Oceania Books

The book really presents an australia not as we know it, but one off a great divide between a strong patriotic belief, and then one of digust and resentment for the war. Never the less in the early years of the war this patroitic fever griped the hearts of many australian men, and there was great exitment and need for one to stand up and defend his infant australia, hirtho not yet recongnised as a real or threatning force to the germans or her allies. Many of these young men felt that it was not off choice to enlist but of civil duty, and in alliance to the throne and empire of england. But as the casualities of Gallipoli reched the shores of Australia and dark and realistic shadow was cast over the hearts and minds off all australians. The fantasy of war being glorious and adventrous, came to a grinding hault, the harsh reality had struck. The divide in the country had become stronger and unenlisted eliglbles were outcast from soicety, every consievalble tactic was used to encourage these men to enlist. The country was closer than every to tryanny,and there were two referendims to allow consrcriptions to be allowed.

Bill resonstructs with great sensitivity the valour and the tragedy off war. through this he shows us why the Great War was th have profound effects of the attitudes and ideals of Australians as a nation.

Australia at the time was a young enthusiastic country just wanting to be accepted in the empire and a lot of young people (about 1/2 of all young males)went away to prove themselves and were butchered - literally. Wars like these were common in the 'old world' but australlia, the land of the great social experiment was in every sense just a young child - the photo on the cover demonstrates that perfectly - a fresh faced young boy so young and whos mother would have been so proud, but so many of these people are now rotting in a strange country, no gum trees no nothing. Read the part about battle at Nek to find out what I mean - blood on the wattle means something to a lot of Australians and this is why - innocence lost but they kept on going - The best army since Genghis Khan. The diaries are so sad lost love and lost life. Literally peoples last words on this earth are noted in some of those diary extracts. the human condition at its most extreme. These days a lot of young Australians looking for role models are looking at the ANZAC tradition. These people were in every sense of the word 'superhuman' they did twice the work with half of the manpower and that's why they are still regarded so highly in france 80 years later.

I know this isn't really a book review but when i read the broken years it made me that emotional that i just want to say how it affects Australians. Others should read it too it's historical and its personal some times really personal. Some of these old guys would never say what when on in the great war but this is an insight into the rare archives which do exist. How exciting it all seemed at first then at one instant at Gallipoli realisation came, the blood shed, people told to run at machine guns, horses wailing, mateship Always remember that Australia was just little child when it entered the most gross expression of the human condition that I know of

This is a thoughtful, insightful look at the initial contacts between Australia's indigenous people and members of the First Fleet in 1788. There is an intense curiosity, both within this book and in the snippets of evidence from the primary documents Ms Clendinnen refers to, about the meanings of the human interactions observed. Reading through the snippets from Watkin Tench, David Collins, William Bradley and others offers insights into the impacts of foreign cultures on each other.

`Our first shared Australian story is a tragedy of animated imagination, determined friendship and painfully dying hopes.'

One of the tragedies is in the way we view history. Written records, with their framework of events and theories of causation speak for themselves in ways that oral traditions, especially by those dispossessed, often cannot.

At the end of her book, Ms Clendinnen writes: `Here in this place, I think, we are all Australians now.' I am not sure that we are there yet, but there is renewed hope that we can be.

This book is well worth reading for its insights into those initial contacts.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Inga Clendinnen, one of Australia's most influential historians has written a gripping account of the relationship between the members of the First Fleet and the local "Australians" (as Clendinnen calls the aborigines). She uses the old reports and journals of the crew as source material. The result is a surprising peek at what really went on in those first 5 years, how Governor Arthur Phillip worked to establish friendly contacts, the clash of cultures so different from each other, and what happened to his efforts. Clendinnon is not as academic as she has been with prior works, but neither is this a beach read. It's a serious history book of real merit which also happens to be very well written.

A photo essay journey across Australia focuses on some of the "world's weirdest and most wonderful" animals. Sharp, lovely color photos are clearly labelled. There is brief information on each creature. Two pages at the end give a background of the country itself.

This is a wonderful book! The text leads us on a journey from early morning (before sunrise) through the night, traveling throughout Australia. Stunning photographs with bright colors, show the animals and sea life of Australia. The entire focus is on animals and sea creatures. The storyline is captivating and interesting. My children loved the text, which held their interest completely, and the supporting photographs. An example of the creative text is this line "Suddenly, a sea eagle explodes on the scene, dive-bombing before you."

A great read and a different style of introduction to the wildlife of Australia than most other nonfiction books about this subject!

Think of this book as a "Catch-22" for the Navy at the tail end of World War II. In fact, near the end of the book some of the officers have an interesting discussion regarding the bomb and its effect on the war, and the world, but let me warn you, the outcome might not be what one might expect. This book has all the colorful characters and oddball situations - my favorite being the daily delivery of the photo opportunity pictures to visiting politicians. There are some deeper tones here, and the humanity is never forgotten. I recommend this book to anyone who wants, and can appreciate, the snapshot of history from the inside, albeit at times with tongue planted firmly in cheek but never forgetting there is a bigger purpose.

Well, I did read this book repeatedly in the late 50's and early 60's, so I cannot in good conscience rate it lower than 4 stars. It is a moderately entertaining, and by now quaintly old-fashioned, story of some admen pressed into U. S. Navy Public Relations service in the Pacific. While everyone else fought the Axis, they fought the Air Force for their fair share of public recognition. The funniest bit is where the PR guys launch a "Typical Young Navy Man" campaign and select their candidate sight unseen, merely because his name contains two famous naval historical figures--Farragut and (John Paul) Jones. When he comes ashore for briefing, he proves slovenly, foul-mouthed, and all but intractable. The movie version memorably bleeped out his every use of the f-word with a ship's horn that sounded every bit as foul as what it was masking!

...Esta publicación es definitivamente la mejor opción para tener una visión general de la isla. Contiene hermosas fotos de la isla y sus habitantes, así como un excelente texto escrito por un arqueólogo, quien fue Director del Parque Nacional Rapa-Nui. En resumen un trabajo serio, completo y artísticamente hermoso

An excellent addition to the Rapa Nui library, with glorious color plates showing every aspect of the island. So many Easter Island books focus wholly on Easter Island's past, and the moai statues. This one includes excellent aerial views of the whole island and island life as well as its archeological splendors. A few too many of those pretty girls than can really be justified though, Carlos!

bought this when we returned from visiting edinburgh. realized i had never actually read robert louis stevenson. only had seen movies of his work. so was great to find out more about a city we loved visiting, and great to experience reading his writing. found out why his works are classics - he's a really good writer! made me want to read more of his work.

Edinburgh: Picturesque Notes is a vividly written piece which could easily have been featured in our travel section but is presented here for its literary value as a passionate survey of famed British novelist Robert Louis Stevenson's birthplace. His notes include history and social insights as well as commentary and bring Edinburgh alive.

I agree with Gerardo... This book will give you unvarnished observations from new visitors to the south east Pacific immediately after WWI. The descrptions of Hall's visit to the Paumotus (Tuamotus) are really priceless today, as is his account of Hotel Tiare and Lavaina, before her death. If you enjoy this, then see if you can get a copy of My Island Home. The island parts are very good (especially Singh, A Song of Six Pence). Also read The Forgotten One, and Other Stories, a darker look at the affects and outcomes of caucasians in the islands.

In this book, the authors make what seems to be an autobiographical account of a year of traveling and adventure throughout the South Seas. They decide to travel in different directions and meet again after a few months. They write in turn about their own experiences and stories as narrated to them by other characters, covering a wide range of stories, from the mere description of island's habits, to beautiful native stories, to what must be the most thrilling and yet poetic treasure hunt I have read. Possibly a slightly minor work from this authors, better known for the Bounty books. Yet, if you like the mystery of the South Seas a little more than its adventure, add that fifth star to my rating. Please bear in mind my comments are based on a first edition of this book, dated 1921, which I own. I write the review in the hope that it will be useful since there is none to date, but I have not actually read this new edition.

This well-organized book breaks down places to see in Australia by thier states. The sixteen Best of Australia lists; descriptive reviews of hotels and suggested itineraries; and 'Fun Facts' such as where to cuddle a koala are interesting to note. I am already planning to go back for a second visit because I cannot see it all in two weeks.

I have been using Frommers for many years. So naturally I chose this book to prepare for our first trip to Australia. It is the only guide book that you will need, though you might want to pick up a free AAA guide after you arrive if you need hotel info as Frommers can't cover every property.

This book will provide basic info on all the major sites. In addition, you will find a great deal of info on smaller towns that you may visit if you decide to do any driving. It was invaluable for providing info on the fly.

If you buy one guidebook, this one should be it.

I am planning to be an exchange student at the University of Canberra and of all the travel books I read, this met my needs the best. The book was honest about student discounts and the quality of youth hostels. The features I liked best were the planned walking tours of cities and the special attention to "Fun and Free" attractions. The author writes in a clear, friendly, engaging manner, I feel I know what to expect from Australia after reading this book.

I just got back from a 3-week trip to Australia during which I used this book constantly, though my version is from 1999 and I don't know what version amazon.com is selling right now. I visited many of the places Frommer's recommended and stayed at a few of the lodgings listed as well (specifically, the Sydney Central Youth Hostel and Springfield Lodge, both good choices if you are on a budget and want a place that's clean and comfortable). Some people I travelled with part of the time preferred my guide over theirs (a Fodor, I think) so much that I let them borrow it after I flew home and they stayed behind. If I could change one thing, I would color-code the seperate chapters- it was difficult to locate things in my edition since everything was printed in black or red. Still, this book was extremely handy for me and I'm glad it was the one I chose to buy.

When we were considering what to do during our month in New Zealand, travel agents were pleading with us to have everything lined up before "the Y2k rush." So, being the literal engineering types, we bought a couple of books -- the Lonely Planet NZ and the Frommers for Under $50/day -- and started poring through them.

Our initial impression of the Lonely Planet book was too dense to be useful to us. The Frommer's guide, however, had suggested itineraries based on the time one could spend in New Zealand. Even better, the author, Elizabeth Hansen, was available to "consult" on the trip on an hourly basis. Because we'd be toting our 18-month old, we used her services and pre-booked the entire trip.

Once there, we found the Lonely Planet book much more useful. The Lonely Planet guide excels at providing abundant information about towns, including attractions, restaurants and maps giving a rough layout.

For example, one of the folks at a Visitor center clued us into Farewell Spit, an area we were going to forego because it was well off our chosen route. As it turned out, Tahuna Park, our campground in Nelson was pretty bad (right under an airport takeoff path; lots of people permanently living there; undermaintained kitchens), and we didn't relish the idea of spending three days there as originally planned.

The side trip to Farewell Spit was long and we'd have to find some place relatively nearby to the Spit to make it a reasonable trip. Unfortunately, this is where the Frommer's guide was very weak. It caters more to the B&B crowd, and there isn't that much north (or west) of Nelson. The Lonely Planet book, however, paid for itself by suggesting a lot of options, providing maps of the little towns, and listing restaurants where we might stop at for "snack time."

In summary: The Frommer's book is helpful for initially planning your trip.

The Frommer's book has more of a focus on higher-end accomodations, e.g., motels or beds and breakfasts, and covers a smaller area. This is not such a big deal unless you want to venture too far off the beaten path.

We felt the author's services were worthwhile.

Don't underestimate the value of the Visitor Centers scattered throughout New Zealand. They were generally very good at providing local information. Most will also book special activities for you.

I recently spent two weeks in New Zealand. This was the only book I took with me and it was the best choice. I had looked through others but, I would recommend this book to anyone who is planning a holiday there. The pricing was a bit outdated due to the exchange rate, but all the other information was dead on! I did the things recommended in Rotorua, Taupo and Napier and I was well prepared! The for free or nearly free things to do and see were the best. I cant wait to go back!