In a Sunburned Country 
Bryson, who could make a pile of dirt compelling--and yes, Australia is mostly dirt--finds no shortage of curiosities. When he isn't dodging Portuguese man-of-wars or considering the virtues of the remarkable platypus, he visits southwest Gippsland, home of the world's largest earthworms (up to 12 feet in length). He discovers that Australia, which began nationhood as a prison, contains the longest straight stretch of railroad track in the world (297 miles), as well as the world's largest monolith (the majestic Uluru) and largest living thing (the Great Barrier Reef). He finds ridiculous place names: "Mullumbimby Ewylamartup, Jiggalong, and the supremely satisfying Tittybong," and manages to catch a cricket game on the radio, which is like listening to two men sitting in a rowboat on a large, placid lake on a day when the fish aren't biting; it's like having a nap without losing consciousness. It actually helps not to know quite what's going on. In such a rarefied world of contentment and inactivity, comprehension would become a distraction.
"You see," Bryson observes, "Australia is an interesting place. It truly is. And that really is all I'm saying." Of course, Bryson--who is as much a travel writer here as a humorist, naturalist, and historian--says much more, and does so with generous amounts of wit and hilarity. Australia may be "mostly empty and a long way away," but it's a little closer now. --Rob McDonald
Reviews
I started into "In a Sunburned Country" with similar expectations, and especially since I have always longed and planned to visit Australia. To state that I was disappointed is a severe understatement. After reading this book I now have little to no desire to visit the "land down under;" my only hope is that I will completely forget what I read in Bryson's book so that I may one day look forward to and enjoy visiting Australia. (Senility be merciful and consume me hastily!)
My best estimate is that Bryson was commissioned to write a ~350 page book about Australia. During and / or after his trip, his creative sense must have taken a vacation of its own. I have rarely struggled so much to get through a book as I did with this one. Bryson even stooped so low as to use an urban legend as a "story" relayed second-hand from one of the Australians he "met." Such a stunt makes me question if any of his accounts are real in any of his books.
The only saving grace to this book was the educational tangents. These, at least, provided for some interesting reading.
After comparing notes with another person who ventured to read another of Bryson's books ("I'm A Stranger Here Myself") after she read "A Walk in the Woods," it would appear that "In a Sunburned Country" is not the only snore-fest that Bryson has churned out. Perhaps he isn't a "one hit wonder," but I for one am not going to waste my time or money finding out.
So, if you are looking for the same caliber of writing that Bryson provided in "A Walk in the Woods," look to another author or prepare to be greatly disappointed.
just likes a teriffic descrption of this far-off land by a master
storyteller who writes with self-depricating humor.
I've read this book in its UK form as "Down Under" and have to say it is my favorite of Bryson's books! It is funny, thought provoking, intelligent, and interesting all the way through. Bryson has a way of telling historical fact and making it interesting and here it shines.
A little tale of how I discovered this book: I was traveling through New Zealand and Australia for about a year. During my travels, backpackers (as low budget travelers are known) usually trade books between them. You pick up a book, you read it, you trade it for a different one from another backpacker. And so it goes. However, there was one particular book that many backpackers had in their possession and did not care to trade for any cost, it was indeed "Down Under" which I had to purchase for myself. Considering all the hype and praise fellow backpackers were giving it, I had no choice. It was a fantastic read full of relevant information. Afterwards, I too did not wish to trade it and it's sitting proudly on my bookshelf today, with red sand stains from the Australian Outback - a reminder to where the book was at!
In short, get this book, read it, enjoy it.