#21 [2025/CBR17] In a Sunburned Country by Bill Bryson

CBR17Bingo: Migrant (because Australia is a country of migrants--beginning with the Aboriginals and their mysterious journey by ship thousands of years ago, to the first European migrants, to the current migrants [almost half of the population of Sydney was born overseas]).

My husband and I began a tradition at our first anniversary of finding a book that relates to something we did during the year, and then we both read it. We haven't been married very long, but we generally choose books about somewhere we traveled to that year. The first year was Florida, and the second year was Italy. Now our third anniversary is coming up. We were lucky enough to go on vacation in Australia earlier this year. Generally, we pick a book and then both read it, but we did things a little backwards this year.

My husband found In a Sunburned Country (2000) by Bill Bryson and listened to it while we were on vacation. Because he liked it so much, I listened to it, too. So, when it came time to choose a book for our anniversary, we weren't sure we were going to find anything more fitting than In a Sunburned Country. Even though we'd both already listened to it, I bought a paperback copy to add to our "anniversary bookshelf."

I've read a number of books by Bill Bryson, but his personal travel/adventure books are definitely my favorite. I really enjoyed In a Sunburned Country. Not only did he describe all the places my husband and I had just visited, but he also explored many places in the country we did not have time for. He also discussed the history of Australia, the Aboriginal people, and the many, many things that can kill you.

My husband and I only had time to visit Sydney, Cairns, and Melbourne. I remember getting out of the airport after our seventeen hour flight and being confused by how at home I felt. Everyone spoke English, the cars and street signs were familiar, and parts of the city felt like my hometown. At the same time, everyone spoke with a cool accent, there was beautiful water everywhere, it was so hot, and there were crazy animals everywhere--even giant bats in the middle of Sydney.

Bryson hit upon this feeling in his book. It was fun to listen to him experience many of the same things that we did and his self-deprecating style was very funny. I also appreciated that Bryson was able to see so much more of the country. He traveled all along the eastern coast of Australia, he traveled through the vast nothingness of the center on the train, he made it to the West coast, and he even saw Uhuru.

Originally, I was a little concerned how Bryson would write about the Aboriginal people. I listened to his book At Home and was frustrated that he went on and on about the cotton gin in the South and didn't even mention slavery. Although Bryson's main focus was certainly on Australia since it was populated by Europeans, he did discuss the role Aboriginals play in Australia today, how horribly they were treated throughout the years, and as much history as he could find on where they came from originally.

My husband and I don't know where we might end up next year, but our anniversary book is now a pretty firmly established tradition.