1. Art motifs
2. Art techniques
3. Art, Aboriginal Australian
4. Country
5. Culture
6. Home
7. Landscapes
8. Literary devices
9. Relationship to place
10. Respect

Brilliantly illustrated, ‘Coming home to Country’ is the perfect readaloud picture book. The first line, ‘Three hills to home, lines of Country etched like wrinkles in a wise old face’, fires the imagination. At first glance the story appears to be directed at preschoolers as the illustrations are large and there are few words on each page. A closer look reveals a definite vocabulary-building going on here, for example: palette, ignite, orchestra, exhilarating, skirmish, intricate and majestic.

‘Coming home to Country’ could be used with secondary school students who are looking at texts in relation to language features – choice of vocabulary; visual features – discussion on cover and illustrations; context of the subject and the author; values portrayed in the text; and how language features, images and vocabulary can be employed to achieve a particular effect. The story has an allegorical feel and is beautifully crafted.

The creator, Bronwyn Bancroft, was born in Tenterfield, northern New South Wales. She is a descendant of the Djanbun clan of the Bundjalung nation.

1. Review by Thuy On of 'Coming Home to Country https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/11/08/140948/coming-home-to-country-bronwyn-bancroft-little-hare/
2. Review by Dani Solomon of 'Coming Home to Country' https://www.readings.com.au/review/coming-home-to-country-by-bronwyn-bancroft
3. Lengthy comment by Dr Lara Cain Gray, 'Charming Language: A Blog for Readers and Writers' on 'Coming Home to Country' http://www.charminglanguage.com/2020/02/01/coming-home-to-country-by-bronwyn-bancroft/
4. 'Indigenous artist and activist Bronwyn Bancroft paints the beauty and brutality of Australia.' ABC North Coast News by Catherine Marciniak https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-02/bronwyn-bancroft-artist-and-activist/7468688
5. 'Being an Aboriginal Artist is not a Lifestyle Choice' edited transcript of a talk given by Bronwyn Bancroft at the Sydney College of the Arts as part of the SCA Art Talks series https://sydneyreviewofbooks.com/essay/being-an-aboriginal-artist-is-not-a-lifestyle-choice/