Cirrus@Austlit

'An amusing look at the alternative paths that Australian history might have taken.

'The What If histories of Australia imagines a very different history of Australia, where the unexpected happens in unexpected ways. Starting by defining the real histories, the book then looks at possible paths of different settlements that history could have taken.

'What if Captain Cook’s ship had sunk when it hit the Great Barrier Reef in 1770? And what if he never got back to England with his charts and claim on the land? What if the French settled Australia first, and eventually both King Louis 16th and Napoleon ended up in exile here, fighting over who was the rightful ruler in exile? This What If histories of Australia imagines a very different history of Australia, where the unexpected happens in unexpected ways.' (Publication summary)