No comments about A City by City Guide to Living And Working in Australia (City By City Guide) (City By City Guide).

5 comments about Fatal Storm: The Inside Story of the Tragic Sydney-Hobart Race.

1. I finished this book on a flight from Sydney to Los Angeles...with one disaster after another occurring in this massive storm, the writer keeps the reader actively turning pages throughout the book. You would not believe the bravery of everyone involved, from the actual racing teams to the rescue teams, not one person was left unphased by this experience.

   I am not an active sailor now, but with some experience in racing with a crew on sailboats, I found the account of this true story gripping.

   Certainly, a fun book to read, even if you are not into sailing. It may even convince you to never go open ocean sailing!




2. Rob Mundle is journalist and it shows. But behind the bonhomie and parochialism of the yachting scene insider there's an immediacy to this narrative, a rawness to the action and a fire in these heroics that combine to make Fatal Storm an inspiring read. There's something wild about this story, something that makes it different to Fastnet Force 10. There are moments in Fatal Storm when the sailors reading it will be afraid.



3. This is such a riveting story that it would be hard to write a bad book about it. Mundle is a fine writer, and the book is easy to read and a real page turner.
   As a story teller though, he could use some improvement. For example, one of the yachts is capsized by a giant wave and a man thrown overboard. What happens to him? Will he drown in the stormy waters of Bass Straight? Or is he rescued? We turn the page to find... a quote from the man in question describing what was going through his head as he fell from the yacht. So he lives! Full marks for thorough research, zero for sustaining the tension of the story.
   
   Another caveat for non boating readers. Mundle makes no attempt to explain any of the yachting jargon used throughout the book, so if you are a non boating person like myself, I would recommend reading with a copy of Wikipedia or the full Oxford dictionary by your side so you can understand terms like storm sail, jib, cockpit and many others that are used throughout the book. This will enhance your enjoyment of the book no end.
   
   All in all a great read.



4. The Southern Ocean---that landless sweep of sea that girds the lower third of our planet and isolates Antarctica---is notorious for its evil weather. Huge rollers, unchecked by any landmass, roil around the circumference of the Earth, making this area one of the most daunting, hazardous and challenging for any mariner.
   
   Once yearly on Boxing Day, the 630-mile Sydney-to-Hobart Yacht Race crosses a small portion of the Southern Ocean. One of the three great sport sailing events (along with the Fastnet and the Newport-to-Bermuda) the Sydney-to-Hobart has always had its fickle aspect, but never more so than 1998 when the entire regatta found itself trapped in an unforecasted cyclonic "bomb"---a small and unseasonable but virulent hurricane that produced 80 knot winds and steep hundred foot waves in the relatively narrow Bass Strait.
   
   Although only six sailors died, most of the fleet was battered into kindling by the waves, tall as buildings, heavier, and with much more velocity. Author Rob Mundle, an experienced distance ocean sailor, does a fine job of reportage as he tracks and traces the fates of the various participants, including the Sea-Rescue parajumpers who leapt into the darkness of the angry ocean to save the hapless crews of the shattered boats.
   
   FATAL STORM is well written and avoids becoming bogged down in too much nautical technospeak making it a good adventure story for the armchair enthusiast. The one drawback of FATAL STORM is that Mundle assumes the reader's relative familiarity with the meteorology, landforms, and idiosyncrasies of Australia's natural environment. For those of us not "Down Under" this makes FATAL STORM slightly more difficult to decode than it needs to be.



5. I picked up with book without knowing the details of the race or even that there was such a race between Sydney and Hobart. But within pages I could not put it down. The book is a must for any sailer, kayaker or power boater. It tells the tales of the spirit of sport combined with an under estimation of what mother nature can produce.

4 comments about Hiking Tropical Australia: Queensland and Northern New South Wales.

1. I used the book this summer while traveling in the northern part of Queensland. I found it to be an ideal companion to the more general guides (Lonely Planet, Fodor's, etc.). The book helped my husband and me to figure out the best places to hike, when we had fairly limited time and many things we wanted to do. It provides the perfect amount of information in a useful format; for each hike the author lists trail distance, hiking time, level of difficulty, and main attractions, and then gives a helpful description of what hikers will see. The author also provides brief descriptions of parks and state forests. I like that the book describes hikes of varied lengths and difficulty. I highly recommend this book to people of any age or fitness who want to hike in the northeastern part of Australia.



2. Hiking Tropical Australia: Queensland And Northern New South Wales is a comprehensive, "traveler friendly" walking guide to Australia's eastern tropical and subtropical regions. Covering an area of approximately 1600 miles beginning around Grafton (in northern New South Wales) and reaching down into the lower portion of wild, rugged Cape York Peninsula (in farm north Queensland), Hiking Tropical Australia coverage extends inland as well to include national parks such as Girraween and Carnarvon that lie in the transition zone between tropical and outback landscapes. Enhanced with more than 100 maps and pictures, Hiking Tropical Australia divides topical Australia into six zones defined by ecology and topography: the eastern and western scenic rims; sand, sea, and islands; escarpment and range; the granite belt; and far north Queensland, above the Tropic of Capricorn. Travelers will find precise directions for reaching all the parks and trails; difficulty ratings and notes about the special attractions of each hike; as well as vivid descriptions of what will be encountered along the way. Hiking Tropical Australia is a unique and invaluable guide for the vacationing visitor, and has a wealth of information helpful to native Australian as well.



3. This book is great for short one or two day hikes it is not what I was actually looking for. It had really good information and descriptions of hikes although I was looking for much longer hikes of weeks not days. The title of the book should mention that they are short one and two day hikes.



4. This book may be good for the ones who want to hike in Northern South Wales. Unfortunately Amazon did not have the "search inside" tool, so I could not check if the Blue Mountains were included. They were not, and I had to return the book.

5 comments about Tonga-Somoa Handbook (Moon Handbooks : Tonga-Samoa).

1. I used the Moon guide while in Samoa and was glad I had a source which dealt with matters not covered in the brochures on the airport counter. Some of the writers of the other guidebooks I saw seem to have been chaperoned by the Samoa Visitors Bureau. If you want more than an Alice in Wonderland view of paradise, this is the book.



2. David Stanley says he always travels incognito and never takes any "freebies" from any travel purveyors, so he doesn't get any special treatment that you wouldn't get and he doesn't "owe" anyone a good review. And you can sure tell. He is not afraid to give his opinion on anything and everything. Isn't that what you really need from a guidebook? If I want a sanitized version, I can get that for free from the tourist bureau. I like to know if a company is dispreputable or if a hotel is unsafe--especially for a woman traveler. I also especially liked the introductory sections that give you a good background of the culture of the peoples and info on the unusual flora and fauna.



3. As president of Sea for Yourself snorkeling tours, I'm obligated on behalf of my clients, to stay informed about the destinations we visit. Although we've been operating programs in Tonga for many years that allow snorkelers to actually swim with humpback whales, we keep a copy of David's Tonga/Samoa Handbook in the office in order to answer questions from clients about areas other than Tonga. In addition to Tonga, this book has extensive coverage of Samoa, American Samoa, and Niue.

   In this book, the reader will find all the practical info (that continues to distinguish all of David's books) including travel tips, accommodations, meals, etc. I also appreciate the special attention given to cultural background, political and economic elements, and particular vignettes (such as the explanations of coral reef ecology and the palolo worm). However, the sections I personally find most useful include the pages on Internet sites, email addresses, and the bibliography.

   I started using David's books (South Pacific Handbook) in 1982, and they have always been valuable and trusted travel companions. We always take this book with us on our programs to Tonga because it makes a useful reference for both staff and participants. Plus, since this book is easily available, I'm always happy to refer our clients to David's Tonga/Samoa Handbook when they are seeking to purchase a single accurate source of both practical and background information about this section of the Pacific.




4. i would like to order a book that is telling all old samoan stories and customs and the faasamoa in the samoan language..



5. I used the Moon guidebook to Tonga and Samoa during a 3 1/2 week trip to the South Pacific in early 2001. I found the book very useful because it covers Tonga and Samoa in one condensed book. There are enough details to travel on both island groups for a couple of weeks and not missing information in this great guidebook. The book is still quite accurate there is enough details for each spot you will visit on your trip. In general this book has helped me a lot to find my way around the islands with detailed maps and a wide range of unbiased information.

1 comments about Pidgin: The Languages Of Oceania (Lonely Planet Phrasebooks).

1. This book covers the three Pidgin languages of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu - three of the most diverse, fascinating and unspoilt countries in the South Pacific. While English is spoken by many people in all the three, the Pidgins described here are the lingua franca in each, and I found that locals were very happy to hear me speak them. Each of the three languages is introduced by a good description of its grammar (don't worry, easy and similar in all three) and pronunciation, followed by useful phrases arranged thematically.
   
   And here comes my only complaint - I would have preferred more phrases, and perhaps short dictionary listings for all the three languages. Space for that could have been found by omitting what seems a waste here to me - descriptions of two obscure pidgin languages of Australia, which are also included in LP's Australian Phrasebook (where they logicaly belong) anyway.
   
   Still, within the confines of its limited space, this little book is excellent.
   If you are lucky enough to travel to these charming archipelagos, don't leave home without it!

1 comments about Insight City Guide Perth & Surroundings (Insight Guides).

1. Very well organized anbd beautifully illustrated, this guide provides information on just about anything you wish to see in southwestern Australia. Maps ar a big plus!

4 comments about The Dive Sites of Cozumel, Cancun and the Mayan Riviera : Comprehensive Coverage of Diving and Snorkeling.

1. The dive sites of COZUMEL AND THE YUCATAN, the comprehensive coverage of diving and snorkeling by Lawson Wood is a decent generalist travel guide covering the history, climate, maps, travel tips, basics of diving and snorkeling, brief rating of selected dive sites, nice photos and descriptions of underwater marine environment and animals, ..etc...Four regions are covered: Cancun, Isla Mujeres and Isla Contoy, Cozumel, the Caribbean coast (Cenote dive sites described)in 176 pages. There is some basic travel info(places to eat, stay, and play) however, no reviews are provided to base a decision...lots of phone numbers though.

   The book rates dive sites by the following factors: Location, Access, Dive Conditions, Min. Depth, Max. Depth, Average Visibility, Basic description of what you may see at the dive site. There are 55 dive sites rated for Cozumel, 14 for Cancun, 12 for Isla Contoy and Isla Mujeres, and 72 along the Caribbean Coast. Each review is about 120 - 150 words.

   Page 3 of this book acknowledges all the organizations used for the info in this book and the photograph equipment used for the underwater pictures...a good source of contacts.

   This book is great if you are thinking about traveling and diving for the first time to the Yucatan and want to know what to expect when you get there. Advanced divers looking for more dive site descriptions and dive maps may be disappointed...therefore 4 stars for a GENERAL Travel guide and dive guide together.




2. This is a good book for someone visiting the Quintanna Roo Coast and Cozumel who is going to use commercial dive operators for most of their diving. For the true adventurer however it is not really adequate. Why? Well say you need to find a reef on your ocean kayak and you are without a dive guide. This book will not really help you find that reef because it does not go into exact reef location detail, it just says like 100 yards off beach X. Well those beaches in Cozumel are long white strips of sand and are prettty much indistinguishable from one another. Also, no information on where to camp on Cozumel and on the Quintanna Roo Coast. It does however have good reef descriptions, general travel info and helpfull advice for tourists.



3. This book is very nicely arranged and designed. The writing is clear and concise and well thought out. The sections on the marine environments and diver safety were great. Not so great were directions getting to some of the dive locations. The author may have visited most of the dive sites on a dive boat and never attempted to reach the locations by car. We are snokelers and tried unsuccessfully to reach some of described locations on the Mexican Riviera. The map of the Mexican Riviera was not good. The scale was off by an order of magnitude. A few of the roads listed in the book on the map were not actually there. Some of the actual roads were not on the map. Most roads going from Highway 307 toward the shore are hotel private property. We repeatedly got turned around by uniformed personnel at hotel gates and had to give up reaching dive sites. It might be useful in future editions to tell how to get to a location by car. Giving GPS coordinates would be good too. This is a good book for planning a diving trip to the Yucatan area. But not so great once you get there.



4. This is the 3rd dive travel book I have purchased writen by Lawson Wood. He covers all the information you will need to plan a dive trip to Cozumel, Cancun and the Mayan Riviera. Besides the 160 dive and snorkel sites there is a brief history of the area and lots of travel tips. If you are a diver you will like the dive site discriptions and underwater photography. This is one of the best books of its kind on diving in the Mayan Riviera area.

1 comments about Frommer's Australia 2007 (Frommer's Complete).

1. I purchased book a week before my trip and read on flight to Sydney. Soon determined there were a number of inaccuracies in the attraction pricing and other minor specifics (e.g., per Frommer there were 30 Explorer bus stops in Blue Mountain...there were actually 27, which Lonely Planet had right). The organization layout could be more simplistic (i.e., one attraction was discussed in various areas of the same section - used labeled flags to facilitate use). The book is bulky to carry around in backpack - editions should be available for specific regions (e.g., Sydney and surrounding). Worship service times and places could be added. Sydney is home to one of the most popular, largest non-denominational churches (Hillsong) and there was no mention of this (or other churches, other than the architecturally impressive cathedrals). Lastly, it would be great if Frommers would add local sites and activities. For instance, there is mention of the Sydney fish market but I found out through a local that cooking classes are offered. That would have been a fun "local" activity to have known about. I will buy the competitor book on my next trip and will then place my loyalty on one.

3 comments about A Crazy Occupation: Eyewitness to the Intifada.

1. Jamie Tarabay tells it as it is without the blandness commonly associated with autobiographies. You relive her experiences with her vivid descriptions of events and her desire to provide an objective an assessment as possible of the troubles around her. She takes you through the highs and lows of life as a reporter in a region many of us never understand. I learnt so much more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict after reading this book. She explains it in a way that's uncomplicated and makes sense. And her adventures sound like fun, even if ducking bullets by hiding behind a car or hitching a ride with militia is a bit crazy. It's a very good read and I strongly recommend it.



2. Ever wonder what type of person, let alone a woman, wants to live in a war-torn area like Iraq so we can hear on the radio what's going on there? Jamie Tarabay epitomizes an incredibly brave group of people crucial to an open society like ours - reporters who put their lives at risk to inform us about the real conditions and people caught up in such grim circumstances. Jamie's clear-eyed descriptions of her real-time education in the complexities of the Middle East and the intractable Palestine-Israel conflict give the reader a more balanced appreciation of the underlying human and religious issues. I was hoping to learn more about what motivates sophisticated women (and men) reporters like Jamie and Christiane Amanpour to do this type of work. Jamie's book title promises to do this, but ultimately spends more time analyzing the other type of occupation involved. I'm very relieved to hear Jamie reporting for NPR from Baghdad in the New Year - I can continue to root for and care about her now that I know better who she is. Thank you and well done, Jamie!



3. This is an amazing read. Jamie Tarabay brings home what it's like to live in a war zone in a way few other reporters have in recent memory. The combination of personal details and experiences, along with touching and poignant descriptions of the tragedy of war make this book unique in its class.
   
   Refreshingly, the reporting is unbiased and fair, unlike most of the mass media reporting we all see on TV every night. Rather than focusing on good guys and bad guys, Jamie shows us that all sides in the Middle East conflict are made up of people who are very similar in so many ways, who all have fear, and anger, and who all bleed alike and die alike.
   
   After reading this book, not only will you have come to know and understand the crisis in the Middle East much more completely, but you will also have come to know and understand the working of a young, innocent and apparently fearless reporter putting her life on the line every day for the sake of the assignment. It's easy to become a big fan of this author very quickly, and one can only hope that she will follow up this work with a similar one based on her recent reporting from Iraq. Pulitzer-worthy.

2 comments about AA Road Atlas: Australia (AA Road Atlases).

1. UNFORTUNALY I AM STILL WAITING MY ROAD ATLAS AFTER OVER 1 MONTH FROM MY PURCHASE.
   AMAZON IS A VERY BEAUTIFULL SERVICE AND I HOPE IN A REPLY TO MY QUESTION TO THE AMAZON CUSTOMER CARE SERVICE.



2. For traveling Australia's highways and main city roads this map was quite good as the maps are quite large and easy to read. But there is not much detail for the smaller streets in the main cities and forget about any sort of details for smaller towns