Reviewed by Wendy Lipke
This is the first book in an Indigenous history series about Australia’s most iconic landmarks.
This hardcovered 30x26cm book has thirty-six pages of beautifully presented pictures on glossy paper with a small amount of text fitting the illustration shown. Each page represents the use of the land on which the Opera House now stands, over the years. It also provides the new names the area was given usually because of its use at the time – Cattle Point, Limeburner’s Point and Bennelong Point. This area was also the location of Fort Macquarie and later it was used as a tram shed.
The vibrant front and back covers of the book illustrate Aboriginal life in this area before colonisation.
More facts and clarification are provided on each double page in a separate boxed area. Six pages are dedicated to the history of the Opera House itself revealing information about the new proposed use of the land, the winner of the competition for the design, its construction and official opening in 1973.
This is followed by an acknowledgement that in 2007 the Sydney Opera House was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list. The illustration on this page shows an Aboriginal actor shouting to the world from atop the highest sail of the building, that the spirit of his people, their dance, music, drama and laughter still remain in this place. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander performances have become an important feature at the Opera House today.
The final page of the history, just before the publishing details, shows eleven bubbles of information summing up the history of the land on which this iconic building has been constructed.
This is a beautifully presented book which chronicles the history of a small plot of land from its use as an Aboriginal hunting ground to the resting place of an Australian iconic building which aims to embrace both modern and ancestral stories.
It has been compiled by Melissa-Jane Fogarty, an author/illustrator of Mununjali descent and brilliantly illustrated by Australian born graphic designer and artist, Dylan Finney. With English and Irish heritage, he has proud connections to the Yanula and Mara clans.
Tubowgule: A Sydney Opera House History
(2025)
by Melissa-Jane Fogarty – author
Dylan Finney – illustrator
Lothian Children’s Books
ISBN:978-0-7344-2335-1
$24.99; 36pp