Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Baabinje’s Backyard – Ella Noah Bancroft & Bronwyn Bancroft

    Hardie Grant Australia Little Hare July 2025 ISBN:9781761214325 Price:AU$24.99, NZ$27.99 Imprint:Hardie Grant Children’s Publish My baabinje always had dirt under her fingernails. She would take me out to the backyard and say, ‘Sit, Marli. Observe and connect with the day.’ While I do miss the days when The Kid and I would garden, at least,…

  • Yildaan: Our Dreaming Track – Uncle Bud Marshall with Yandaarra. Artwork by Hannah Smith and Elaine Carmady.

    Allen & Unwin April 2025 ISBN:9781761181382 Imprint:A & U Children RRP: $29.99 From Gumbaynggirr Country comes this stunning book featuring art, photographs, memories, anecdotes and Dreaming stories of the beautiful Nambucca Heads in northern NSW. Giinagay, welcome, I’m Uncle Bud. I’m a Gumbaynggirr man, an Aboriginal Elder from Nambucca Heads. This is my Country.I want…

  • Nan and Me series – Natasha Weribone

    Nan, Why Don’t I Look Like You? – Book 1 Nan & Me Series Paperback ISBN:  978-1-7640638-0-7 Hardcopy ISBN: 978-1-7640638-7-6 Digital online ISBN: 978-1-7640638-5-2 Nan, Where Did We Come From? – Book 2 Nan & Me Series Paperback ISBN: 978-1-7640638-1-4 Hardcopy ISBN: 978-1-7640638-8-3 Digital online ISBN: 978-1-7640638-6-9 It gives me tremendous pleasure to start off this year’s NAIDOC reviews with these two titles…

  • Learning Country: a First Nations Journey Around Australia’s Traditional Place Names – Ryhia Dank

    Harper Collins Australia Ryhia Dank is a Gudanji/Wakaja woman who grew up in a remote community in the Gulf of Carpentaria. She got to know her Country though the stories her family told, and through walking in the places and footprints her family has travelled since the beginning. Her painting is storywork, and tells stories…

  • Desert Tracks -Marly Wells & Linda Wells

    Magabala Books May 2025 978-1-922777-66-9 RRP. $22.99 What an absolutely sensational book this is! Easy to see why it won the Daisy Utemorrah Award! And I’m going to say right now, this is one you not only need for your collection, but need to actively promote to your staff, especially those of you looking to…

  • Country Tells Us When… Written and Illustrated by Tsheena Cooper, Mary Dann, Dalisa Pigram-Ross and Sheree Ford.

    ILF Community Publishing  March 2023 ISBN:   9781922592460ISBN 10:   1922592463 9781922592484 (Karajarri), 9781922592477 (Mangala) RRP: $26.99 Community: Rubibi (Broome), WA Language: Yawuru The Yawuru people are the traditional owners of the lands and waters in and around Rubibi (the town of Broome). As more and more First Nations seasonal calendars are being shared with students, what a wonderful…

  • Earth Speak – Sean McCann. Illustrated by Jade Goodwin

    Boodjar Wangkiny Allen & Unwin ISBN:9781761181238 Imprint:A & U Children RRP: $26.99 I have been eagerly awaiting this one, having seen sneak peeks of Jade’s gorgeous illustrations in the interim. It is just as beautiful as it promised. As so many of us shake our heads over recent ignorant and ill-informed comments about Welcome to…

  • ILF – Reading Opens Doors

    Community Publishing Potential publishing projects go through a proposal process which must meet our vision and strategy. Each is different. They can involve working with translators, linguists, authors, illustrators, editors and artists. We listen to the needs and wants of each Community and collaborate throughout the entire process to ensure Community leadership and authenticity. Community members…

  • Brightest Wild – Tania Crampton-Larking

    Hachette Australia January 2025 9780734420657 | RRP $16.99 Imprint: Lothian Children’s Books This is a ‘bright’ start to a writing career for Tania Crampton-Larking, with a whole lot going on in this novel: loss/grief, moving/changes, mixed heritage families, family/changes to family, bullying, climate change, First Nations culture to mention a few. Alex and her mum move from…

  • Our Dance – Jacinta Daniher & Taylor Hampton. Illustrations by Janelle Burger

    Hachette Australia Imprint: Lothian Children’s Books Apr 30, 2025 | 9780734423429 | RRP $24.99 As one might expect from this pair of collaborators this is cross-cultural learning made fun and exciting. Taylor Hampton, a proud Ngiyampaa/Wiradjuri man and Jacinta Daniher, an early childhood educator created Birrang Cultural Connections, to which I have previously made reference when I reviewed Our…