Canberra (Paul Daley, NewSouth)

Canberra is a city that spawns much small-time mythology in the national psyche. Between the fat-cat pollies, the overpaid public servants, the conspiratorial lobbyists and the tame journos wining and dining their way through life, it’s a wonder that anything actually happens in the national capital. And those roundabouts! Don’t forget those roundabouts. Paul Daley’s Canberra takes these ideas as starting points in what is essentially a vibrant and well-written attempt to ‘flesh-out’ the perceptions of Canberra as a hollow town full of hollow men. Daley’s book begins with the strong Indigenous history of Canberra, and moves forward through its pastoral iteration and on to the great nation-building project that is Canberra’s reason for existence. There are many twists and turns along the way, particularly as the grand idea of Canberra is often let down by the realities of narrow-minded pragmatism or political ambition. However, Daley is aware that Canberra is actually a place where people live, and it is in these ‘local’ moments that the book is revealing and enticing. With the centenary of Canberra’s founding coming up next year, this book presents a timely opportunity to re-engage with the ideas behind, and the history of, our nation’s capital city.

Shane Strange is an ex-bookseller and writer who teaches writing at the University of Canberra

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews