A well written and easy to read tale of the first packhorse trip down the Bicentennial Trail - the spidery path that runs along the spine of Australia. No mean feat, a journey equivalent to Seattle to Mexico City through some of the most remote of Downunder's extensive wilderness. Told with humour and an eye on frailties both equine and human it details the courage and perseverance of a young Sharon Roberts and husband Ken as they confront everything from crocodile infested rainforests to baking waterless plains, while managing a sometimes reluctant but always bold group of horses. But more than a horse story it's a dashing good read, which the armchair traveller and the non-horse enthusiast can enjoy alike. For horse lovers it is a how-to guide to modern packhorse travel. Highly recommended.

Interesting snippets and factoids about all sorts of natural and human phenomena in Australia. Want to know the deepest gorge in each State/Territory? Height of some well-known waterfalls? Longest road ascents? All the answers are here.

Nothing terribly profound, and it is not hard to imaging how much of a crashing dinner-party bore you could become if you start to recite 'interesting snippets. On the other hand, if you are a Quiz night afficianado, or compiler of questions, this is one of the tomes to have at hand! It could also be a useful addition to the primary or high school reference library.

This account of the first south-north crossing in Victorian times is incredible. A film of this story several years ago did little to change that situation. The story recounts the key attempts and the elaborate expeditions involved. The crux of the story really revolves around a series of many mishaps and oh so near misses. Tragedy was almost avoided numerous times but ultimately...well read the book. The fact that the story is known and accurately recorded is in itself an incredible sub-plot. It is hard to believe sometimes that this is a true story -- yet this is a case of real life being more amazing than one would dare write as fiction! The story is quite detailed but hang in there, the threads all come together in an incredible finale.

This book was invaluable to me on my tours of Tazmania, South Australia and Victoria. In addition to excellent directions, the author provides you with recommended budget accomadations. Insights into Aussie culture and even a list of helpful Aussie phrases. Fair dinkum mate!

I first visited Indonesia in 1984 and fell in love with Bali. I have since returned each year to the "Island of the Gods" from where I have been exploring the rest of the Indonesian Archipelago, and since 1991, I share my time equally between Bali and Winchester, Massachusetts. Of course, I am always eager to know more about all aspects of Balinese life. Although there is a plethora of books about Bali dealing with its wonderful culture and its arts, it is not the case about its particular history. After a while, it became obvious to me that this important missing part of the puzzle was essential to further my understanding of the complex character of the Balinese. The history of Bali is clouded in the mist of time, and reliable informations on the subject tend to be scarce and are not easily available. Historical documents, written in old Balinese language are obviously not accessible to a non-specialist Westerner such I myself. Because of the special relationship between the Netherlands and Indonesia, there exist numerous documents written in Dutch, covering the last few centuries. However, as with most people, the Dutch language is not my forte.

Therefore, it was a "revelation" to come across Robinson's book, "The Dark Side of Bali". The book covers in details the historical and political events in Bali, from the end of 19th Century until the aftermath of the 1965 coup d'etat. It relates the Balinese experience under the Dutch colonial domination, during the National Revolution, 1945 - 1949, the Sukarno era, 1950 - 1965, and the military coup of 1965 and its aftermath. It reveals another face of Bali, the hidden face of Paradise. It is a scholarly book based on Dutch and Indonesian sources. It reads well, and contains an impressive number of references. Geoffrey Robinson, Assistant Professor of History at the University of California, Los Angeles, is obviously an expert on the subject, as demonstrated by this in-depth analysis of the social and economic roots of the deep divisions that have, since colonial times, penetrated and defined the Balinese society. Robinson shows how in the 1920's, the Dutch restored and in some cases created a "traditional" Bali to counter a perceived nationalistic threat. This was achieved by resurrecting and maintaining the old ruling royal families as guarantors of these traditions. The Japanese occupation during WWII, relying mostly on the sudras (lower cast) upset the exiting social order, and explained the social problems which existed until the Sukarto period, and eventually led to the horrific massacred of 1965, and the ascend of General Suharto to power. Robinson presents a picture of Bali quite unlike the idyllic, peaceful island promoted by the tourist industry, but a society influenced by the World's politics and driven by class and ideological conflicts. This book surely belongs in the library of anyone interested in Indonesia in general and Bali in particular.

Australia is a large continent, and to provide a resource book that adequately covers all that could be possibly be seen or done by 4WD would require a far more voluminous tome.

Discover Australia By 4WD attempts to provide the best of the rest and in my opinion does so admirably.

Anyone who owns and frequently tours in their 4WD will find this book a must. It provides plenty of useful information, tips and genuine and up to date advice, which I find should be compulsory for such a book. There are lots of relevant photographs, and the maps are as up to date as you can get.

Lots of links to almost everything you could want, such as tourist bureaus, information centres and the like as well as useful advice on road conditions, weather conditions, camping sites, and so on.

I was, however, a little disappointed at the lack of information on Western Australia, which is the largest state, and yet rated very little by way of 4WD trips through the north west of that state, which is one of the better regions in W.A.

Otherwise, I would heartily recommend this book to all Australian 4WD enthusiasts and international travellers alike.

This is a great, specializated guide with the best diving and snorkeling tours in the impressive Australian reef. Information about the best agencies, tours' schedules, instructors and amateurs courses and different submarines kinds that habitate the colorful coral world. An indispensable book for this magnific adventure.

As a second grade teacher, my students loved hearing this book during our Australia unit. Very informative with great pictures! I recommend for any child with a love of animals and an interest in Australia.

This book is a fine book in the sense that it involves a lot of historical research which proves that the author must have been spent a lot of time in the archive. I find it a usful introduction for someone interested in postcolonialism and how Europe formed its sense of the world. It's historical apporach gives the reader a larger picture and more background information which makes it better than other book on the same topic.

This is a useful guidebook for Australia. As is typical of Fodor's, it covers the major cities and a fair number of the less visited areas, cities, and islands. Provided is a representative selection of hotels and restaurants, and a fair number of attractions. It has many more maps than Lonely Planet, a definite plus.

Major problems: it is less useful for the traveller seeing Australia by road, since many country towns where motels are found are not covered (travelling from Adelaide to Sydney by a leisurely route, I looked for Port Augusta, Lithgow and Forbes in vain). Good metropolitan maps of the major cities would be appreciated, as well, showing each airport and city center.

Still, a very good guidebook which will be a great help for the visitor to Oz.