Australia for Women: Travel and Culture (The Feminist Press Travel Series) [Paperback]

Susan Hawthorne (Editor, Introduction), Renate Klein (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1994 | Series: The Feminist Press Travel Series

Fifty-seven Australian women--including Elizabeth Jolley, Dale Spender, and Ruby Langford--offer fiction, poetry, and essays that present inside information on Australia not available in standard travel books. The volume also features descriptions of women's festivals, publications, bookstores, cafes, galleries, and more.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Australia for Women is a guide to both travel and culture, geared toward the female traveler. Divided into three sections, the book first presents essays, stories, and poems about Australian history, nature, culture, and life with a special emphasis on women's achievements in culture and art. The next section is devoted to the country itself, concentrating on the geography of Australia and offering information about various locales and attractions of particular interest to women. The last section offers a list of useful resources for women travelers, including women's centers, health centers, lesbian centers, cafés, bookshops, galleries, and more. Written by Australian women, Australia for Women gives outsiders the inside track on a vast and fascinating land.

From Library Journal

In this first volume in a new series of travel books, you won't find listings of hotels, places to eat, or train schedules. Rather, the editors have gathered together a group of 66 essays on two broad topics, "Politics and Daily Life" and "Cities, Countries, Rivers." A third section "Resources," is a brief listing of services, stores, magazines, etc., catering to women's needs. Some of the essays would be of interest to any reader, but most are aimed at giving a picture of contemporary Australian society's attitudes toward women, some historical background, and items of particular interest to women. The essays range from scholarly pieces to personal accounts and are solid and readable, despite one entitled "The Revolutionary Nature of Lesbian Organic Farming." The photographs are of high quality, but unfortunately the captions are at the back of the book. Recommended for travel and Australian collections.
George M. Jenks, Bucknell Univ., Lewisburg, Pa.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 434 pages
• Publisher: The Feminist Press at CUNY; First Edition edition (September 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558610952
• ISBN-13: 978-1558610958
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,375,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars About women, by women, for women and men, March 25, 2000

By 

saliero (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Australia for Women: Travel and Culture (The Feminist Press Travel Series) (Paperback)

An excellent companion to travels in Australia, either in life or from the armchair. Section 1 is entitled Politics and Daily Life. It includes pieces by women of a variety of ethnic backgrounds, ranging over an extremely eclectic range of topics, from women convicts to racism and politics from koori women's point of view. A reasonable representation of Aboriginal women is present - more than in most collections. Part Two looks at particular places , It is called Cities - Country - Rivers. Some of the pieces are about places well away from the regular tourist path, for example Flinders Island. This is a feminist volume, and includes chapters from lesbian women. Staying and working on organic farms is popular these days. Kaye Johnston's chapter "The revolutionary nature of Lesbian Organic Gardening" tells about her and her partner's project - Moonraker farm in the NSW Southern Highlands. At the end are several listings, some of which may be out of date. More useful is a Recommended Reading section which includes literature, anthologies, poetry and plays, fiction, autobiography, history, - mainly, but not exclusively by women. There is biographical information on each of the contributors. This is a really interesting volume to dip in to, and it is a very valuable companion to Australian cultural life, breaking out of the Crocodile Dundee, sunbronzed Aussie type of stereotype. And, I think, despite the title, there is much for men in here too!