Australian History

Australian History For Dummies is your rough-and-ready tour guide through Australia's whirlwind past. We'll introduce you to the people and events that have shaped this "Land Down Under" (and why it's called that). You'll see how Indigenous Australians lived in Australia for over 65,000 years. You'll be there as British colonists explore Australia's harsh terrain. You'll delve into the recent past, giving you insight into modern-day Australia and what's next. This new edition fills in the last ten years of history and covers issues faced in the twenty-first century.

With all the skills of the master storyteller that he is, Jim Haynes exposes some of the great myths of Australian history. Did you know that Portuguese and Spanish explorers probably found the east coast of Australia before Captain Cook, and that the Rum Rebellion was not caused by rum? And...

Always Greener is an exquisite portrait of Kate Grenville's complex, conflicted grandmother, who she feared as a child and only in adulthood came to understand. Born in rural Australia, Dolly Russell becomes a successful businessperson, mother and troubled wife. Then came the depression, bankruptcy and World War I. Yet, in a way, those disasters freed her. They allowed her to use her intelligence and ambition to make a space for herself in a man’s world.

No man or woman has won more Grand Slam singles titles than Novak Djokovic, who took his 24th major at the 2023 US Open. Based on fresh interviews with people close to Djokovic - including his friends and mentors, along with his former coaches and his rivals - this is an in-depth exploration of the psyche of one of the most fascinating and controversial sporting characters ever. 

Dive into the dramatic sports history of how fierce colonial pastimes evolved into an energetic national obsession. Perfect for an immersive morning commute, this nostalgic journey explores the deep Indigenous and cultural roots of Australian rules football. Whether you are enjoying a relaxing...

Rowland Sinclair is an artist and a gentleman. In Australia’s 1930s, the Sinclair name is respectable and influential, yet Rowland has a talent for scandal. He relies on the Sinclair fortune to indulge his artistic passions and friends; a poet, a painter and a brazen sculptress. Mounting...

An entertaining collection of insider yarns by an Aussie Test cricket legend. 'In the Test arena, Dennis Lillee was never beaten. West Indian champion Viv Richards had taken the sword to all the international bowlers of his era. But when he came up against Lillee, it was a heavyweight fight between unrelenting combatants. Their contests were always take-no-prisoners affairs.'

The incredible true story of one of the most extraordinary and inspirational prison breaks in Australian history. New York, 1874. Members of the Clan-na-Gael - agitators for Irish freedom from the English yoke - hatch a daring plan to free six Irish political prisoners from the most remote...

WINNER OF THE NED KELLY AWARD FOR BEST TRUE CRIME 2023 WINNER OF THE UK TRUE CRIME AWARD FOR BEST INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING 2024 A relentlessly fascinating and often jaw-dropping true story of two American women who unwittingly became Australia's 'Drug Grannies' In 1977, Vera 'Toddie' Hays and...

From the award-winning, bestselling author of Stone Sky Gold Mountain comes the story of an Irish-Chinese family over four generations in Australia. ‘They said you were a murdering bushranger.’ It’s the winter of 2049 and Daniel is elderly and long isolated. Soon after yet another...

"As impeccably crafted as a Dior gown and as seductive as the scent of Guerlain’s Shalimar, this is pure reading bliss." — Library Journal Set against the backdrop of mid-century Parisian glamour and the timeless art of perfumery, a captivating tale of resilience, love, and the intoxicating...

From the end of the Great War and into the 1920s, Alice Anderson was considered nothing less than a national treasure. She was a woman of 'rare achievement' who excelled as a motoring entrepreneur and inventor. Young, petite, boyish and full of charm, Alice was the only woman in Australia to...

With shades of Water for Elephants and True Grit, a stunning debut novel set in the Australian outback about a female horse thief, her bid for freedom, and the two men trying to capture her. It is 1921. In a mountain-locked valley, Jessie is on the run. Born wild and brave, by twenty-six she...

WINNER OF THE 2026 INDIE BOOK AWARD FOR DEBUT FICTION SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2026 ACT LITERARY AWARD FOR FICTION LONGLISTED FOR THE 2026 ARA HISTORICAL NOVEL PRIZE An epic and emotional story of three spirited women - a mother, her daughter, their maid - during the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong...

'The sun did not know how beautiful its light was until it was reflected off this building.' - Louis Kahn, US architect If only these walls and this land could talk ... The Sydney Opera House is a breathtaking building, recognised around the world as a symbol of modern Australia. Along with the...

'SONG OF THE CROCODILE is a moving, wise and deeply rewarding novel from an astonishing writer' - Emily Maguire, author of AN ISOLATED INCIDENT Darnmoor, The Gateway to Happiness. The sign taunts a fool into feeling some sense of achievement, some kind of end- that you have reached a destination...

This is what a history of Australia looks like when it has Indigenous perspectives at its heart. For over 65,000 years, people have made this continent their own through language, song, water and fire. The First Inventors tells their story. It is a history of innovation, diplomacy and design...

A gripping new legal thriller from a beloved Australian author, perfect for fans of The Murder Rule and Prima Facie. New graduate Fei Fei Chou is an outlier at her prestigious law firm. She's too quiet. She wears too much makeup. She’s only here because the boss has a thing for Asians. But Fei...

From the bravery of Australia's sailors to the great age of rail, the resilience of the truckers crossing the Nullarbor to the daring aviation pioneers who turned the skies into a new frontier, Great Australian Odysseys is a rich tapestry of adventure and ingenuity, with a good dose of Aussie laughs. Journey through tales of hardy truckers braving isolation, mechanical mishaps and political battles. Navigate the high seas with our first submariners' record-breaking journeys and daring rescues...

The greatest escape story of Australian colonial history by the son of Australia's best-loved storyteller. In 1823, cockney sailor and chancer James Porter was convicted of stealing a stack of beaver furs and transported halfway around the world to Van Diemen's Land, before being sent to Sarah Island. Many had tried to escape Sarah Island; few had succeeded. But when Governor George Arthur announced that the place would be closed and its prisoners moved to the new penal station of Port Arthur, Porter, along with a motley crew of other prisoners, pulled off an audacious escape.