Miranda Reads's Reviews > In a Sunburned Country

Lovely little adventure a la Bill Bryson

No one knows, incidentally, why Australia's spiders are so extravagantly toxic; capturing small insects and injecting them with enough poison to drop a horse would appear to be the most literal case of overkill. Still, it does mean that everyone gives them lots of space.

What an absolutely stunning endorsement. As with his other traveling books, Bill Bryson hip hops his way across a country - visiting monuments and interviewing natives.

We meet quirky characters and Australian wildlife galore - from the poisonous snakes to the brutal kookaburra Incidentally, did you know that the kookaburra likes to bash its prey until their bones have been pulverized? Apparently its easier to digest that way...lovely...

He also has quite a lot to say about Australians:

They spend half of any conversation insisting that the country's dangers are vastly overrated and that there's nothing to worry about, and the other half telling you how six months ago their Uncle Bob was driving to Mudgee when a tiger snake slid out from under the dashboard and bit him on the groin, but that it's okay now because he's off the life support machine and they've discovered he can communicate with eye blinks.

To be fair, Bill Bryson does have plenty of good things to say about Australia. As he goes from town to town, he describes delicious sounding dishes and has a way with describing the atmosphere such that you feel like you are really there.

About halfway through the book, I did start to get a bit bored (this book became a bit samey-samey with every town he visited). That being said, I did enjoy reading this somewhat unusual trek through Australia.

Audiobook Comments
Nothing too special - was well-read if a bit bland in tone/inflection.

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