Written in 1967 this is the biography of one of the great divas. Born Nellie Mitchell in Melbourne in 1861 she went on to have one of the truly stellar careers. It is said she combined a unique voice and musical intelligence with a very canny business sense and a preparedness to deal with any professional rival that incurred her displeasure. In the late 20th century one might say that Pavarotti would be the nearest equivalent but he had the benefit of publicists and massive recording contracts. There are some digitally re-mastered recordings of Melba available but by and large they date from the end of her career. It is astonishing that without those benefits she still manages to attract prodigious crowds (and fees) wherever she appeared. Melba was selected by Puccini as the ideal Mimi for La Boheme. She spent some considerable time studying the part. La Boheme had not been particularly well received in England or North America; and it was not until after Melba championed a production in 1899 that it became a favourite at Covet Garden. Puccini went on to create the part of Madame Butterfly for her but she had enough understanding of public taste to know that Butterfly was not a good vehicle for her voice.

Melba drew a discreet line under her private life. She had lovers – some of them quite famous and wealthy men – but she declined to talk about them. This is very frustrating for biographers but nonetheless a charming and admirable virtue. It seems journalists were quite happy to make up what they did not know.

John Hetherington had a long and distinguished career as a journalist and war correspondent. He had built a reputation as one of the outstanding correspondents of the Second World War. Profoundly respectful of ordinary people caught up in conflict, he wrote in 1956 that 'the courage of the unheroic is the most sublime courage of all'. He wrote for a number of Australian newspapers, “The Herald”, “The Argus” and, after a brief stint as an editor-in-chief of the “Adelaide News”, as a regular columnist with “The Age”. In later years he moved away from journalism to writing in the longer form. His journalistic craft is apparent in this book. It is not a dry academic treatise but an enjoyable and extremely readable exposition of a great artist’s life. Those with an interest in Australian history and/or music will love it.

For further information on Dame Nellie Melba or John (Jack) Hetherington see the Australian Dictionary of Biography online. ( )