made to understand how revolutionary Roberts was. He was the first artist to ever capture the lives of typical Australians, at a time when Australia was a young pioneering land, painted in the style of Monet and the French Impressionists.

The quality of the plates is superb, although I admit a few of the plates are small, thereby loosing much of the original painting's incredible details. (Many of Roberts' paintings are massive.) For the larger works, close-up details show the masterful brush-strokes Roberts employed. This is actually a catalogue for a brilliant Tom Roberts exhibition which toured Australia in 1998, and so the book follows the layout of a typical exhibition catalogue.

If you're an admirer of Monet and the French Impressionists, then this book will show you a painter you probably have never heard of and one you will find facinating.

The burning heat and blinding dust of an Aussie summer never looked so good.

When my daughter was very young, I borrowed Tosca's Christmas from the local library. It became one of her favorite stories. For several years, we observed a tradition of checking the book out of the library prior to Christmas each year. Last fall, after she left for her freshman year at college, I ordered a hardback copy of the book from the internet and surprised her for Christmas. It was a joyous reunion!

Tosca's Christmas is full of Anne Mortimer's beautiful, lifelike illustrations of a very real-looking and acting pleasingly-plump tabby. It paints a somewhat realistic picture of Christmas from a cat's perspective -- all that unwelcome commotion, and not being allowed to actively participate when there is something fun to do (like wrapping oneself in giftwrap). The artwork alone makes buying the book worthwhile. Anne Mortimer's cats are always more realistic than any other illustrator's -- the cat's markings aren't symmetrical, and you know she knows this cat as well as you know your own.

This book is amazing! I had no idea! I thought it was going to be another trachoma handbook or clinical guide for those working in the trenches, but it's a history book that reads like a novel! Hugh Taylor discusses how trachoma influenced ancient and modern cultures, armies, and health systems. The photos of the early trachoma pioneers and mentors are priceless. This book is well worth a place in any medical library, highly recommended.
Victoria M. Sheffield
President & CEO, International Eye Foundation, USA

This is a fascinating story. Hugh Taylor has a lifetime of experience fighting trachoma and I doubt anyone else could have produced such an authoritative yet compellingly readable account. Beautifully illustrated throughout, this is a perfect example of a medical book that really needs to be a book. It can be dipped into and enjoyed by medical and non-medical people alike. Highly recommended.
Keith Martin, University of Cambridge, UK

This is one of my favorite books! Great story, very inspiring, writes beautifully. very thought provoking. will make you want to travel!

There are few adventurous people that by-pass the luxury of their deisel-pushers to experience the likes of what Robyn Davidson embarks on as the challenge of a lifetime. That is precisely what makes this book so phenomenal.

Granted, this adventure took place in 1980, but the age of the event changes nothing of the experience.

Roughly structured, and for her reasons only, she embarks on a 1,700 mile trek across the outback to the ocean from Alice Springs. Her transportation? Camels.

The most fascinating part of this trip is she must learn about these amazing creatures from scratch. She moves to Alice Springs and sets forth to find those that are willing to teach her the camel buisness. Some of these teachers are of worthy content and impart essential knowledge. Robyn, however appears to be a natural with these animals, and a relationship with them developes that draws the reader into the story and through every foot of the trip. Her chosen camels have strong personalities, and this delightful distraction imparts great humor and solice on her quest.

Special mention must be made to her best female friend, Diggity. This incredible dog was her lifeline and her mainstay through many trying days and nights. Diggity's personality was beautifully captured by Robyn's recollections, and will tweak the heart of any dog lover.

Robyn's ability to bring the aboriginal people and outback to life as she treks across it's vastness is truly astounding. After I finished her book, I immediately went back onto Amazon.com and bought every single book and reference she wrote or participated in. Her amazing zest and appreciation for the life in the outback of Australia was exhilarating. I urge you to read a truly moving, tear jerking, humorous, enlightling and generally captivating novel that bespeaks of the ultimate travel experience one can ever hope to conjure. Thank you, Robyn!

I bought this book based on the first reviewer's comments, hoping that I, too, could have some laughs and learning about the Red Planet! A guide to Mars just seemed so over-the-top, I had to explore it!

When I received the book and read this comment on the back cover, I knew I was in for something wonderfully unique: "Each year, more and more modern families are considering Mars for their summer holidays. The old inconveniences associated with travel and accommodation on the exciting and scenic Red Planet are fading fast. Anyone who enjoys a crisp and bracing climate, guaranteed year-round sunshine, and picturesque boulders far for the madding crowds should look at Mars again." I was hooked! hahahaha I wanted to go to Mars!

The book is divided into seven intriguing sections, which inform as well as entertain:

1) Travel (A clever description on how to pack for and get to Mars, where the round-trip journey is about 309 million miles! Also, there is a quiet talk about passports, Visas, and other entry issues. )

2) Practical A-Z (Here are some important travel tidbits regarding best times to go, climate, the Martian calendar and events, sky-gazing, food and drink, the Martian entertainment and night life, where to stay, calling home, religion, sports... You know, all your typical travel highlights!)

3) Mars in the Night Sky (A clever look at retrograde motion and Mars curious celestial personality)

4) Touring the Planet (An insider's detailed look at Aerography, the study of Mars' surface features and landforms: the Martian Poles, Mare Australe, Promethei Rupes, Big Joe, Cydonia & The Face, Tharsis, Olympus Mons, Valles Marineris, Syrtis Major, and others. Don't forget your moon trips and climbers' tips!)

5) A History of Mars (Explore the Martian Genesis; Mars in Earth mythology, history, science, and astrology; the Canal Craze; Mars in Sci-Fi and Fantasy--including a cool section called "War of the Worlds, Part II: All's Well that ends Welles." )

6) The Space Age begins (Read all about "Early Mars Tourism" efforts! LOL :) Enjoy early missions to Mars and their results. Tiny debate: does the face on Mars look like Ted Kennedy? Only readers can decide! This section also includes speculations on Martian Colonies for the future!)

7) Marsology (In here, find a fantastic listing of books and other media--fiction and non-fiction-- devoted to the Red Planet. Any Mars fan can benefit from this extensive guide to other resources, a grand checklist to explore.)

For a small book, there is a lot of info (and "dry" British humor) packed in the Cadogan Travellers' Guide to Mars. It is a refreshing read, and I believe it is well worth the price paid. The book is also an excellent resource for students who may have to study Mars science, history, and / or mythology. Makes a great primer for how to prepare for that BIG vacation of a lifetime!

Home-schooling parents and early college educators who wish to do unique, integrative studies mixing science, literature, mythology, humor, critical thinking, and creativity should take a look at what this book offers. People interested in colonizing and terra-forming Mars should read this book too! Celebrating imagination and innovation, this book offers its readers a fun journey that is both real in the context of its time and extraordinary.

As we learn more about Mars and as we continue to visit the planet with new technology, no doubt some of the facts / ideas in this book will begin to date themselves; however, that too will be quite funny--just as we now look at all those canal theories at the turn of the century and laugh! The best way to appreciate this book is to enjoy it for what it is...a clever travel parody that promotes further reading and discussion about the Red Planet and its many mysteries.

NOTE to those concerned: What you won't find in this book are the very recent Mars rover missions like Spirit and Opportunity or the upcoming Phoenix mission, slated for May 25, 2008. Readers who prefer a more serious, more in-depth "trip" / treatment to the Red Planet should investigate William K Hartmann's A Traveler's Guide to Mars or Planet Mars: Story of Another World (Springer Praxis Books / Popular Astronomy) by François Forget.

I brought this after reading Bill Bryson's comments in the New York Times and had a good guffaw. The authors, who usually write very irreverant guides about Europe, give Mars the same treatment-it not only makes science fun, but it makes you want to go to Mars on the next rocket out. Even my 11 year old has picked it up and used it for her science project at school. Pics are great too--altogether a fun little book!

firdaus kanga is a very dear friend who lives in my neighbourhood. his book is a reflection of his jovial self.

he is the wittiest guy i've ever met, and also, by the way, the most intelligent! this book is a must read.

Trying to grow is the story of a young man named Daryus Kotwal, who grew up in more ways than one, and did not allow his disabilitating disease to overcome him. Set in an endearing idiosyncratic Parsi family the story recreates his struggle with life. The vitality of the story comes from startlingly vivid characterizations. There is also this extraordinary fluency in the description of relationships and heartbreaks.

Autobiographical in nature, Trying to Grow brings a whole new and refreshing perspective to the world of human disability, eliminating any kind of "mush". There is a lot of honesty and energy in the way the story has been told. There is a vein of humor through out giving it a surprisingly upbeat tone. It is an exhilirating book which celebrates life more than anything else.