Elisabeth Murdoch: Two Lives

Widow of legendary newspaperman and Herald and Weekly Times chairman, Sir Keith Murdoch, mother of media mogul Rupert, tireless charity worker, brilliant gardener - dame Elisabeth Murdoch is one of Australia's great women. But from where did she acquire her grace and formidable energy?

In tracing Dame Elisabeth's long and active life, John Monks gives us a vivid portrait of another age, a time when Melbourne's inner suburbs were pastoral and cable trams rattled along Toorak Road. A time when even the children of the well-to-do suffered the rigors of chilly boarding schools and wore hand-me-down clothes.

With marriage and children came years of hard work for charitable causes. On the board of the Royal Children's Hospital, she was the driving force behind the building of the new hospital and later a strong supporter of the establishment of the Murdoch Institute of Research into Birth Defects. She was the first woman to be appointed a trustee of the National Gallery of Victoria and has for years been actively involved in the Victorian Tapestry Workshop and the McClelland Art Gallery. She has created one of Australia's most famous gardens.

Illustrated with photographs from the Murdoch family collection, this is a delightful portrait of a grande dame, known by many as Rupert Murdoch's secret weapon.