When Sydney Observed was first published in 1965 (under the title Sydney ), it won instant and rapturous praise from reviewers across Australia and beyond.

Within the space of a few years it came to be regarded as the best single piece ever written about the city. In prose that is measured, astute, wry and always entertaining, Gavin Souter has captured the Emerald City's fortunes, foibles, past and future. He has produced a work that is as timely, relevant and lucid today as it was when first published. 

Sydney Observed, illustrated by George Molnar, is a small masterpiece - a book for giving, keeping, reading and re-reading.