Australia has had few major developers with the creative flair of Henry Pollack. If anyone was at odds with the stereotype of the property tycoon, the bruising plutocrat who crushes all in their way, it was most certainly Henry Pollack. But then, as he says himself, it was never any ambition of his to become a developer... The Accidental Developer is remarkable for the depth and breadth of the author's experience. Pollack gives a moving and vivid account of growing up in Lodz, followed by the story of his trek to Australia; then, from the revealing perspective of a migrant youth, he provides vignettes of people and life in Sydney and country NSW in the 1940s. In getting started, Pollack had many and various jobs, menial and otherwise, in order to make a living. Then followed a career in architecture and, finally, founding of the Mirvac development empire. Although Pollack retired a few years ago (and sadly died very recently) the company he began is still in the Top 50 Australian companies for capitalisation and share market value.