Collection: Junior Non-Fiction Countries

Not all of Australia's capital cities depended on convicts for their early development. The settlers who went to Adelaide wanted their new town kept free of convicts and resisted accepting them, even though this meant there were often shortages of workers to build roads, work on farms and constru...

Queensland was once a part of New South Wales, only separating from it in 1859. Brisbane developed into a city famous for its sunshine and relaxed atmosphere. Tourists visiting the remarkable natural wonders in the rest of Queensland use Brisbane as their starting point and base, but there is muc...

Canberra is Australia's capital city. Developed according to the detailed plans produced by Walter Burley Griffin, Canberra's wide avenues and long vistas were designed to give prominence to the city's important government buildings and showcase the dignity of the nation's capital. Although it wa...

As the most northerly capital city on the Australian continent, Darwin is unique in many ways. It has a tropical climate, it is the capital of the largest Australian territory, and its people manage to share the coast and waterways with a crocodile population that would terrify southerners. Darwi...

Founded just a few years after Sydney, Hobart is renowned for its historic Georgian buildings and beautiful scenery. The harsh conditions for convicts contrasted grimly with the lifestyle of the free settlers. Find out how both groups actually lived, with extracts from one of Australia's oldest n...

Despite its shaky start, the British settlement at Port Phillip developed into a colonial city that rivalled Sydney for its wealth and cultural influence. The Gold Rush provided the funds to build magnificent buildings and provide all the infrastructure needed to turn a colonial outpost into a gr...

Perth is the capital city of the largest Australian state. Isolated on the west coast of the continent for many years, Perth was separated by enormous deserts from all the other colonies until a road was built across the Nullarbor Plain. From the time the British settled there in 1829, Perth's ea...

Sydney has grown from a struggling town, dependent on convict labour, with its people facing starvation, to a world class city with a strong and vibrant economic pulse. Sydney's magnificent natural features, its harbour, Opera House and bushland all combine to make it one of the most beautiful ci...

From the familiar to the unexpected, discover how and why festivals bring people together to enjoy all kinds of sensational celebrations. List of festivals included: Arbor Day, Argungu Fishing Festival, Barriletes Gigantes, Bloemencorso Zundert, Chinese New Year, Christmas, Constitution Day, Crep...