In 1856, Simon Kozminsky travelled from Prussia to begin a new life in the fledgling colony of Victoria. In the heady days of the gold rush, he established a jewellery house that would gain world renown. But behind the glittering facade of wealth, glamour and influence lay a darker, sadder story: a mysterious rift between Simon and his eldest son. In an extraordinary coincidence, the answer to this life-long estrangement was painted by Australia's pre-eminent artist of the time, Frederick McCubbin. The cover depicts a shy Eileen Watkins, the Irish woman who would unwittingly drive a wedge between father and son. The Early Kozminskys is a brilliant imagining of three generations of real-life Kozminskys. With authenticity and dramatic verve, Tangea Tansley brings alive Melbourne of the past in a tantalising tale of fortune and faith, love and betrayal.
