Darwin is the main setting of Maestro. Paul and his family move there after his father accepts a position as a medical officer.
             It is the capital city of the Northern Territory and Australia's northernmost city. Settlement was attempted in the early 1800s by the English, but it was the South Australian government who set up a colony there in 1869.
             Darwin was originally named Palmerston after the British Prime Minister. However, as most people called the town 'Darwin' after the name of the port which was so named following the visit of the naturalist, Charles Darwin in 1839, it was officially changed in 1911 when the South Australian government handed control of the Northern Territory over to the Federal government.
             Throughout the novel Peter Goldsworthy evokes images of Darwin's culture and climate. Paul's father describes it as 'A city of booze, blow, and blasphemy' (p. 9b), Paul recounts his first impressions of the flora, 'I had never seen such greenness: an unnatural greenness.' (p. 10a) where 'Everything grew larger than life'. (p. 11a).
             Darwin has what is known as a monsoonal climate meaning that there are distinct wet and dry seasons. In winter there is very little rain and the average temperature is approximately 28°C. The wet season lasts from about November to March and is characterised by high humidity and frequent downpours.
             Most civilians were evacuated from Darwin in during World War II. Darwin was bombed by the Japanese 64 times between February 1942 and November 1943 and at least 243 people were killed.
             Darwin's boom began in the 1950s with the discovery of large mineral deposits and the construction of mines including the Rum Jungle uranium mine. The town was officially classed as a city in 1959. The population of Darwin more than doubled during the 1960s and it still has one of the highest growth rates in Australia.
             On Christmas morn...