Australian Timelines (series) by Scott Brodie and others

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Trocadero Publishing 2012. pbk. RRP $24.95 each.
With the national history curriculum in place in some states, and imminent in others, it is great to welcome a new series of print resources that will support its implementation. Written by a variety of authors, there are currently seven titles in the series . . .
The Constitution: The document that created a nation (ISBN 9780864271075)
Immigration since 1788: The making of modern Australia (ISBN 9780864271037)
Exploration and Settlement in Colonial Australia (ISBN 9780864271099)
The Governors 1788-1855 and how they influenced Modern Australia (ISBN9780864271013)
Gold: The precious metal that brought instant wealth and long-term prosperity ISBN (9780864271198)
Prime Ministers and their Governments (ISBN 9780864271061)
The Commonwealth of Australia: Evolving into a nation (ISBN 9780864271167)
Two of these, Immigration since 1788 and The Governors 1788-1855 are also available as pdf ebooks for $29.95.
Of course, your first question will be, 'What do these resources have that all the others in my library do not?' and the answer is that they are designed for the lower secondary market so they have much more information than other series I've seen. Rather than just being a chronological series of Australia's development, each topic spans its Australian timeline. Gold isn't just confined to the Victorian goldrush era: The Commonwealth of Australia includes the structure of the Commonwealth as well as its evolution coming forward to Kevin Rudd's apology to the indigenous peoples; Prime Ministers includes these Gillard years; Immigration begins with the convicts and continues through to the current issues with asylum seekers.
Even though there is a lot more text packed into the pages, it is well-balanced with images and the layout makes for easy reading. Each title is indexed and each has been thoroughly researched.
The series is marketed as being for Years 7-9, but I believe it also has a place in the primary library for those more able students who need something a little more meatier to explore, particularly as the focus of the history curriculum for that age is Australia as a Nation. If you are looking for new resources for a well-resourced topic, then this series is it. More details are available  and publisher/author Scott Brodie is visiting Melbourne in mid May. Contact INTBooks for details.
Barbara Braxton