No doubt there is a diverse readership for a book about the geological evolution of Australia. In fact, the last comprehensive text intended for experts was The Geological Evolution of Australia and New Zealand (1968), by D.A. Brown, K.S.W. Campbell and K.A.W. Crook; and nothing of major scope for a lay audience has appeared for a longer time. In the past forty years, of course, the subject has advanced enormously in a general sense, not the least being the revolution in our understanding of the mobility and interactions of the outer shell of the Earth through the processes labelled ‘plate tectonics’. Our specific geological knowledge of Australia has also progressed significantly.

In The Geology of Australia, David Johnson, of James Cook University, has attempted to occupy the middle ground between expert and lay readerships. In a visually appealing but expensive volume, Johnson attempts to take the reader on a tour of the generalities of modern Earth science illuminated specifically by Australian examples and history.