First Nations Booklist 2024
December 11, 2024 / By SBS Learn
SBS Learn’s 2024 NAIDOC Week Teacher Resource reads
This year’s NAIDOC Week Teacher Resource was loaded with enriching and award-winning titles, curated to assist with teaching First Nations histories, stories and perspectives.
Explore this year’s booklist suggestions by proud Yankunytjatjara, Kokatha and Wirangu educator Shelley Ware, author of the NAIDOC Week Teacher Resource, and the book publisher’s synopses below.
Bookmark and keep the list handy to assist with year-round teaching and for when you’re next on the hunt for a book to share with your student cohort.
CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINKS TO JUMP TO RELEVANT YEAR GROUPS:
**Please note, while some of the below books discuss First Nations fire practices, teachers should reinforce to students that some First Nations peoples use fire as part of their culture and tradition. For reasons of safety and cultural appropriateness these practices should not be replicated.
Early Childhood
Bush Tracks by Ros Moriarty, illustrated by Balarinji (A&U Children’s, 2018)
What Australian animal is that? Follow the tracks and find the animal in this lyrical board book for the very young that features Indigenous artwork by Balarinji.
What can you see? Follow the clues that landscape, seasons, weather, the stars, the moon and the sun give to navigate bush tracks and find the Australian animal.
A lyrical, fun story about tracking animals in the bush featuring vibrant illustrations by Balarinji, Australia’s leading Indigenous design studio.
Ros Moriarty, author of the acclaimed memoir Listening to Country, is also the founder of the Indi Kindi early learning program.
The Rainbow by Ros Moriarty, illustrated by Balarinji (A&U Children’s, 2018)
A perfect read-aloud story which revels in the kaleidoscopic colours of the Australian landscape featuring Indigenous art by Balarinji.
The land bakes…RED. The sun sets…ORANGE. The dawn glows…GOLD. The flowers burst…YELLOW.
A joyous serenade to colours that show country before a storm, illustrated by Balarinji, Australia’s leading Indigenous design studio.
Who Saw Turtle? by Ros Moriarty, illustrated by Balarinji (A&U Children’s, 2024)
A board book for the very young that tracks the amazing migration of turtles featuring vibrant Indigenous artwork by Balarinji.
Did the whale with the slapping, splashing tail see Turtle? Maybe it was the fish with the glittery, shimmering scales?
Follow the migration of Turtle through seas and oceans as she returns home to lay her eggs, illustrated by Balarinji, Australia’s leading Indigenous design studio.
Kids on Country by Shelley Ware, contributors Aunty Di Kerr, illustrated by Ky-Ya Nicholson (Zart)
Kids on Country is an early Years activity book celebrating Victorian First Nations Peoples and their connection to Country.
Aboriginal people believe they belong to Country and it is their job to protect and look after Country, as they would their own family members. When First Nations people talk about Country, they are referring to the land, sky and waterways to which they are connected.
This booklet provides fun ideas and activities to experience with classes. These activities aim to develop creativity, sense of identity, connection to the world we live in, communication skills, and sense of wellbeing. ‘Kids On Country’ will also help develop children’s confidence, curiosity and fine motor skills as it immerses them in their own learning and reflection, building within them a strong sense of connection to Country and their community.
Foundation
Looking After Country With Fire: Aboriginal Burning Knowledge with Uncle Kuu by Victor Steffensen, illustrated by Sandra Steffensen (Hardie Grant Explore, 2022)
Looking After Country with Fire is a picture book for 5 to 10 year-olds that demonstrates respect for Indigenous knowledge, following the success of Victor Steffensen’s bestselling adult book Fire Country. Mother Nature has a language. If we listen, and read the signs in the land, we can understand it.
For thousands of years, First Nations people have listened and responded to the land and made friends with fire, using this knowledge to encourage plants and seeds to flourish, and creating beautiful places for both animals and people to live.
Join Uncle Kuu as he takes us out on Country and explains cultural burning. Featuring stunning artwork by Sandra Steffensen, this is a powerful and timely story of understanding Australia’s ecosystems through Indigenous fire management, and a respectful way forward for future generations to help manage our landscapes.
At the back of the book, you will also find lyrics to a song written by author Victor Steffensen with the same title, ‘Looking After Country with Fire’.
The Heartbeat of the Land by Cathy Freeman and Coral Vass, illustrated by Tannya Harricks (Larrikin House, 2022)
Cathy ran barefoot every day across the great ancient land, as her people had done for sixty thousand years before. And when she ran, she could hear the heartbeat of the land.
Ba Boom Ba Boom Ba Boom…Then one day, Cathy hears a cry. She answers this cry and, with one small step at a time, the seeds of change are planted.
Cathy Freeman has always been an inspiration to young people. Here, she does it again, through storytelling – just as her people have done, for sixty thousand years before… Listen, and you too, will hear the Heartbeat of the Land.
Open your heart to Country by Jasmine Seymour (Magabala Books, 2022)
AWARD: WINNER, 2023 PRIME MINISTER’S LITERARY AWARDS, CHILDREN’S LITERATURE
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 Dharug, Open Your Heart to Country is a moving account of re-connection 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.
The Time of Chaos story by N’arwee’t Professor Carolyn Briggs AM, PhD with images created by Balnarring Bubups (Boon Wurrung Publications, 2023)
Many years ago the biik we now call greater Melbourne extended right out through the large grassy flat plain.
The Birrarang now known as the Yarra River, flowed out through the grassy plain.
This story, the third collection of stories of the Boon Wurrung language group, represents the collaborative relationship between N’arweet Carolyn Briggs Parbin-ata Boonwurrung, the children, the teaching team and the Balnarring Pre-school community. The collaboration, where the children (bubups) were the illustrators, aims to provide teachers, early childhood educators and the community with a resource to begin or continue their journeys of reconciliation. It is hoped the readers can see the possibilities beyond the story. Embedding First Peoples perspectives within education programs can create many amazing stories.
These stories have been written by Dr Carolyn Briggs and passed onto Balnarring preschool for the children to illustrate and the preschool to publish.
“The Time of Chaos is a beautiful story of how we must listen to Country and follow the laws of the past to keep Country well.”
– Shelley Ware
Giinagay Gaagal Hello Ocean by Melissa Greenwood (Harper Collins, 2023)
An ode to happy days spent by the ocean, from Gumbaynggirr artist Melissa Greenwood, the creator of the heart-stirring picture books Miimi Marraal, Mother Earth and My Little Barlaagany.
Gaagal (ocean) is our special place, we love to swim in the waves. We’ll catch some yamaarr (fish), eat, dance and play games.
Years 1 & 2
Winthali Fire: A Traditional Bunuba Story adapted by Joe Willigan Ross and Stacey Bush, illustrated by Remi Nyandat Ross and Boheme Baiana Ross (Indigenous Literacy Foundation, 2022)
Winthali is a traditional Bunuba story, adapted here by Joe Willigan Ross and Stacey Bush. Greedy Old Man Crocodile (Lallanggarra) won’t share his fire with the Bunuba people, but Brown Falcon (Girrganyi), with the help of the young animals comes up with a clever plan to take a fire-stick from his home at Jarrambaya. This story belongs to the Danggu people of the Fitzroy Valley.
Welcome to Country, by Aunty Joy Murphy, illustrated by Lisa Kennedy (Walker Books Australia, 2016)
AWARDS: Educational Publishing Awards Australia, Educational Picture or Chapter Book | Environment Award for Children’s Literature, Non-fiction | NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children’s Literature | Speech Pathology Book of the Year Awards, Indigenous Children
This multi-award-winning picture book is an expansive and generous Welcome to Country from a most respected Elder, Aunty Joy Murphy, beautifully given form by Indigenous artist Lisa Kennedy.
Welcome to the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri People. We are part of this land and the land is part of us. This is where we come from. Wominjeka Wurundjeri balluk yearmenn koondee bik. Welcome to Country.
The Trees: Learning Tree Knowledge with Uncle Kuu by Victor Steffensen and Sandra Steffensen (Hardie Grant, 2023)
Take a walk with Uncle Kuu in The Trees, a picture book about caring for Country and respect for Indigenous knowledge.
Looking after the trees is important for keeping Country happy and healthy. First Nations People have cared for the trees on Country for thousands of years. In return, the trees look after the people and provide them with gifts of seeds, flowers, wood and more. This creates the balance between giving and taking from the land.
Featuring stunning artwork by Sandra Steffensen, The Trees is a powerful and timely story to help future generations manage our landscapes and ensure that they thrive. At the back of the book, you will find lyrics to a song written by author Victor Steffensen with the title, ‘We are the Trees’, and a QR code to watch the song’s YouTube video.
This book is the follow-up to Victor Steffensen’s Looking after Country with Fire, which explains Aboriginal burning practices for children.
Walk With Us by Adam Goodes and Ellie Laing, illustrated by David Hardy (A & U Children’s, 2023)
Walk With Us is inspired by the Uluru Statement from the Heart, and invites readers to find out more about the First Nations Country where they live. From ‘Australian of the Year’ Adam Goodes, former journalist Ellie Laing, and Barkindji illustrator David Hardy. Harvey and Mum are heading to their favourite park for a walk on Cammeraygal land. ‘Time to awaken the ancestors,’ says Uncle Boris. ‘Every time we sing or acknowledge Country, the ancestors are listening.’ What do you know about the Country where you live?
Inspired by the Uluru Statement from the Heart, Walk With Us is an invitation to go on a journey of learning and appreciation – with family, with friends, and with our nation – together.
NT Mob Sharing Stories in Language (Indigenous Literacy Foundation, 2023)
A collection of favourite stories from the Northern Territory. The nine stories in this book come from nine different regions in the Northern Territory. They are written in the language spoken in that region and they are a mix of traditional stories and stories that reflect life as it is lived in those communities today. Each story has accompanying illustrations. Sharing these favourite stories in this book will not only help make connections between Aboriginal communities stronger – Aboriginal people can read about what is the same as where they live and what is different – but they will also help non-Aboriginal people to better appreciate Aboriginal people and their connection to their countries and languages.
Tiwi Seasons with Marius by Tiwi College Students (Indigenous Literacy Foundation, 2023)
Join Tiwi man Marius as he shows his friend Michael and son Justin around the Tiwi Islands.
SIZZLE! During tiyari season it is hot and sticky. BOOM! The rain and thunder comes in for jamutakari season. WOO! Everyone cheers at the Tiwi grand final when kumunupunari season begins.
There are so many fun things to do on Tiwi throughout the seasons. A book created by Tiwi College senior girls so that Tiwi children can see their own culture in a book – and share it with the world.
Years 3 & 4
Songlines: First Knowledges for Younger Readers by Margo Neale and Lynne Kelly, illustrated by Blak Douglas (Thames and Hudson, 2023)
This Younger Readers adaptation of Songlines comes from the critically acclaimed, best-selling First Knowledges series, with striking illustrations by Archibald winner Blak Douglas.
How do you find your way around, get your food and drink, connect with your friends and family? How do you know the right and safe way to do things, or how to make things? Before the white people came to the continent, all Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples knew how to do all these things – and much, much more.
Our Flag, Our Story by Bernard Namok Jnr and Thomas Mayo, illustrated by Tori-Jay Mordey (Magabala Books, 2024)
Bernard Namok Jnr was just a little boy when his dad designed the Torres Strait Islander Flag, a symbol of unity, shared identity and pride for all Torres Strait Islanders. This is the story of a flag and what it represents.
Alongside Mordey’s stunning digital illustrations reflecting the vibrant colours of the Torres Strait, Namok Jnr and Mayo present an engaging, personal story that invites young readers to learn about Torres Strait Islander peoples, place and culture.
Our Flag, Our Story shares an essential piece of Australian and Torres Strait Islander history, accessible for all ages.
You can also read more about the author in this NITV article.
In My Blood It Runs by Dujuan Hoosan, Margaret Anderson and Carol Turner, illustrated by Blak Douglas (Pan MacMillan, 2023)
This is the story of Dujuan Hoosan, a 10-year-old Arrernte and Garawa boy. A wise, funny, cheeky boy. A healer. Out bush, his healing power (Ngangkere) is calm and straight. But in town, it’s wobbly and wild, like a snake. He’s in trouble at school, and with the police. He thinks there’s something wrong with him.
Dujuan’s family knows what to do: they send him to live out bush, to learn the ways of the old people, and the history that runs straight into all Aboriginal people. So he can be proud of himself.
“Based on the award-winning documentary of the same name… this will help to develop empathy and understanding of the reality many First Nations students face in school and the wider community.“
– Shelley Ware
Years 5 & 6
This Book Thinks Ya Deadly! A Celebration of Blak Excellence by Corey Tutt and illustrated by Molly Hunt (Hardie Grant Explore, 2023)
This Book Thinks Ya Deadly! is an inspirational, illustrated compendium that celebrates the diversity and success of First Nations People.
Written by Corey Tutt, author of The First Scientists, this book features the profiles of more than 70 Blakfellas who are doing deadly things across sport, art, activism and science, through to politics, education and literature.
It showcases the careers and Corey’s personal stories of First Nations People who have done great things in their respective fields including Professor Marcia Langton, Miranda Tapsell, Tony Armstrong, Dr Anita Heiss, Danzal Baker (Baker Boy), Adam Goodes and Blak Douglas.
Walking in Gagudju Country: Exploring the Monsoon Forest by Diane Lucas and Ben Tyler, illustrated by Emma Long (A&U Children’s, 2021)
Walk with us through one of the Top End’s magnificent monsoon forests, in Kakadu National Park, learning about the plants, animals and Kundjeyhmi culture along the way.
From the author of the bestselling Walking with the Seasons in Kakadu comes this rich and fascinating book bringing together First Nations Australian knowledge and history with Western science. The first of a proposed series of three titles, with the two possible future titles to focus on the rock country and floodplains.
We are Matildas by Shelley Ware, illustrated by Serena Geddes (Penguin, 2023)
From Shelley Ware and Serena Geddes comes an energetic picture book celebrating football and the team spirit of the CommBank Matildas, which will have you cheering from the sidelines.
Jazzy dreams of being a football star and playing for the CommBank Matildas one day. She has a plan to get there . . . now all she needs is a team. This determined leader soon realises that being on the field with her friends is one of the best parts of the game.
Together, we are Matildas.
“Cracking keepsake of an historic time for young fans.“
– The Australian Women’s Weekly
Years 7 & 8
Songlines: The Power and Promise by Margo Neale and Lynne Kelly (Thames & Hudson, 2020)
The First Knowledges series offers an introduction to Indigenous knowledges in vital areas and their application to the present day and the future.
Exploring practices such as architecture and design, land management, medicine, astronomy and law, this six-book series brings together two very different ways of understanding the natural world: one ancient, the other modern. The first book focuses on Songlines.
Growing up Wiradjuri Stories from the Wiradjuri Nation edited by Dr Anita Heiss (Magabala Books, 2022)
Featuring stories by Aunty Isabel Reid, Uncle Stan Grant Snr, Aunty Lorraine Tye, Aunty Elaine Lomas, Aunty Cheryl Penrith, Uncle James Ingram, Aunty Mary Atkinson, Uncle Norman Little.
Growing up Wiradjuri is a collection of personal stories by Wiradjuri Elders. The writers are Uncles and Aunties who came of age in New South Wales in the 1950s and 1960s.
In a strong collective voice, they share the difficulties of growing up under the rule of the welfare board. Some describe their experiences of evading capture by the welfare mob, or of being stolen and forced into state care away from their families. Some describe experiencing racism in school, the trials of poverty and family separation.
Alongside the difficulties of marginal life, backbreaking labour and family separation, they also detail their fond memories of their own Elders, Aunts and Uncles who cared for them and taught them culture. Contributors describe happy memories of family and community life on country, working the land, sitting around campfires, hunting, fishing, and playing games in the bush with their cousins, brothers and sisters. They talk about the values that were imparted to them by staunch parents and grandparents, about what it means to come from a family where everyone takes care of each other during hard times, and the work they have done to build stronger communities. Every contributor has important advice to share with the next generation.
She is the Earth by Ali Cobby Eckermann (Magabala Books, 2023)
AWARDS: ‘BOOK OF THE YEAR’ AND ‘INDIGENOUS WRITER’S PRIZE’ AT 2024 NSW PREMIER’S LITERARY AWARDS
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 EckeSrmann’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.
First Knowledges Country: Future Fire, Future Farming by Bill Gammage and Bruce Pascoe, edited by Margo Neale (Hudson and Thames, 2021)
The First Knowledges series offers an introduction to Indigenous knowledges in vital areas and their application to the present day and the future. Exploring practices such as architecture and design, land management, botany, astronomy and law, this six-book series brings together two very different ways of understanding the natural world: one ancient, the other modern. The third book focuses on land and fire management.
Years 9 & 10
Telling Stories of Resilience from Nairm Marr Djambana edited by Sina Summers, Nairm Marr Djambana Aboriginal Corporation (Magabala Books, 2023)
The 12 short life stories in Telling are grounded in First Nations storytelling traditions and reveal the diverse and complex nature of the experience of living in the wake of colonisation. Telling fits with the NAIDOC theme, For Our Elders. It also speaks to the contemporary political movement for truth-telling and Treaty in Victoria and nationally. The voices of First Nations Elders living in Victoria are prioritised and honoured in this work.
These stories are from all over Australia. Each Elder reflects on intergenerational trauma, Stolen Generations, reconnection and resistance, demonstrating their deeply felt Black pride and joy and celebrating their stories of survival.
Aunty Yvonne Luke recounts her epic journey of reconnecting to Alyawerre country after several generations of removal. Koori leader Uncle Mik Edwards describes his brave story of survival after being removed forcibly from his family in 1967, and Marion Hansen tells of her surprise at being crowned Miss NAIDOC in 1969.
The evocative photographs provided by the authors bring an intimacy to this vital historical testimony that will be enjoyed by Indigenous and non-Indigenous readers alike.
Jandamarra and the Bunuba Resistance by Banjo Woorunmurra & Howard Pedersen (Magabala Books, 2011)
AWARD: WINNER, 1996 WESTERN AUSTRALIAN PREMIER’S BOOK AWARDS, HISTORICAL & CRITICAL STUDIES AWARD
The true story of the Aboriginal resistance fighter, Jandamarra, whose legend is etched into the Australian landscape. Set in the Kimberley outback during the late nineteenth century, the last stage of Australia’s invasion is played out in the lands of the Bunuba people.
Leases are marked across Aboriginal country and, amidst the chaos and turmoil, extraordinary and sometimes contradictory relationships develop. A powerful collaboration between a non-Indigenous historian and the Indigenous custodians of the Jandamarra story.
“Jandamarra died on his own soil defending his country. A true Australian hero. His story has it all – blood, betrayal, sex, war, family, mateship and magic; history that speaks to the present day. Howard Pedersen gives us the broad sweep and the close up, puts us into the times right at the turning points. It’s a page turner.”
– Paul Kelly
Returning by Kirli Saunders (Magabala Books, 2023)
Returning is a stunning work – a poetic and visual feast that takes you on Kirli’s journey of rediscovering self, Country and Connection. Kirli’s heartfelt experiences address large contemporary themes of decolonisation, self-determination, Identity, First Nations matriarchy, queerness, justice, love, liberation, and truth-telling. The backdrop to Returning is a time of huge upheaval with natural disasters, COVID and the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Each poem is accompanied by evocative and poignant artwork that was created in response to its poem and vitalises its meaning.
The artworks, visual poems, were originally shown at SHAC Gallery, Gundungurra land, in 2021 in the exhibition named Returning. Kirli’s multi-disciplinary artworks span across a range of mediums and displays, including but not limited to water colour, ink on hand-dyed silk, synthesising digital imagery with text, and installations of hand-crafted possum skin cloaks and weavings. Returning was developed with consultation and guidance from First Nations Elders, Custodians, academics and artists.
“Returning is a stunning collection of poetry reflecting on self, Country, the effects of colonisation, decolonisation, truth-telling and connection. It is accompanied by gorgeous artworks to reflect the poetry and feelings evoked.”
– Shelley Ware