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Dirrayawadha

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Dirrayawadha

By: Anita Heiss
Narrated by: Tamala Shelton
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About this listen

'Dirrayawadha is full of heart and hope, truth-telling and history – and shimmers with language too' Guardian

'A story from the past given vivid life for new understanding’​ Kate Grenville

Bathurst, 1820s

Miinaa was a young girl when the white ghosts first arrived. She remembers the day they raised a piece of cloth and renamed her homeland 'Bathurst'. Now she lives at Cloverdale and works for a white family who have settled there.

The Nugents are kind, but Miinaa misses her miyagan. His brother, Windradyne, is a Wiradyuri leader, and visits when he can, bringing news of unrest across their ngurambang. Miinaa hopes the violence will not come to Cloverdale.

When Irish convict Daniel O'Dwyer arrives at the settlement, Miinaa's life is transformed again. The pair are magnetically drawn to each other and begin meeting at the bila in secret. Dan understands how it feels to be displaced, but they still have a lot to learn about each other. Can their love survive their differences and the turmoil that threatens to destroy everything around them?

From the bestselling author of Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray (River of Dreams) comes another groundbreaking historical novel about resistance, resilience and love during the frontier wars.

Praise for
Dirrayawadha (Rise Up):

Dirrayawadha is a story of the courage of the Wiradyuri nation and the love of their Country. Anita Heiss is a remarkable writer.' Tony Birch

‘To read the book is to enter a lost time, a retrieved war, and to learn much, not least Wiradyuri. With dhuluny (truth) and marrumbang (love) of story, Heiss makes something good. And that is something for which modern Australia can be grateful.’ The Age

'Historical in tone, yet absolutely contemporary in scope, Dirrayawadha is a beautiful triumph.' Mirandi Riwoe

'
Dirrayawadha is a beautifully written and masterful telling of a pivotal point in our history.' Nicole Alexander

©2024 Anita Heiss (P)2024 Simon & Schuster Audio
Historical Historical Fiction World Literature

Critic Reviews

Dirrayawadha shines a fresh light on one of the most extraordinary people in this continent's past, woven together with a deeply personal story of loss and love. Heiss's wonderful writing, as ever, takes us to the heart of the historical truths which still reverberate today, and movingly chronicles their human cost. Dirrayawadha should be required reading for anyone seeking to understand our colonial past, and especially for those of us who live on unceded land.’ (Meg Keneally, author of Free)

'Anita Heiss rescues the memory of a nation with the intensity of her voice. Dirrayawadha is a story of love, of survivors. You start reading and you lose your breath. There is no one like Anita to captivate you from the first line. In Dirrayawadha love prevails in the midst of the most terrible war. A novel about Australia for the world. The great dichotomy of this novel is the arriving one's yearning for autonomy and the native's yearning for sovereignty.' (Armando Lucas Correa, bestselling author of The German Girl)

'Anita Heiss’s Dirrayawadha is a tender yet clear-eyed portrayal of love, justice and longing; a riveting novel that highlights the personal and historical consequences of Australia’s violent past. Historical in tone, yet absolutely contemporary in scope, Dirrayawadha is a beautiful triumph. The heart wrenching story of Miinaa, Dan and Windradyne will stay with me forever.' (Mirandi Riwoe, author of Stone Sky Gold Mountain)

What listeners say about Dirrayawadha

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Heartbreaking

This was a heartbreaking read all the more because it was set in history. Dr Heiss is a gifted storyteller. This book was a beautiful and moving look into the horrors that Wiradjuri endured after invasion and the frontier wars, underpinned by a poignant love story.

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Great Listen!

Beautifully narrated! Beautifully written story about a sad but very real part of Australia’s history.

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Drama, history, romance, family... will there be another sequel/prequel?

What a meaty read! So much at once. Historical fiction that got me super invested in the characters and story. Want more....

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Wonderful, I just wish it was longer!

I could have listened to at least another 300 pages of this story, so much history, love and loss. A must read for all Australians.

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Loved the sharing of language and culture!

I’m so sad to finish this audiobook. The author and narrator moves the listener to experience a range of emotions, love and despair. I wish we had listened and shown respect. Thank you for sharing your language, truth and culture with us. This text needs to be in the Australian curriculum for High School. Primary school kids are now learning about our great Indigenous warriors like Pemulaway, Windradyne and Dundalli and others who achieved so much for their people

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A great book of truth telling,

Perfect narration and swapping between complex characters and accents seamlessly. This book lends itself to the atrocities the Wiradjuri people faced and the challenges that arose with invasion. I hope Anita has another book out soon

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Spectacular

Thank you. I am lost to describe this work and how beautifully it incorporated history and culture.💜

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