A Concise History of Australia (Cambridge Concise Histories) [Paperback]

Stuart Macintyre (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521625777 | ISBN-13: 978-0521625777 | Publication Date: January 28, 2000 0

Australia is the last continent to be settled by Europeans, but it also sustains a people and a culture tens of thousands of years old. For much of the past 200 years the newcomers have sought to replace the old with the new. This book tells how they imposed themselves on the land, and describes how they brought technology, institutions and ideas to make it their own. It relates the advance from penal colony to a prosperous free nation and illustrates how, in a nation created by waves of newcomers, the search for binding traditions has long been frustrated by the feeling of rootlessness. Now, with the realisation that colonisation began with invasion, present-day Australians are - more than ever before - coming to terms with their past and recognising the need to redefine and reposition Australia in a changing world. This is the most up-to-date single-volume Australian history available.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a fine book. It is worth reading for its insights into contemporary Australian historiography and politics, and its descriptions of the Australian history wars alone. Macintyre writes with passion and elegance so it makes a very good read. It is an excellent introduction to Australian history." - Pacific Affairs Charlie Fox, University of Western Australia

Book Description

This is the most up-to-date single-volume Australian history available. It draws on the latest research and takes up present concerns with indigenous issues, the environment and the republic question. This insightful and entertaining book is essential reading for both nationals and visitors alike.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (January 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521625777
• ISBN-13: 978-0521625777
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,032,024 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good modernist view of Australian history, July 12, 2000

By 

M. Gream (London, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Concise History of Australia (Cambridge Concise Histories) (Paperback)

Stuart's work is an excellent overview of Australian history from the dreamtime to the present. He captures the major periods and events that shaped the progress of Australia towards federation and beyond, into the current malaise over national identity and the development of a unique and identifiable cultures.

Modern thought increasingly accepts the indigenous problems that were part of Australian colonisation, and Stuart probes these and other contemporary issues by drawing from both sides of the debate. He illustrates research that examines the language of overland explorers, to determine whether they were 'exploring' or 'conquering', and he comments on modern interpretations of the constitution by the high court. Readers not well versed in Australian issues may pass over these slights of hands without understanding their importance in the nature of forging an Australian history, culture and identity.

I would recommend this book as a necessary overview for any person interested in the history of the country, including potential tourists.

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Informative and well-written, November 24, 2000

By 

Schmerguls "schmerguls" (Sioux City, Ia USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Concise History of Australia (Cambridge Concise Histories) (Hardcover)

I have long wanted to read a general history of Austrailia, and when I read. on April 3, 1988, The Fatal Shore, by Robert Hughes, I said to myself, in my post-reading note: "I am glad I read this book, but maybe I'd've done better to read a plain history of Australia than this long account of this aspect of its beginning." I am shamed to say that it has taken over 12 years to do what I thought I should have done back then. This book goes up to 1999, and portrays very well the current dilemmas facing Australia. If you enjoy the articles in Current History, as I do, this book reminds me of those articles, except it is less bland and neutral. Ordinarily I avoid histories with designations such as "short" or "concise" figuring that I want a fuller treatment. But when one knows as little of a country as I do of Australia, I thought this a good introduction to its history.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Interesting subject matter buried under impenetrable language..., February 20, 2009

By 

Christian Ristow "robochrist" (Taos, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Concise History of Australia (Cambridge Concise Histories) (Paperback)

One has the sense, when slogging through this book, that there is interesting material here. The inclusion of information about the aboriginals who inhabited Australia before 1778 is laudable. However, as has been noted previously, the language is just too difficult to read. The sentence structure is so complicated, and the vocabulary so obscure, that it feels as if it were written 100 years ago, when the English language was in a different stage of evolution.

I was actually unable to finish the book. At a certain point Macintyre begins to discuss at length the activities of "the Chartists." However, he makes no attempt to establish who the Chartists were, what they stood for, or why they were called the Chartists. That was it for me.... I cut my losses and put it down.

I am just beginning Robert Hughes' "The Fatal Shore," and so far it is infinitely more engaging.