Sydney

Australia’s largest city benefits from its place “Down Under,” as Sydney has grown into one of the most exciting and booming cities in the world. Inside, see how “Sydneysiders” and other Australians have carved their own identity from a mold created by Great Britain in the 1800s. Read about how today’s new waves of arrivals and visitors are adding diversity and growth to Sydney, while it continues to revel in its sunshine and enthusiasm for life.  

Major World Cities travels the globe to bring readers the up-close story—from yesterday to today—of the people, sights, sounds, and achievements of key urban centers. This series is the ultimate city travel guide. 

Major World Cities: Sydney takes an in-depth look into the city’s history by breaking down information into super-short sections. Each page has blocks of information typed in large font and placed into different-colored boxes to help readers distinguish when a topic changes. In addition, each page has one or more full-color graphic elements, including artwork and photographs. Each page has two to four paragraphs; however, the wide variety of topics may overwhelm some readers. Some words appear in bold text and are defined in the book’s glossary. Nevertheless, the complex sentence structure and advanced vocabulary make Sydney best suited for strong readers. 

Anyone interested in Sydney will find Major World Cities: Sydney an interesting nonfiction book with a pleasing format. To show a change of topic, each page uses white and yellow boxes with large headlines. Most illustrations also have a one or two sentence caption that gives additional information. The book contains 18 two-page spreads that describe Sydney’s culture, entertainment, education, and industry, as well as other interesting topics. The book also has a map of the city, a timeline, and a glossary. 

Major World Cities: Sydney is the perfect book for anyone who wants to research Australia’s past and present. Because the book covers so many topics, readers will find other fascinating topics to explore. For example, many don’t know that Great Britain used Sydney as a penal colony or that “a dynamic Scot called Lachlan Macquarie become Governor of New South Wales. . . By the end of his 11-year rule, Sydney was a true city.” Readers will enjoy learning how Sydney has a diverse population and a laid-back lifestyle. 

Sexual Content  

• None 

Violence  

• When Captain Cook and his crew arrived in Australia, “the Aborigines threw spears at the strangers, then ran off into the bush.”  
• A two-page spread discusses crime and punishment. “By the late 19th century, gangs of thugs known as larrikins roamed the city, terrorizing its inhabitants. They committed many serious crimes, including murder.” There is one illustration of criminals waiting to ambush people on a road.  
• One illustration shows Aborigines and their supporters protesting. One person has a sign that reads: “Police killed our brothers where is our equal rights for justice.” 

Drugs and Alcohol  

• Organized gangs “arrange crimes and run illegal businesses such as drug dealing and gambling.” The Chinese Triads “are mostly involved in drug trafficking, financial crime, or money laundering.” 

Language  

• None 

Supernatural 

• None

Spiritual Content  

• A short paragraph tells what religious groups live in Sydney, but no religious practices are described. “Most early Sydenysiders were Christians: either British Protestants or Irish Roman Catholics . . . Today the city contains many other Christian groups, too, including a large Greek Orthodox community.”