One of my favorite books of all time!
356610
I have to admit it, I'm a huge Bill Bryson fan. I've read and enjoyed all his books, some more some less but even his "weaker" books were well worth reading.

I've read this book in its UK form as "Down Under" and have to say it is my favorite of Bryson's books! It is funny, thought provoking, intelligent, and interesting all the way through. Bryson has a way of telling historical fact and making it interesting and here it shines.

A little tale of how I discovered this book: I was traveling through New Zealand and Australia for about a year. During my travels, backpackers (as low budget travelers are known) usually trade books between them. You pick up a book, you read it, you trade it for a different one from another backpacker. And so it goes. However, there was one particular book that many backpackers had in their possession and did not care to trade for any cost, it was indeed "Down Under" which I had to purchase for myself. Considering all the hype and praise fellow backpackers were giving it, I had no choice. It was a fantastic read full of relevant information. Afterwards, I too did not wish to trade it and it's sitting proudly on my bookshelf today, with red sand stains from the Australian Outback - a reminder to where the book was at!

In short, get this book, read it, enjoy it.
4202942
It took me a while to just sit down a start reading this book, but once I did I could not put it down ! One of my favorite books of all times.
1725052
One of my favorite books of all time.  I love how savvy and competent the main character was-in a time women were thought to be fragile .
Put this on your list- don't miss!
164164
one of my all time favorite books!!!! i read this as a teenager and since then have been hooked on reading this book over and over but somehow always manage to loose my copies when i move?
34494
My favorite book of all time. I had to buy a new copy because my old one fell apart!  Cheers!
2440774
One of my favorite books of all time!! It's a coming-of-age story of sorts.
After a book's success, an author moves his family into an old castle in the remote English countryside. Things take a turn for the worse and the father no longer writes, the family lives in squalor, basically, and the only hope is for one of the daughters to marry a wealthy man. Having very little experience with men, the girls first meeting with a proper suitor is rather comical. All prevails and the loveliest of the daughters, Rose, has managed to snag her man. But does she love him or the riches he can provide? Which sister has this man truly fallen for? Will this family survive betrayals? It's a lovely story about a struggling family, their castle and the ties that bind.
167219
Best book ever!  My all time favorite.  I've read it three times, and will read it, again!
568430
One of my favorite books of all time. The author truly grabs your attention, puts such detail into the words I visualized every scene. The movie is a great follow up to the book, too.
3852511
This is one of my favorite books of all time.  I have read it 4 times and never tire of it.  Carol F. Raines
2170128
I am buying this book as a gift.  We own it and it is one of my all time favorites.  I cry happy tears when I read it.  It is about the renewal of life and appreciation of the little things.  My opinion: You won't regret buying this book!
2010077
This book still holds in my heart as one of the best books ever!
2102902
I would HIGHLY recommend this book!!!!  One of my favorites!
1172028
Loved this book!!! One of my all time favorites, with some of my all-time favorite characters, one of my all-time favorite heroines, and an epic love story!
3545821
One of my favorite books of all time. Sweet, deep, thoughtful stories that always make me smile, again & again.
335991
This is one of my absolute FAVORITE books!!!  I read all the time, and find myself coming back to this one at least once a year!!  Wonderful story!! I love this book!  Cant explain why but I just want to read it over and over!!!
1078922
One of my top favorite books of all time. I bought this book from a book club many years ago and still have my third(?) maybe fourth copy of it. It is a different take on "being invaded from the sky" and what happens just before and what happens after. More story development than violence. It touches on that lightly on and off. A wonderful story about change, wanted or not.
4593711
One of my favorite books of all time. I bought this copy for a friend's 7 year old son. It's been the first time he read a chapter book on his own without having a grown up read alongside. He couldn't put it down! I know that he didn't understand half the puns, jokes and witticisms in the book. But that's part of the delight: as he gets older, he will reread it (as I have done many times) and the text will become richer and the illustrations will become more dear.