First Nations Voices

Loving Country is a powerful and essential guidebook that offers a new way to travel and discover Australia through an Indigenous narrative. In this beautifully designed and photographed edition, co-authors Bruce Pascoe and Vicky Shukuroglou, in consultation with communities and Elders across Australia, show travellers how to see the country as herself, to know her whole and old story, and to find the way to fall in love with her, our home.
 
Featuring 18 places in detail, from the ingenious fish traps at Brewarrina and the rivers that feed the Great Barrier Reef, to the love stories of Wiluna and the whale story of Margaret River, there is so much to celebrate. This immersive book covers history, Dreaming stories, traditional cultural practices, Indigenous tours and the importance of recognition and protection of place. It offers keys to unlock the heart of this loving country for those who want to enrich their understanding of our continent, and for travellers looking for more than a whistle-stop tour of Australia.
 
In Loving Country, Bruce and Vicky hope that all communities will be heard when they tell their stories, and that these stories and the country from which they have grown will be honoured. Readers are encouraged to discover sacred Australia by reconsidering the accepted history, and hearing diverse stories of her Indigenous peoples. It is a roadmap to communication and understanding, between all peoples and country, to encourage environmental and social change.

Honour Book in the 2019 CBCAs for Book of the Year: Younger Readers

Shortlisted for the 2019 Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards in the Eight to 10 Years category

Black Cockatoo is a vignette that follows Mia, a young Aboriginal girl as she explores the fragile connections of family and culture.

Mia is a 13-year-old girl from a remote community in the Kimberley. She is saddened by the loss of her brother as he distances himself from the family. She feels powerless to change the things she sees around her… until one day she rescues her totem animal, the  dirran black cockatoo, and soon discovers her own inner strength.

Black Cockatoo is a wonderful small tale on the power of standing up for yourself, culture and ever-present family ties.

Teachers' notes available here

From Stan Grant, leading journalist and author of the critically acclaimed bestsellers Talking to My Country and Australia Day, comes an extraordinary and powerful call to action.

Longlisted for the Australian Political Book of the Year 2023

'History is not weighted on the scales, it is felt in our bones. It is worn on our skin. It is scarred in memory.'

The Queen reigned for seventy years. She came to the throne at the height of Empire and died with the world at a tipping point. What comes next after the death of what Stan Grant calls 'the last white Queen'?

From one of our most respected and award-winning journalists, Stan Grant, The Queen is Dead is a searing, viscerally powerful, emotionally unstoppable, pull-no-punches book on the bitter legacy of colonialism for indigenous people. Taking us on a journey through the world's fault lines, from the war in Ukraine, the rise of China, the identity wars, the resurgence of white supremacy, and the demand that Black Lives Matter, The Queen is Dead is a full-throated, impassioned argument on the necessity for an end to monarchy in Australia, the need for a Republic, and what needs to be done - through the Voice to Parliament and beyond - to address and redress the pain and sorrow and humiliations of the past.

Momentous and timely, The Queen is Dead carries an urgent, undeniable and righteous demand for justice, for a reckoning, and a just settlement with First Nations people.

Age range 12 to 18

Winner, 2013 Prime Minister’s Literary award, Young Adult Literature

Albert Cutts is a tree feller. A fella who cuts down trees. Fog is a fox cub raised by a dingo. He's called a dox because people are suspicious of foxes and Albert Cutts owns the dingo and now the dox. Albert is a bushman and lives a remote life surrounded by animals and birds. All goes well until Albert has an accident ... This is a story of courage, acceptance and respect. It is reminiscent of the gentle story-telling style of Australian author Alan Marshall (I can jump puddles). The dialogue is finely crafted and Indigenous cultural knowledge and awareness are seamlessly integrated into the story.

There are many names and stories associated with the Rainbow Serpent, all of which communicate its significance within Aboriginal traditions, most particularly as a symbol of fertility, peace and unity.

Dreamtime stories tell how the Rainbow Serpent came from beneath the ground and created huge ridges, mountains and gorges as it pushed upward. The name also reflects the snake-like meandering of water across a landscape and the colour spectrum sometimes seen when sunlight hits water at a certain angle.

Paintings of the Rainbow Serpent first appeared in Arnhem Land rock art more than 6000 years ago and have continued today as works on bark and on paper.

In July 2015, as the debate over Adam Goodes being booed at AFL games raged and got ever more heated and ugly, Stan Grant wrote a short but powerful piece for The Guardian that went viral, not only in Australia but right around the world, shared over 100,000 times on social media. His was a personal, passionate and powerful response to racism in Australia and the sorrow, shame, anger and hardship of being an indigenous man. 'We are the detritus of the brutality of the Australian frontier', he wrote, 'We remained a reminder of what was lost, what was taken, what was destroyed to scaffold the building of this nation's prosperity.'

Stan Grant was lucky enough to find an escape route, making his way through education to become one of our leading journalists. He also spent many years outside Australia, working in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, a time that liberated him and gave him a unique perspective on Australia. This is his very personal meditation on what it means to be Australian, what it means to be indigenous, and what racism really means in this country.

Talking to My Country is that rare and special book that talks to every Australian about their country -- what it is, and what it could be. It is not just about race, or about indigenous people but all of us, our shared identity. Direct, honest and forthright, Stan is talking to us all. He might not have all the answers but he wants us to keep on asking the question: how can we be better?

Winner of the 2016 Walkley Book Award and the 2016 National Trust Heritage Award, and shortlisted for the 2016 NIB Waverley Library Award and the 2016 Queensland Literary Award.

'Grant will be an important voice in shaping this nation' The Saturday paper

'It is a story so essential and salutary to this place that it should be given out free at the ballot box' Sydney Morning Herald

'Grant is a natural storyteller --- at his best when recounting his experiences and observations of Indigenous Australian life with devastating simplicity and acuity. This highly readable book ... has the potential to spark empathy and generate important discussion, and deserves to be read widely.' Bookseller + Publisher

'...an urgent and flowing narrative in a book that should be on the required reading list in every school' The Australian

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2021 ABIA 'BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR YOUNG CHILDREN'

An Aboriginal ceremony of Welcome to Country is depicted in a stunning board book from two Indigenous Australians.

Welcome to the lands of the Wurundjeri people. The people are part of the land, and the land is a part of them. Aboriginal communities across Australia have boundaries that are defined by mountain ranges and waterways. Traditionally, to cross these boundaries, permission is required. Each community has its own way of greeting, but the practice shares a common name: a Welcome to Country. Aunty Joy Murphy Wandin, the senior Aboriginal elder of the Wurundjeri people, channels her passion for storytelling into a remarkable and utterly unique picture book that invites readers to discover some of the history and traditions of her people. Indigenous artist Lisa Kennedy gives the Wurundjeri Welcome to Country form in beautiful paintings rich with blues and browns, as full of wonder and history as the tradition they depict.

*CBCA 2022 Notable Book: Early childhood*

Age range 0 to 9

Summer is the season

for ripening wild cherries,

tatas,

wild currants,

canygong

The canygong fruits taste like salty strawberries.

In this delightful children’s picture book, Aunty Patsy Cameron generously shares the stories and traditions from her family’s seasonal island life in Tasmania. With evocative text and stunning illustrations, Sea Country lets the reader know when to pick ripe wild cherries, when the moon (mutton) birds fly home and how the nautilus shells smell like the deepest oceans.

Aunty Patsy Cameron, who is a descendant of the Pairebeenne Trawlwoolway clan in Tasmania, weaves a cultural homage to life on Flinder’s Island, with stories of collecting shells, fishing in wooden dinghies with long oars, and watching clouds snake their way down Mt Munro. Alongside this tender story, Lisa Kennedy reveals the love and connection to sea and Country through her intricate collages and delicate illustrations that sing country alive.

The Little Corroborree Frog is a wonderful children's story that gently introduces the serious plight of one of Australia's most endangered species. Jet the corroboree frog is happily taking care of the tadpole ponds when the water starts to dry up and his family's eggs are threatened. He goes to visit Grandmother Frog to find out why and she tells him all about the summers that are getting hotter every year and the careless humans who are leaving their rubbish around. When a boy and his father arrive to go fishing in the nearby river, Jet seizes the opportunity to show them how humans are threatening the very existence of his species.

Age range 4+

Another simple, universal story from Sally Morgan and Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr, this time, a beautifully illustrated celebration of rain. Thank you rain! is a joyful read, and is full of the plants and animals that welcome rain: raindrops in the treetops; birds singing in the rain; raindrops wetting the dry earth and filling creek beds; birds, frogs and kangaroos all enjoying the rain and finishing with Johnny dancing with happiness!

Sally Morgan’s beautiful words and Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr’s sensitive artwork combine to give this distinctive children’s picture book global appeal. Johnny infuses his illustrations with his fine-art aesthetic and traditional motifs to bring each page to vivid life.

Age range 3 to 9

A charming morality tale that reminds us to be humble about our successes.

Way back, before once-upon-a-time time, there was the Dreamtime, and during this period lived a very confident emu called Dinewah. He was tall, fast and colourful. Most animals thought he was a show-off, but he was too busy talking about himself to take any notice…

Dinewah was determined to run and fly the furthest and the fastest. He even tried to fly to the Sun, but he never made it.

Today, he is still up there in Father Sky. If you look carefully on dark nights, when the Moon isn’t very bright, you can see the Awesome Emu. Many people know him as the Milky Way. We still know it as Djiraboo Dinewah — Awesome Emu.

This is the fourth book in Gregg Dreise’s award-winning children’s picture book series that includes Silly Birds and Kookoo Kookaburra. Filled with his well-loved colourful paintings and told with heart and humour, Awesome Emu will be a family favourite.

LONGLISTED, 2017 AUSTRALIAN BOOK INDUSTRY AWARDS, SMALL PUBLISHERS' CHILDREN'S BOOK OF THE YEAR

WINNER, 2017 SPEECH PATHOLOGY AUSTRALIA BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDS, INDIGENOUS CHILDREN'S CATEGORY

Age range 3 to 9

Mad Magpie is the third book in this successful series of morality tales from Gregg Dreise. Inspired by wise sayings and the knowledge of his Elders, Mad Magpie tells the story of Guluu, an angry magpie who is being teased by a gang of butcher birds. The more he is teased, the angrier he becomes. When Guluu seeks advice, his Elders tell him to stay calm like the river, ignore the butcher birds and to be strong on the inside. Guluu tries this, but the cheeky birds just laugh at him. One day, when Guluu is at the river looking for worms, the butcher birds arrive and steal his food. He remembers the words of his Elders and he tries again – and this time Guluu has a different outcome. He stands proudly at the riverbank and remembers how he used to sing when he was having a bad day. Guluu sings so loud he cannot hear the birds laughing at him and they eventually give up and fly away. From that time on, the animals learnt to use music to create a happy mood and they worked together to stop bullying.

Teachers' notes available here

Before the colonisation of Australia, Aboriginal Australians lived on a wonderful larder of fresh fruit,
vegetables and lean meat, in a land largely free from disease, with more exercise, less stress and
supportive communities.

Today, in Aboriginal communities all over Australia, there are higher instances of heart disease, type 2
diabetes, renal disease, some types of cancer and lung diseases than in the general population.

This book is an attempt to preserve bush tucker knowledge for future generations of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people to ensure the information is not lost with the passing of Elders.

The authors describe over 260 species of the edible plants and fungi that were regularly gathered by the
Noongars of the Bibbulmun Nation of the south-west of Western Australia before and after colonisation.
Many of these plants and fungi are difficult to find today because of land clearing for crops and the
farming of sheep and cattle. 

'Like
its companion volume Noongar Bush Medicine, this compact book, filled with concise
information and large colour photographs for easy identification of the various
plants in question, is perfect for those trips down south…With
an emphasis on health and the preservation of bush tucker lore for Aboriginal
and non-Aboriginal people alike, Noongar Bush Tucker presents more than 260 species
of edible plants and fungi which the Noongars of the Bibbulmun Nation traditionally
gathered. An indispensable reference book.' — The West Australian

When many voices are joined together, with courage, change can happen.
 
In 1966, more than two hundred courageous Aboriginal people walked off the Wave Hill Cattle Station in the Northern Territory. Led by Vincent Lingiari, these stockmen and their families were walking together to fight for equal pay and land rights. 

Exquisitely illustrated and designed, this non-fiction picture book brings a landmark historical event to a new generation. Many people have seen the iconic photograph of Gough Whitlam pouring a handful of red soil into the hands of Vincent Lingiari – a symbol of the legal transfer of Gurindji land back to the Gurindji people – and recognise this as a key moment in the ongoing land rights movement. Freedom Day delves into the events that led up to this moment, and makes a rallying cry for the things that still need to change in its wake. Thomas Mayor co-authors this book with Rosie, Vincent Lingiari’s granddaughter, to bring this vital story to life. The story has been written in close consultation with the Lingiari family.

From a young age, Victor has had a passion for traditional cultural and ecological knowledge. This was further developed after meeting two Elders, who were to become his mentors and teach him the importance of cultural burning. Developed over many generations, this knowledge shows clearly that Australia actually needs fire. Moreover, fire is an important part of a holistic approach to the environment, and when burning is done in a carefully considered manner, this ensures proper land care and healing.

Victor's story is unassuming and honest, while demonstrating the incredibly sophisticated and complex cultural knowledge that has been passed down to him, which he wants to share with others. As global warming sees more parts of our planet burning, this book emphasises the value of Indigenous knowledge systems. There is much evidence that, if adopted, it could greatly benefit the land here in Australia and around the world.

Age range 0 to 3

Another simple, universal story from Sally Morgan — this time a beautifully illustrated celebration of the life of the river. The River takes the reader on a journey of what their eyes can see and their ears can hear. See geen ants crawling, hear frogs croaking, a goanna running, a fish splashing...

Sally Morgan’s beautiful words and Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr’s sensitive artwork combine to make this a unique, distinctive children’s picture book with global appeal. Johnny infuses his illustrations with his fine-art aesthetic and his traditional motifs to bring each page to vivid life.

Shortlisted for the ALS Gold Medal 2019

'A gentle whisper from the past
Visits me in my dreams
Or is it the future that I see ... '

From well-known poets John Kinsella and Charmaine Papertalk-Green comes a tête-à-tête that is powerful, thought provoking, and challenges what we think we know about our country, colonisation, and how we understand our land. Striking conversations surrounding childhood, life, love, mining, death, respect, and diversity; imbued by silken Yamatji sensibility and sublimely responded to by the son of a foreman from South Champion Mine.

This extraordinary publication weaves two differing points of view together as Papertalk-Green and Kinsella's words traverse this land and reflect back to us all, our many identities and quiet voices.

Age range 4+

‘Welcome home lost children
To land singing you back home
Listen to its language
Learn how to speak its song’

From the award-winning creator of Baby Business (2019) and Cooee Mittigar (2019) comes a stunning bilingual story of healing and belonging.

Told in English and Darug, Open Your Heart to Country is a moving account of reconnection to Country from a First Nations perspective. Sharing the nourishing power of returning home and being immersed in the language of Country, this picture book invites readers to reflect on the importance of place, not only for First Nations’ peoples but for everyone.

With exquisite illustrations and soft, lilting text, Open Your Heart to Country appeals to the very young, while sharing a deeper message for older readers. A book the whole family can enjoy.

Age range 6+

Can Black Boss Cocky and White Boss Cocky stop fighting long enough to notice the Bush Mob’s ancient forest is in danger of going up in flames?

Tales from the Bush Mob is a series of books about the Bush Mob, a group of animals who work together to solve problems. Each book shares a rich landscape of characters and places, including Dingo, Willy-willy Wagtail, Eagle, Platypus, Koala, Wombat, Kookaburra, Echidna and Kangaroo. These stories emphasise the value of respect for First Nations culture and country, as well as the importance of courage, perseverance and wisdom to bind communities together.

In this fourth book in the series, you will meet the cockatoo clans who are too busy fighting to notice when a huge fire breaks out. Luckily two mother cockatoos and their sons seek help from the Bush Mob Council. Everyone works together to save the ancient forest and finally there is peace among the cockatoos.

Filled with gorgeous illustrations and exciting tales, this will be a popular book for the whole family.

Great-Grandpa Liman lives in a small house by the sea. There are no lights — just stars as far as the eye can see.

Brother Moon is a powerful story lovingly told by a great-grandfather to his great-grandson. Beneath the dark sky of the Northern Territory, Hippy-Boy is captivated when Great-Grandpa Liman tells him the mysterious story of his brother and how it guides his connection to Country.

Great-Grandpa is a masterful storyteller and, as the tale unfolds, he finally reveals his brother is the moon — a wonder of the universe. Hippy-Boy learns how his greatgrandfather uses the phases of the moon when he goes hunting and fishing, and why it is important for us all to have an understanding of the natural world.

Liman (Harry Morgan), the author's grandfather, was a respected Wadjigany man — a leader amongst his people and the community. Liman was born at Manjimamany in the Northern Territory in 1916. He was a canoe maker, hunter, community mediator, and a family man who lived off the land and travelled the seas. Liman spoke Batjamalh, his first language, and other languages from the Daly River area.

Teachers' notes available here

*Shortlisted for the 2021 ABIAs: Small Publishers' Children's Book of the Year*

Age range 3 to 9 

Family
Heart and home
Yarning old people
Endless sky

Family is a thoughtful contemplation for all to learn the different ways that family makes us whole. This beautifully illustrated children's picture book shows everyone that 'family' can be about heart and home; an endless sky; stories and songs. It  'learns' us how to be with each other and with Country. Families come in all shapes and sizes, and this remarkably simple story teaches us all, that family can be many things. 

WINNER, 2016 AUSTRALIAN BOOK INDUSTRY AWARDS, READER'S CHOICE AWARD

SHORTLISTED, 2016 AUSTRALIAN BOOK INDUSTRY AWARDS, SMALL PUBLISHERS’ CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE YEAR

SHORTLISTED, 2016 SPEECH PATHOLOGY AUSTRALIA BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDS, INDIGENOUS CHILDREN'S CATEGORY

Age range 3 to 9

Kindness is like a boomerang — if you throw it often, it comes back often.

Kookoo the Kookaburra is the second heartwarming morality tale - set within the cultural context of the Dreamtime — by Queensland teacher Gregg Dreise. In the same vein as his first book Silly Birds (Magabala Books 2014) Dreise tells the story of Kookoo, a kind and well-loved kookaburra who is famous for entertaining the other bush creatures with his funny stories. Everyone knows Kookoo has a special gift because he can tell funny stories about the other animals without hurting their feelings. However, when Kookoo runs out of kind stories he turns to teasing and making fun of his friends' differences. Refusing to listen to the sage advice of his uncle, Kookoo gradually alienates all his friends until he finds himself alone and ignored by the other animals. When he finally listens to the sounds of his own laughter echoing around the bush and realises it has become an unhappy sound, Kookoo is forced to remember his uncle's words and change his ways — kindness is like a boomerang — if you throw it often, it comes back often.

Teachers' notes available here

Noongar Bush Medicine provides for the first time a comprehensive information on the the medicinal plants that were used by Aboriginal people of the south-west of Western Australia before European settlement. The book is a guide to how to use plants for alternative treatments and protection from common ailments.

*CBCA 2022 Notable Book: Early childhood*

Age range 3 to 6

When we share, there is plenty for all.

A tender, thoughtful story with a gentle reminder of all the ways sharing makes us stronger.

Sharing is book three in the award-winning Our Place series (Respect 2020, Family 2020) that introduces children to First Nations philosophies that are dear to Aunty Fay’s heart. Each book is a powerful educational tool, with exquisite illustrations.

Written with tenderness and clarity, Sharing is illustrated by award-winning creator Leanne Mulgo Watson (Cooee Mittigar 2019).

She Is the Earth is the luminous new verse novel from celebrated poet Ali Cobby Eckermann. It charts a journey through grief and celebrates the healing power of Country. We follow Eckermann’s soft footfalls in the open (but far from empty) spaces between earth and sky; from sandstone to wetlands, from plains to mountain ranges.

Eckermann’s writing soars in this meditative and transformative piece. Soaked in lightness and dark, history and dreaming, her words will move you, shake you, devastate you and uplift you. This book is full of unexpected beauty in slow, contemplative moments. Read it to see the ‘She’ in and around all of us.

'To read She is the Earth is to hear the timeless voice of the living Earth herself.' — Gloria Steinem

Meet Zed, Zoro, Eliza and Boo, a spirited gang of monitor lizards who learn the meaning of cooperation and teamwork when they have to work together to escape a raging flood that is threatening their home.

Age range 5 to 9

Tales from the Bush Mob is a series of books about the Bush Mob, a group of animals that works together to solve problems. A rich landscape of characters and places populate this series and include Platypus, Koala, Emu, Wombat, Kookaburra, Echidna, Kangaroo and Gusto, the wind. Places include Willy Wagtail's Tree, Dingo's Den, Old Billabong, Bird Meeting Place, Cockatoo's Nesting Trees, Top Camp and Emu Race Track.

Willy-willy Wagtail is the first book in the series and goes back to before Bush Mob get together and nobody understands each other — and there are lots of fights. One day there is a terrible bush fire and Willy Wagtail, Gusto (the wind) and Crow get all the Bush Mob to work together to save the community. For the first time, everyone understands each other and Dingo takes charge and leads all the animals to safety. Dingo is now Boss Dog and is head of the Bush Council, with Willy Wagtail and Crow — the Bush Mob is formed. The next two titles are The Emu Who Ran through the Sky (July 2020) and The Sweetest Egg of All (October 2020).

Age range 3 to 6

Molly the Pirate  is a swashbuckling tale that will delight anyone who ever wanted to be a pirate. Young Molly’s imagination knows no bounds when she transforms her Australian backyard into an adventure playground on the high seas. Molly conjures up a pirate ship on her inland horizon and takes her loyal cat and dog along for the ride as she rows across the choppy ocean to the unsuspecting pirates. On board, she meets a feisty crew of salty buccaneers who look suspiciously like her own farmyard chickens. They are no match for Molly’s daring exploits as she walks the plank, dances jolly jigs, scrambles up the rigging (or is that a clothesline?) and steers the ship like a true seafaring adventurer.

Paul Seden’s witty illustrations pop off the page. His visual storytelling is a standout and children will love searching for objects from Molly’s real world that take on a hilarious new purpose in this jaunty pirate story.

Included on the Children's Book Council of Australia 2018 Notables list. 

An exemplar of Indigenous Studies writing, epistemologically, theoretically and methodologically A collection of writings on women and Aboriginal identity from 14 senior Indigenous academics and community leaders. The collection engages with questions such as: What makes Aboriginal women strong? Why are grandmothers so important (even ones never met)? How is the connection to country different for Aboriginal people compared to non-Aboriginal people's love of nature or sense of belonging to an area? What is Aboriginal spirituality? These writings are generous, inclusive and considerate of the non-Aboriginal reader's feelings. They are hopeful for the future, with an emphasis on acknowledging, joining with, collaborating and caring.

This delightful story follows Alfie on a journey in search for his destiny. He leaves home, travels high and low and, after his long adventure, realises he belongs back at home with his family.

Two Mates is the true story of the special mateship between two young boys who have grown up together in the coastal town of Broome in Australia's north-west. Jack is Indigenous and Raf is a non-Indigenous boy who has spina bifida. Jack and Raf take the reader on a journey of their daily life growing up in Broome. Together they search for hermit crabs, go hunting for barni, fish for salmon, explore the markets, eat satays and dress up as superheros. The fact that Raf is in a wheelchair is only revealed at the end of the story.

Age range 6+

Welcome to Wiradjuri Country.

The Wiradjuri are the people of the three bila (rivers) and their nguram-bang (Country) is the second largest in Australia. Come with Uncle Larry Brandy on an enlightening journey through his Country’s rivers, woodlands, grasslands and rocky outcrops, as well as the murri-yang (sky world).

Along the way, young readers will encounter animals such as bila-durang (platypus), and maliyan (wedge-tailed eagle), plants like the maybal (grass tree) and yirany (yam daisy), and discover stories like that of Tiddalik the giant frog. They will learn how Wiradjuri people lived on their Country, using the flower spikes of the grass tree as spears, soaking its flowers in water to make a sweet drink and weaving its leaves into baskets.

This is a unique book combining language, culture, Indigenous history and storytelling, written by a Wiradjuri author. It features colour photographs of animals, plants and habitats, as well as illustrations by Indigenous artists Kristie Peters and Scott ‘Sauce’ Towney.

For perhaps the first time in novel form, Benevolence presents an important era in Australia's history from an Aboriginal perspective. Benevolence is told from the perspective of Darug woman, Muraging (Mary James), born around 1813. Mary's was one of the earliest Darug generations to experience the impact of British colonisation. At an early age Muraging is given over to the Parramatta Native School by her Darug father. From here she embarks on a journey of discovery and a search for a safe place to make her home.

The novel spans the years 1816-35 and is set around the Hawkesbury River area, the home of the Darug people, Parramatta and Sydney. The author interweaves historical events and characters — she shatters stereotypes and puts a human face to this Aboriginal perspective.

In this unique and highly entertaining autobiography, Alf Taylor chronicles his life growing up in the infamous New Norcia Mission, north of Perth in the fifties and sixties. 

At once darkly humorous and achingly tragic, God, The Devil and Me tells of the life and desperation of the young children forced into the care of the Spanish Nuns and Brothers who ran the Mission. Their lives made up of varying degrees of cruelty and punishments, these children were the 'little black devils' that God and religion forgot. Written with an acerbic and brutal wit, Alf intersperses dark childhood memories with a Monty Pythonesque retelling of the Bible, in which Peter is an alcoholic and Judas is a good guy.

As a child, underfed, poorly clothed and missing his family, Alf sought refuge in the library in the company of Shakespeare and Michelangelo. He writes with joy about the camaraderie of the boys, their love of sport and their own company, but also notes that many descended into despair upon leaving. Most died early. Alf Taylor is one of the 'lucky ones'.

'At once horrific and hilarious, this "little black devil" has created a work unique not just in Aboriginal writing, but in Australian literature altogether.' — Dennis Haskell, Australian poet, critic and academic

*Longlisted for the 2021 ABIAs: Small Publishers' Adult Book of the Year*

You are on Indigenous lands,
swimming in Indigenous waters,
looking up at Indigenous skies. 

Living on Stolen Land is a prose-styled look at our colonial-settler 'present'. This book is the first of its kind to address and educate a broad audience about the colonial contextual history of Australia, in a highly original way. It pulls apart the myths at the heart of our nationhood, and challenges Australia to come to terms with its own past and its place within and on 'Indigenous Countries'. 

This title speaks to many First Nations' truths — stolen lands, sovereignties, time, decolonisation, First Nations perspectives, systemic bias and other constructs that inform our present discussions and ever-expanding understanding. This title is a timely, thought-provoking and accessible read.