The Fatal Shore
By Robert Hughes
- Release Date: 1986-12-12
- Genre: Australian & Oceanic History
Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • This incredible true history of the colonization of Australia explores how the convict transportation system created the country we know today.
"One of the greatest non-fiction books I’ve ever read ... Hughes brings us an entire world." —Los Angeles Times
Digging deep into the dark history of England's infamous efforts to move 160,000 men and women thousands of miles to the other side of the world in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Hughes has crafted a groundbreaking, definitive account of the settling of Australia.
Tracing the European presence in Australia from early explorations through the rise and fall of the penal colonies, and featuring 16 pages of illustrations and 3 maps, The Fatal Shore brings to life the history of the country we thought we knew.
Reviews
Rich vocabulary
5By khouse97A delightful read and the best resource I ever found for building my vocabularyThe FatalShore
5By Fishing PreacherI was surprised that the average rating of this book was so low. Australia is unique among nations in the manner of its founding and settlement. You will find no “Crocodile Dundee” theatrics here. This book is the most comprehensive treatment of the subject of the founding of Australia. It was not necessarily a pretty picture but sheer determination.Interesting but cumbersome read!
2By BPGuy10Was interesting to learn more about how Australia was inhabited by convicts and miscreants from England. But the read was laborious and dull much of the time.Not a book I would read again.