A Concise History of Australia (Cambridge Concise Histories) - Softcover

Macintyre, Stuart

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0521625777 ISBN 13: 9780521625777

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2000

Synopsis

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.

About this title

Review

' ... a lively, intelligent, opinionated and very well written one-volume history, traversing some well-covered territory of colonial and 20th-century Australia with a fresh eye that doesn't fail to observe the big and small picture.' Australian Bookseller and Publisher

'As one of a series of works of reference, concise national histories, the book is an interesting, often brilliant combination of new and conventional scholarship, of information, opinion and ideas.' Journal of Australian Colonial History

'... a most impressive contribution to Australian historical literature'. Australian Book Review

'This volume will become the standard text for many university courses in Australian history. Researchers, students and general readers will appreciate Macintrye's deft coverage and insights.' Michael Sturma, History

'Macintyre's book is the best short history of Australia since Manning Clark's classic of 1963.' The Times Literary Supplement

'This excellent, compact volume ... Macintye gives a perceptive account of the culture of sacrifice, made for the mother country in two world wars, the making of the modern, multicultural society, and, of course, looks at the unifying role of cricket.' BBC History Magazine

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.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521625777
• ISBN 13: 9780521625777
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 334