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Australia - What Happened?
When our politicians are too busy playing musical chairs to run the country, our cricketers are doing suspicious things with sandpaper, and a murderous starfish with twenty-one arms roams freely around the Great Barrier Reef it seems about time that we, as a nation, ask a tough question: how the heck did it come to this?
In Australia – What Happened? TV columnist, comedian and history buff Ben Pobjie turns an incredulous eye on the history of Australia to bust open the national mythology, reveal the truth about what it means to be an Australian and work out what happened to all our best-laid plans.
What’s the real story of the Aussie larrikin? How exactly did sheep ruin everything? What impact did the Gold Rush have on Australian culture? And what do you mean ‘murderous starfish’? All these questions and more will be answered in this hilarious and historically accurate account of our wayward nation.
In Australia – What Happened? TV columnist, comedian and history buff Ben Pobjie turns an incredulous eye on the history of Australia to bust open the national mythology, reveal the truth about what it means to be an Australian and work out what happened to all our best-laid plans.
What’s the real story of the Aussie larrikin? How exactly did sheep ruin everything? What impact did the Gold Rush have on Australian culture? And what do you mean ‘murderous starfish’? All these questions and more will be answered in this hilarious and historically accurate account of our wayward nation.
288 pages, Paperback
Published October 30, 2018
3 people are currently reading
67 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 10, 2018
I haven't been buying many books lately on account of we're about to move house, and I figure the thousands I have are hard enough to lug over there, let alone adding to the pile. But I was given a book voucher for a recent birthday, and when I saw this on the shelf my hands got grabby. I adore Ben Pobjie's books; basically they are the only history books I've ever read that make you laugh and hang your head in shame at the same time. He says what we all think but rarely admit to, and he's an absolute crack up while doing it. He obviously knows what he's talking about!
Another must for Aussies, or anyone looking to get a different POV about Australian History. I highly recommend his other books as well! I can't wait for the next one!
Another must for Aussies, or anyone looking to get a different POV about Australian History. I highly recommend his other books as well! I can't wait for the next one!
July 9, 2020
Really enjoyed this. Read during the landscape of covid-19 political nonsense, so there was much that was explained.
July 15, 2019
Ben Pobjie used to write a weekly TV column, more or less, for a local Melbourne newspaper, which I thought worth reading more for what he might say as opposed to any personal interest or desire to watch what he was writing about.
More recently, he's produced books on Australian history/culture, using the same approach, which makes for mixed reading, partly recalling Donald Horne's The Lucky Country from the 1960s, which was less than complimentary to those who had been in charge, and with a measure of sometimes biting satire and a dose of realism.
In some respects, this is a book for those who already know their history and are aware of the distinction between what happened and the national mythology; I'm presuming it'll be a shock to others, who may not believe what he's saying, or struggle with his interpretation. Having said that, I didn't find the book particularly enjoyable, as i was familiar with the vast majority of the stories he tells, and couldn't disagree with his presentation and satire, so I didn't laugh much, although at times he was quite funny.
The respected political journalist George Megalogenis is quoted on the back cover as saying the book is "An original take on the tragedy and farce of Australian history. Hilarious and depressing."
I can't do better than that and, notwithstanding my rating, I highly recommend this book as an antidote to the relentless spin presented by particular sectors of the Australian polity that encourages avoidance or denial of the problems Australians face, including promulgation of many false positives. Australia is more than tragedy and farce of course, and there are far worse places to live in, but that's not really the point.
More recently, he's produced books on Australian history/culture, using the same approach, which makes for mixed reading, partly recalling Donald Horne's The Lucky Country from the 1960s, which was less than complimentary to those who had been in charge, and with a measure of sometimes biting satire and a dose of realism.
In some respects, this is a book for those who already know their history and are aware of the distinction between what happened and the national mythology; I'm presuming it'll be a shock to others, who may not believe what he's saying, or struggle with his interpretation. Having said that, I didn't find the book particularly enjoyable, as i was familiar with the vast majority of the stories he tells, and couldn't disagree with his presentation and satire, so I didn't laugh much, although at times he was quite funny.
The respected political journalist George Megalogenis is quoted on the back cover as saying the book is "An original take on the tragedy and farce of Australian history. Hilarious and depressing."
I can't do better than that and, notwithstanding my rating, I highly recommend this book as an antidote to the relentless spin presented by particular sectors of the Australian polity that encourages avoidance or denial of the problems Australians face, including promulgation of many false positives. Australia is more than tragedy and farce of course, and there are far worse places to live in, but that's not really the point.
September 5, 2020
I really wanted to like this book and I normally do like stuff like this. I battled on for over half of the book but when it got to the point where I was gritting my teeth to pick it up I again I decided enough was enough. I think I just found the tone mean spirited. I can enjoy sarcasm and satire when it is used cleverly and somewhat sparingly but I think it was just way too negative for me. Maybe it’s just the times (COVID) where the last thing I need to read is a big whinge about everything that’s happened in the last couple of hundred years. Bits were funny and I did enjoy those.
July 28, 2020
Made me genuinely lol many times. The final chapter, What Happened to the Battler?, which is actually a potted history of Australian federal politics, should probably replace whatever introduction to the subject that is currently taught in Society & Environment classes in schools.
November 14, 2018
Hilarious as ever. Hanging for the next one.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews