Sydney: A Biography

'I came to Sydney from Melbourne in 1978 and immediately fell in love with its history, the sandstone buildings, the gorgeous harbour, the bridge, the Opera House, its ad hoc streets and its denizens.' In Sydney, acclaimed playwright and author Louis Nowra - author of Kings Cross and Woolloomooloo - expands his gaze to explore the energy, beauty, vulgarity, dynamism and pulsating sense of self-importance of his adopted city. This big, bustling portrait of Sydney is told through profiles of people, high and low, with a cast of criminals and premiers, ordinary folk, entertainers, artists, thieves and visionaries. Along with its people, Nowra surveys the city's architecture and its global identity. And as Sydney's history unfolds throughout the twentieth century and beyond, Nowra revels in its neon lighting, music, skyscrapers and sense of optimism.