A recently published book co-written by a Tasmanian Aboriginal author has inspired a new song paying tribute one of the state's most formidable Indigenous freedom fighters.

Following the release of Trouwerner by Aunty Patsy Cameron and Martin Flanagan the song Mannalargenna was written by Shane Howard after Flanagan introduced Howard to Aunty Patsy in 2023.

"Aunty Patsy made the history come alive," Howard said.

"She told stories of her Aboriginal ancestors and the rich lives they led until the desperate times of invasion and colonisation by squatters and the red coats of the British army.

"She spoke of pirates and bushrangers, escaped convicts and ticket of leave men who roamed that country and that island coastline in the early 1800s, as well as the Straitsmen and Aboriginal women eking out a living on the Furneaux Islands.

"But the stories Aunty Patsy tells are not just about tragedy. They're about a thriving and dynamic community before the colonisers came."

After visiting Aunty Patsy at her home in Tomahawk and receiving a draft copy of the book, Howard found himself inspired to write a song about Mannalargenna, the atypical ancestor of many Tasmanian Aboriginal people.

"I soon found myself adrift on an ocean of history that was inspiring, revealing, compelling, awakening, heartbreaking, anger-inducing and filled with the truth we all need to hear," Howard said.

The clapsticks which begin the song and continue throughout were made by Aunty Patsy's son, Matt, and given to Howard at last year's Mannalargenna Day celebrations, when he performed the new song for the first time to an audience of Mannalargenna's descendants, where it was "warmly and generously received".

"It was possibly the most nervous I've ever been before a performance. I wanted to honour them and their towering ancestor," Howard said.

Howard said the song, Bart Willoughby and David Bridie pays tribute to Mannalargenna as "a clever man of law and a highly regarded and respected leader of his people in the Northeast of Tasmania, who tried desperately to make a peaceful settlement, a 'Treaty', with these new invaders".

Aunty Patsy Cameron and Martin Flanagan's Trouwerner is now available via Magabala Books.

Mannalargenna is out now on all digital streaming platforms.