A fun re-read from one of my favorite authors, Bill Bryson. Any book that Bryson pens is sure to lead to uncontrollable laughter, snorts, chortles or gaffaws, so plan your reading time accordingly. Not recommended reading material for mime class, funerals, or anywhere quiet, confined and where you will be surrounded by strangers - trust me on this. Even your own family members (*ehem* teenage daughters) might have a tendency to think you finally, irrevocably lost it and look warily at you as if you have become possessed by demons or body odor.

But I digress. Anyway, Bryson makes the land Down Under come alive to armchair travellers everywhere, and if you're not aching to call your travel agent by the time you finish this book, then I don't think you have an adventurous bone in your body.

Australia is a big country, filled with stranger and larger then life flora and fauna then one can possibly imagine. In Bryson's deft and sarcastic way, he manages to poke fun of and fulsomely praise this place at the same time. This is a land where prime ministers go missing forever and no one else in the world knows it, where deadly critters line up on land and in the sea awaiting the unsuspecting human to stumble upon them, where some Australian cities are often closer to other countries then they are to each other and where you can travel 1,500 miles along a rugged, scenic coast highway and pass only 2 other cars...

Bryson brings this land, its history, its people and its magnificence to vivid life. You'll laugh, you'll gape in wonder, and you'll sigh that you either weren't born there or don't have the money to get there to see for yourself. Count me as both!

Bryson himself admits that he has no other goal in writing this book than to show everyone that Australia is strangely awesome. And how strangely awesome it is. A short list of wonderful things I learned:

1.tthe Aborigine people have the oldest culture on Earth, probably dating to at least 40,000 years. They crossed the sea to Australia using god-knows what maritime technology at a time when Neanderthals still existed. Yet no one remembers this remarkable accomplishment. Indeed, not remembering the Aborigines is an Australian pastime and a dark spot on their otherwise congenial culture.

2.tthe flora and fauna found there are abundant and diverse. Stromatolites, platypi, “only” fourteen species of venomous snakes, cute and cuddly wallabies, and tons of species that will likely never be recorded because…

3.tAustralia is HUGE. Astoundingly large. And in addition to being a hulking continent/country/island hybrid land mass, it is empty. An immense void in the Pacific.

4.tmany explorers have gotten lost in the Outback, and desperately thirsty, have deigned to drink their own urine and the urine of their companions. Important lesson for any potential explorers: the salt in the urine will actually exacerbate your thirst.

5.tAustralia is the least wooded continent aside from Antarctica yet it is the world’s largest exporter of woodchips.

Being a Bryson book, it has hilarious moments. I envy this man’s ability to collect the most ridiculous true stories and encounter the most interesting real people. I have so many highlighted bits, but here’s a funny paragraph where Bryson, obsessed with the plethora of lethal creatures out to kill him in Oz, discusses the Australians’ attitudes toward them:

n  Australians are very unfair in this way. They spend half of any conversation insisting that the country’s dangers are vastly overrated and that there’s nothing to worry about, and the other half telling you how six months ago their Uncle Bob was driving to Mudgee when a tiger snake slid out from under the dashboard and bit him on the groin, but that it’s okay now because he’s off the life support machine and they’ve discovered he can communicate with eye blinks.n

Reading one of Bill Bryson’s travelogues is always a fantastic time. You laugh, you learn, you marvel. He stuffs your head with useless trivia and reminds you how valuable our world and our fellow people are. I need to stop reading his books because I always finish and make haste to airline sites, researching plane prices for impossible journeys, adding another place to my lengthy Must-See-Before-Dead list. But I can’t stop. He’s perfect at what he does.

Esilarante e interessante. Da leggere, tenere sul comodino e rileggere.

Bill Bryson writes with a biting wit and also gives me the travel bug whenever I read his work. I just keep wanting to read more of his adventures and shenanigans.

I'd rate this book a PG-13 for some swearing and adult humor.

On my way to moving to Australia, many years ago, I read this book. It emphasizes everything great about Australia. The history, absurdity, charm, uniqueness, and especially the amazing people. This book started me on the path for Bill Bryson to become my favorite author. His ability to mix historical facts, humor, and personal experiences is unrivaled. Thank you Bill. Please keep at it and be safe.

Dieses Buch gab es bereits als ich 2000 nach Australien zog. Aber ich wusste es nicht. Bei einem Freund viel mir zufällig das Buch in die Hände, und ich las es mit zunehmender Freude, lautem Lachen und Sehnsucht nach Orten, die ich ebenfalls besuchte. Bryson beschreibt seine Eindrücke so humorvoll und treffend, dass es mir eine Freude war und mich immer noch lächeln lässt.

I first read this book many years ago, before I ever ventured to Australian shores, and was captivated.
Now, having lived Down Under for several years and familiar with many of the places Bill describes, I re-read it and enjoyed it immensely but in quite a different way.
A must read!

My third Bill Bryson book.  After "One Summer," I promoted Bryson to the role of "Whatever this guy writes, I'll read."  Although "One Summer" focused on 1927, it was really a broad view of America at that time.  "Sunburned" is about Australia, but in a very different way.  Bryson tells us about places and experiences he had in a sweeping jaunt through the regions of Australia, from the populated east coast, to the barren interior, to the beautiful west coast.  He is witty, open, and wholeheartedly sold on Australia - the people and the land.  I noticed that Aussies who've reviewed the book give it very high marks, which is a good sign.

Bryson has a wonderful sense of humor.  In some cases, I think he embellishes the truth, i.e., he takes an experience which deals in facts, but then adds quirks that will make the scene seem even more bizarre, or amusing, or frustrating than it probably was.  I know this because I sometimes resort to the same ploy.  I never waver from the truth, of course, but just make it sound a little more interesting and funky.  One aspect that surprised me was that occasionally Bryson throws in a smutty remark.  Nothing wrong with that, except it didn't quite fit in with the general tone.

Although Bryson is in love with Australia, he doesn't hesitate to criticize when he feels criticism is due.  He can't stand Canberra, for example, although that's balanced by his love of Perth.  His take on the outback is unexpected.  While he faces certain "difficult' situations in that area, he is constantly amazed at the vastness, intrigued by the uniqueness, and enthusiastic about the "amenities" (no matter how basic they might be.)

This book is not a travel guide.  You won't find a list of hotels or restaurants, but you will come away with a real sense of what Australia has to offer.  And what it has to offer are experiences you will not find any place else on earth.  Eat your heart out, Rick Steves.  (4-1/2 stars).

I read this book after my visit to Australia and it made me want to return as often as I could. Would recommend this book for travellers planning to visit Australia or those, like me, who are predisposed to love Australia rags and all. I particularly love Bryson's anecdotes on his Australian encounters that range from strange to extraordinary and the history that comes with it all. A definite must read!

El libro ideal para conocer un país al que como mucho se suele viajar una vez en la vida. No es una guía de viaje, sino un ensayo sobre lo que te puedes encontrar allí: usos y costumbres, incontables anécdotas de su historia y fauna, narrados con un sentido del humor maravilloso

This is the first Bill Bryson book I have read and did not expect to so thoroughly enjoy it.  Beautiful writing and good humor.

It is only recently that I have discovered Bill Bryson, and in short order he has managed to become one of my favorite authors. This work is the epitome of what a travel book should be. Bryson seamlessly weaves together history, wit, insight, and personal anecdote into a memorable tale that greatly increased my desire to see this enormous and remote continent.

Firstly, it is clear throughout the entire length of the book that Bryson genuinely loves this nation. My appreciation of his affection may be somewhat heightened by the fact that I also listened to the audio book (read by the author), and his tone betrays his endearing lack of subjectivity. His love of the people does not keep him from making some sharp comments about particular subjects however. He observes that Australians tend to engage in the art of argumentation without actually wishing for change, as with the topic of them becoming a full-fledged independent republic. Also, he doesn't pull punches when relating how some of the inhabitants of this great nation were anything but hospitable.

The historical narrative he weaves into the tale would undoubtedly be more interesting when traveling through the towns and countryside. Brief historical sketches of the small communities he passes through tend to be boring but his more generalized Australian history about the founding is fascinating and well told. The countless failed explorations into the interior were mostly forgettable, but they successfully conveyed the brutality and ruthlessness of the natural Australian environment. Also, the migration of peoples 45,000 years ago onto the continent was right on the nail.

When discussing the plight of the aboriginals he makes some cutting observations about the Aussies and himself. After mulling over the `problem', and considering ways that the position of the aboriginals in Australian society might be bettered, he finds that he has no genuine answers to the problem. "So without an original or helpful thought... I did what most white Australians do. I read my paper... and didn't see them [the aborigines] anymore."

His humorous obsession with deadly animals continues in this work as well, as he documents fish, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians that are particularly adept at maiming and killing unsuspecting or careless travelers. Also, he makes note of the introduction of wild rabbits onto the continent by Thomas Austin, a resident of Victoria in 1859. The 24 rabbits originally released for sport soon grew to a population in the millions. Temporarily curtailed by the governments' introduction of a rabbit-killing disease, the hardy survivors eventually began breeding again until the figures reached a staggering 300 million (at time of publication.

Lastly, the most personally impactful aspect of the book is Bryson's narrative style. As an avid traveler, I log my own journeys and document where I've been, as well as interesting tales, brushes with death, etc. His descriptive ability is superb and he draws the reader into the scenes with a comic and conversational style. His lonely encounters in bars, awkward picture taking with other solo travelers (as they stare at an enormous fabricated lobster) and drunken nights with his traveling companions are hilarious and genuine. I hope to bring his vividness to my next trip, when writing about it later.

Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who likes travel, has gone to Australia, or wishes to go in the future. He inspired me to do so, and even made me believe that Uluru (Ayers rock) might be worth seeing, and not just the world's most useless geological artifact. Five stars.