Central Coast author Melissa-Jane Fogarty’s children’s book Tubowgule: A Sydney Opera House History will be published by Hatchett Australia on March 23.
The book, illustrated by Dylan Finney, also of the Central Coast, is an incredible and fascinating history of one of Australia’s greatest landmarks – The Sydney Opera House and the land which it’s built on which was a ceremonial place for the Gadigal people.
Long before the magnificent sails graced the Bennelong Point shoreline, the land Sydney Opera House occupies was known by its original name, Tubowgule.
The word comes from the Gadigal language and means where the knowledge waters meet, which perfectly describes this historically rich and culturally significant site.
The book is described as a fascinating and inclusive history of one of Australia’s greatest landmarks and is the first book in an Indigenous history series about Australia’s most iconic landmarks.
While the Sydney Opera House is a building recognised all around the world, the land on which it stands has a long history.
Readers will step back in time to when Tubowgule was a ceremonial place for the Gadi people and follows the story of when the land is claimed by the colonisers and then takes on various forms and uses before it comes back around again as a place to gather and share song, dance and culture.
Author Fogarty is a children’s author/illustrator and freelance editor and writer.
She’s of Mununjali descent with a Masters in Publishing from the University of Sydney, a Bachelor of Social Science from the University of Newcastle and a graduate of the Children’s Book Academy as well as The Australian Writers’ Centre.
When not sketching, writing or editing, Fogarty spends time with her husband, two children, two fur babies and drinking copious amounts of tea at their Niagara Park home.
Illustrator Finney is a graphic designer and artist and a proud descendant of the Yanula and Mara clans, and also has English and Irish heritage.
His work explores identity and culture – inspired by people, places, animals, light and colour.
