West Lakes in South Australia was created in the 1970s, transforming what many considered a wasteland of swamp and sand into well-groomed waterways and suburbs. Who carried out this vast engineering and urban project? Were perceptions of the area consistent with reality, before and after the signing of the West Lakes Indenture in 1969? Susan Marsden’s history covers an extensive and environmentally complex region, now a large swathe of western metropolitan Adelaide. Stepping back through nearly 200 years in time she reveals a diversity of people and pursuits, not least of them ornithology and Australian Rules football.