In a Sunburned CountryEvery time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travel literature threatens to break out. This time in Australia. His previous excursion along the Appalachian Trail resulted in the sublime national bestseller A Walk in the Woods. In A Sunburned Country is his report on what he found in an entirely different place: Australia, the country that doubles as a continent, and a place with the friendliest inhabitants, the hottest, driest weather, and the most peculiar and lethal wildlife to be found on the planet. The result is a deliciously funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance by a writer who combines humor, wonder, and unflagging curiousity. Despite the fact that Australia harbors more things that can kill you in extremely nasty ways than anywhere else, including sharks, crocodiles, snakes, even riptides and deserts, Bill Bryson adores the place, and he takes his readers on a rollicking ride far beyond that beaten tourist path. Wherever he goes he finds Australians who are cheerful, extroverted, and unfailingly obliging, and these beaming products of land with clean, safe cities, cold beer, and constant sunshine fill the pages of this wonderful book. Australia is an immense and fortunate land, and it has found in Bill Bryson its perfect guide. |
From inside the book
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... beach in Victoria when he plunged into the surf and vanished. No trace of the poor man was ever seen again. This seemed doubly astounding to me—first that Australia could just lose a prime minister (I mean, come on) and second that news ...
... beach in Victoria when he plunged into the surf and vanished. No trace of the poor man was ever seen again. This seemed doubly astounding to me—first that Australia could just lose a prime minister (I mean, come on) and second that news ...
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... beach, as innocent tourists are all too wont to do, and you will discover that the little fellow inside is not just astoundingly swift and testy but exceedingly venomous. If you are not stung or pronged to death in some unexpected ...
... beach, as innocent tourists are all too wont to do, and you will discover that the little fellow inside is not just astoundingly swift and testy but exceedingly venomous. If you are not stung or pronged to death in some unexpected ...
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... beach suburb overlooking the Pacific. At Manly we would grab a bite of lunch, then have an invigorating session of boogie boarding before toweling ourselves down and heading for—“Excuse me for interrupting,” I interrupted, “but what is ...
... beach suburb overlooking the Pacific. At Manly we would grab a bite of lunch, then have an invigorating session of boogie boarding before toweling ourselves down and heading for—“Excuse me for interrupting,” I interrupted, “but what is ...
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... Beach, near Manly. It was a big U-shaped bay, edged by low scrub hills, with what seemed to me awfully big waves pounding in from a vast and moody sea. In the middle distance several foolhardy souls in wet suits were surfing toward some ...
... Beach, near Manly. It was a big U-shaped bay, edged by low scrub hills, with what seemed to me awfully big waves pounding in from a vast and moody sea. In the middle distance several foolhardy souls in wet suits were surfing toward some ...
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... beach, certainly nothing still alive, snatched up his camera and began excitedly taking close-up shots of my stomach. Bizeet, bizeet, bizeet, bizeet, his camera sang happily as he followed me into the surf. Let me just pause here for a ...
... beach, certainly nothing still alive, snatched up his camera and began excitedly taking close-up shots of my stomach. Bizeet, bizeet, bizeet, bizeet, his camera sang happily as he followed me into the surf. Let me just pause here for a ...
Contents
Part Two Civilized Australia the Boomerang | |
Chapter 10 | |
Chapter 11 | |
Chapter 12 | |
Chapter 13 | |
Chapter 15 | |
Chapter 16 | |
Chapter 17 | |
Chapter 18 | |
Chapter 19 | |
Dedication | |
Bibliography | |
Part Three Around the Edges | |
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Common terms and phrases
Aborigines actually Adelaide Alice Springs Allan American asked aviation beach beer Bill Bryson box jellyfish Broken Hill Bryson building Canberra Carmel coast couldn’t couple course crocodile Daly Waters Darwin desert didn’t distance driving earth empty feet flight Games half highway hills hundred miles Indian Pacific kangaroos kilometers Kingsford Smith land landscape living look Melbourne million minutes morning museum named nation nearly never nodded Nungesser Olympics once outback Park passed Perth place called plane Queensland realized reef road rock seemed seen smile South Wales sport stand stood story street stroll stromatolites Sturt Highway Surfers Paradise swimming Sydney television tell There’s things thought thousand took town trees turned Uluru Victoria visitors walked watched Western Australia What’s wonder young