Girt. No word could better capture the essence of Australia . . .
In this hilarious history, David Hunt reveals the truth of Australia's past, from megafauna to Macquarie - the cock-ups and curiosities, the forgotten eccentrics and Eureka moments that have made us who we are.
Girt introduces forgotten heroes like Mary McLoghlin, transported for the crime of 'felony of sock', and Trim the cat, who beat a French monkey to become the first animal to circumnavigate Australia. It recounts the misfortunes of the escaped Irish convicts who set out to walk from Sydney to China, guided only by a hand-drawn paper compass, and explains the role of the coconut in Australia's only military coup.
Our nation's beginnings are steeped in the strange, the ridiculous and the frankly bizarre. Girt proudly reclaims these stories for all of us.
Not to read it would be un-Australian.
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This is the funniest book on Australia, let alone Australian History, in existance. "On January 26 1788, Phillip named the large harbour, north of Botany Bay after Lord Sydney, who was also big and wet." Both informative and hilarious, this book is entirely worth it. - Georgia (QBD)
Guest, 27/04/2019
