Get to know a bit about lots of subjects. Concise, accessible, enjoyable and terrific value. Buy the whole set (12 titles) and receive a whopping 25% discount.  That's the equivalent of 3 FREE BOOKS which will look fantastic on your bookshelf.

AUSTRALIA’S GREAT EXPLORERS
The often harsh and unforgiving Australian landscape was a far cry from what the early colonisers were used to and it proved a daunting obstacle to settlement. However, a few brave – and at times foolhardy – men were determined to prove themselves equal to the challenge. Australia’s Great Explorers looks at the tragedies and triumphs of men such as Wentworth and Lawson, Hume and Hovell, Burke and Wills, Leichhardt and Strzelecki as they battled to conquer the Great Diving Range, find an elusive inland sea, and traverse the length and breadth of this great country.

AUSTRALIA’S MOST NOTORIOUS CONVICTS
Thousands of convicts were transported to Australia. Of these, some managed to escape incarceration and went on to achieve notoriety in their new land. A few tried to invent a Robin Hood reputation, taking the side of the poor settler against those in authority. Some committed crimes so heinous they were both feared and despised by the general population. Their lives were desperate, their fate often tragic. Australia’s Most Notorious Convicts reveals not only their stories but also the horror and brutality of the prison system they fought so hard to escape.

EUREKA
On 3 December 1854 a bloody battle between gold miners, soldiers and police raged for fifteen minutes at the Eureka Lead in Ballarat. But this brief conflict, which had been brewing for years, would have momentous consequences — overturning the accepted social order and bringing democracy to Victoria. Eureka introduces you to the people and events that shaped this key moment in Australia’s history.

THE ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE OF AUSTRALIA
The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia, founded in 1928, was the first comprehensive aerial medical organisation in the world and today, 80 years later, continues to provide emergency and primary healthcare, as well as assistance with communication and education, to people who live, work and travel in regional and remote Australia. The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia is a record of this truly unique organisation that owes its success to men and women of extraordinary vision, ingenuity, daring and dedication.

AUSTRALIA’S WRITERS AND POETS
From the iconic poems of Banjo Paterson to today’s international bestsellers by Peter Carey and Bryce Courtenay, Australian literature has reflected the changes in Australia’s national development until today it stands proudly on the world stage. At the same time, indigenous writing has come into its own, with authors such as Oodgeroo Noonuccal giving a powerful voice to the Aboriginal experience. Australia’s Writers and Poets looks at the men and women who have created this rich literary tradition and celebrates the incredible diversity of their writing.

WORLD WAR I
This was ‘the war to end all wars’; a conflict in which 155, 000 Australian servicemen were wounded and over 60, 000 died. Through the devastation it left behind, it changed the face of much of the Western world and laid the foundations for World War II. Yet this conflict, fought far from Australian shores, also saw the birth of the Anzac legend and led to the emergence of a true ‘Australian’ identity. World War I examines the vital role Australia played in the Allied forces and how the war became a turning point in the nation’s development.

THE ASHES
No contest has captured the imagination of cricket lovers around the world as much as the Ashes. From the controversy of the Bodyline series to the brilliance Bradman, from the heroics of batsmen like Botham and Ponting to the magic of Warne, this is an event that has always demanded the very best of those who wish to win it. From the test that started it all back in 1882 to the recent triumphant Australian victory in 2006/7. The Ashes looks at the moments that have made this one of the world’s greatest sporting events.

AUSTRALIA’S GREATEST INVENTIONS
From the early invention of the boomerang as an effective hunting weapon to today’s ground-breaking contributions to science and technology, Australian’s have always proven brilliantly adept at coming up with creative solutions to challenging problems. From manufacturing to agriculture, film to medicine, it’s likely that an Australian invention is making a valuable contribution to the way we live. Australia’s Greatest Inventions reveals how our industry and innovation have placed this country at the forefront of so many fields.

GOLD
Since ancient times gold has exerted a powerful fascination for humankind. Symbol of wealth and riches, it has influenced the rise and fall of empires and changed the course of history. In Australia, its discovery sparked frenzied gold rushes that opened up large parts of the land to settlement, transformed Melbourne and Sydney from colonial outposts into two of the world’s most vibrant cities, and triggered the push for a more democratic form of government. Today, Australia continues to be one of the premier gold producing countries in the world. Gold reveals in fascinating detail how this precious metal has helped shape Australia.

FROM COOK TO CONVICTS
In 1770, Captain James Cook sailed up the east coast of Australia in his ship, the HM Bark Endeavour. Setting out from England in 1768, he was given two instructions: to observe the transit of Venus and to find and chart the mythical ‘Great Southern Land’. He succeeded in both tasks, despite he and his crew facing great hardship and danger, to complete one of the great voyages of exploration. But as a result of this voyage and reports made later by Joseph Banks, botanist on board the Endeavour, England would come to view Australia as a viable solution to her convict problem and a potential British colony. From Cook to Convicts examines this epic voyage and its history-making consequences.

AUSTRALIA’S GREATEST DISASTERS
Australia is a land of extremes where searing heat and devastating floods can both take their toll. It is also a land of vast distances, leaving it vulnerable to calamities at sea, by rail and in the air. Australia’s Greatest Disasters charts the events that have caused not only tragic loss of human life, but also economic and environmental devastation. From Cyclone Tracy and the Ash Wednesday bushfires to the Granville train disaster and the 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, these are the disasters that made headlines around the nation and became forever part of the Australian identity.

AVIATION IN AUSTRALIA
When the first hot-air balloons took to the air, the quest to build machines that could carry people safely across the skies captured the imagination of the world. It triggered a surge of daring and ingenuity that saw technological barriers tumble, and by World War I, man was using aeroplanes in combat. Among these young men in their flying machine were Australians Richard Williams, Hudson Fysh, Ross and Keith Smith, Bert Hinkler and Charles Kingsford-Smith who would all become household names on their return home. From becoming the ‘father of the RAAF’ to winning the inaugural London to Australia air race, from founding Qantas to being the first to cross the Pacific Ocean, these were some of the men who placed Australia at the forefront of the aviation industry. Aviation in Australia tells their stories but also looks at more recent events that have seen the demise of icons such as Ansett and the rise of new players in the most competitive of industries.

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SPECIFICATIONS (each book)
Size: 187 X 127 mm
Format: cased and jacketed
Extent: 96 pages
Weight: 250 gms