Article in The Tiger’s Mouth by Kate Bagnall :: 23rd January 2011

His name is known across the country, but until recently the true story of LJ Hooker’s early life was unknown, even to his own family. Now, after five years of research, writing and production, Natalia Hooker has published a lavish biography as a tribute to her famous grandfather. The book, LJ Hooker the Man: The Untold Story of an Australian Icon, is particularly interesting for what it reveals about LJ Hooker’s Chinese roots…. Read more…

1. Why have you written this book about your grandfather?
   This biography is an important part of Australian history. The story of Leslie Joseph Hooker (née Tingyou) spans not only the White Australia Policy, which is intriguing in itself, but it also tells of Australian real estate development throughout the 20th century. He was a great man of vision, and was at the forefront of new ideas that literally changed the Australian landscape.
2. How long have you been thinking about writing the book?
   In late 2004 my brother Janusz suggested to me that I write the biography. I thought it was a fabulous idea so I started interviews in Australia the next time I was visiting from Europe. At this time we didn’t know whether the company would belong to the family again, but it was Janusz’s hope that the opportunity would come up. Now, six years later, the book is finished and it tells a great story about the company’s founder and its heritage.
3. How long have you been working on it?
   My first interview was with Jack Abeshouse and Bruce Adams in January 2005. Jack worked with the company for 44 years, and Bruce for 50 years. They were a wealth of information. They provided a colourful image of the times, working in real estate in Sydney in the 1930s and 1940s. I also had several interviews with Fay Pemberton, LJ’s second cousin, to try to put together the family tree and bloodlines. Research was very slow and it was hard to put the pieces together. It wasn’t until the end of 2009 when I visited Guangdong province in China, where my grandfather’s forebears came from, that I felt I could start writing. After that it was a very intense 10-month period of all-nighters, working until 6am most days. It felt like I was back at university, but doing a PhD! The book went to print in early October 2010.
4. What did you learn about your grandfather from your research?
   In my grandfather’s era, many people didn’t talk about their upbringing or heritage. There was a lot of tragedy surrounding his childhood. Most of his relatives, including his mother, died of tuberculosis. He and his cousins were orphaned and lived with a Chinese uncle who couldn’t speak English. These were all things that were never talked about during his life, so my father didn’t know any of this. As I uncovered pieces of research and information, I was sharing our heritage with my family for the first time. As the book developed and I realized what a mammoth empire my grandfather created, I was also surprised. It was fun to call Janusz and share information with him since he didn’t know either. For example, Grandpa was the pioneer of REITs and the largest cattle owner in the world. Our grandfather was the Richard Branson of his era. His business went well beyond real estate.
5. Did you write the book in collaboration with anyone?
   I wrote the book by myself, and editors reviewed the manuscript. I had a very talented designer, Melanie Feddersen, work on the layout. The design of the book took just as much time from me as the writing – I had found hundreds of images through my research and had to decide which to use and in what order. It was like I had two jobs to do, not to mention my real job (I work in publishing).
6. How do you feel about the company being back in the family?
   At first I was in shock. I knew the idea was on the cards, but suddenly it had all really happened. It made me so proud of Janusz, and gave me the motivation to finish writing the biography in a relatively short space of time. I can see very exciting times for LJ Hooker ahead!