Written by a marine scientist and a surfing activist, this superbly illustrated and thoroughly researched book will encourage visitors and natives alike to explore the Australian coast. Which Australian beach is made entirely of shells? Which beach has the biggest waves? Where is the world’s biggest sand dune? Where do loggerhead turtles come to lay their eggs? Why does Australia have the best beaches on the planet? Answering these and many other questions, this book provides useful information and fascinating stories about Australia’s 11,761 mainland beaches.

Between them authors Andy Short and Brad Farmer have visited every one of Australia's 11,761 beaches, making them uniquely qualified to tell us which are the ones we have to see before we die.

This book answers all of those questions and more. Between them, authors Andy Short and Brad Farmer have visited every one of Australia's 11,761 mainland beaches, making them uniquely qualified to tell us which are the ones we have to see before we die. This superbly illustrated and thoroughly researched book will make you want to start the journey right now.

Ever wonder, as you stroll along a beach, why the beach is there? Why is it shaped the way it is? What made the sand? Why are there rocks or no rocks? Why do those waves keep rolling in and rolling back out? Why does that delightful breeze shift? How can I keep my umbrella anchored in the sand? This book may not answer that last question, but it will answer all the others, and many more. 'This book by an internationally well-known coastal expert translates science into comprehensible popular language. Readers will especially appreciate the profusion and variety of illustrations from the entire globe.' -- Dr. Ervin G. Otvos, Head Geology Section, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory and Emeritus Professor, Department of Coastal Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi This book explains how beaches originate, what they are made of, and how wind, waves, tides, storms, sea level change, and human development affect them. Includes a section on the most beautiful and interesting beaches in the world--a good many of them in Florida.

Writing the Australian Beach is the first book in fifteen years to explore creative and cultural representations of this iconic landscape, and how writers and scholars have attempted to understand and depict it. Although the content chiefly focuses on Australia, the beach as both a location and idea resonates deeply with readers around the world. This edited collection includes three sections. Forms of Beach Writing examines the history of beach writing in Australia and in a number of forms: screenwriting, social media writing, and food writing. In turn, Multiplicities of Australian Beach Writing examines how forms of writing—poetry, travel writing, horror film, and memoir—engage with some specific beaches in Australia. And, finally, Reading the Beach as a Text considers how the beach itself functions in cultural narratives: how we walk the beach; the revealing story of beach soccer; and the design and use of ocean baths. Given its scope, the collection offers a unique resource for scholars of Australian culture and creative writing, and for all those interested in Australian beaches.

Robert Drewe, internationally acclaimed writer, writes here about the quintessential Australian experience. Drewe looks at the sunny, salty sexiness of the beach that first enticed the crusading Mr William Gocher into the ocean at Manly in 1903, defying authorities in his neck-to-knee bathing costume. We’ve come a long way from sunbathing in stockings and pantaloons to the unabashed display of sun-kissed bodies of all shapes and sizes at any beach in the country today. But the beach also has a dark side as a place of tragedy, violence and danger, a place where sharks attack prone surfers and prime ministers disappear. Drewe’s lyrical examination of Australian beach culture combines imagery from some of Australia’s most celebrated photographers with his personal anecdotes―a favourite boat, a capsicum-strewn beach, a summer holiday with teenagers and an unwelcome great white. This is a book for Australians dreaming of the beach―that is, those of us not there right now.

From a floury encounter on a baker's work table to the art of sitting backwards on chairs, from budgie training to spontaneous human combustion, this collection showcases the nonfiction writing of one of Australia's best-loved authors. These pieces encompass suburban portraits and coastal living, affectionate nostalgia and the absurdity of the every day. They are endearing and often hilarious snapshots of life from a master novelist who has turned the column into an artform.