1. Animals
2. Counting
3. Endpapers
4. Families
5. Fishing
6. Grandmothers
7. Humour
8. Kimberley region (W.A.)
9. Stories in rhyme

In Frances and Lindsay’s first book, On the Way to Nana’s (2017), the family takes a long road trip from Broome to visit their Nana in Wyndham. ‘Going Fishing with Nana’ continues this story, with the family spending the day on a fishing trip with their Nana. The children gleefully count the different animals they spot along the way and tally the number of eyes that are watching them as they go.

This charming story uses rhyme and repetition to engage younger readers, making it the perfect read-aloud. Each page repeats the refrain “We’re going fishing, Nana and me. We’re going fishing, what will we see?” before naming the animals seen and counting the eyes looking back at them. The story’s repeated question-and-response structure may feel familiar to readers of Bill Martin Jr.’s ‘Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See.’

The book is a great way to embed First Nations perspectives within lower primary mathematics lessons. Each page could be used to teach skip counting by 2s, or an early introduction to the concept of multiplication using ‘groups of’ (e.g. 4 groups of 2 equals 8).

The story draws on the lived experiences of co-authors Frances and Lindsay Haji-Ali and their family visits to Nana Phyllis in Wyndham, Western Australia. Lindsay is a descendant of the Yawuru and Karajarri people of the West Kimberly region of Western Australia. He is an accomplished artist, with artworks held in public and private collections. Frances is currently a school principal and has previously worked as an Educator in Catholic schools across the Kimberley.

Illustrator Karen Briggs is a Yorta Yorta woman, whose ancestral homeland is located in Northeast Victoria. Karen’s love of animals and nature shines through in the illustrations, where the watchful eyes of jabirus, snakes, dragonflies and other creatures follow the young girl and her family on their journey.

The endpapers contained within the book are a mud map to Nana’s place, showing the journey through the northern part of Western Australia. These endpapers were designed by David Hardy, a Barkindji man, whose expertise includes eight years working at the Walt Disney Animation Studios.

‘Going Fishing with Nana’ was selected as a Notable Book in the Early Childhood book of the 2026 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Awards.

1. Kids’ Book Review, 12 Mar 2026. ‘Going Fishing with Nana’ review http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2026/03/review-going-fishing-with-nana.html
2. ReadPlus, 20 Nov 2025. ‘Going Fishing with Nana’ review by Fran Knight https://www.readplus.com.au/reviews/going-fishing-with-nana
3. Momo Celebrating Time to Read, ‘Going Fishing with Nana’ review https://momotimetoread.blogspot.com/2025/10/going-fishing-with-nana-by-frances-and.html
4. StoryBox Hub. About the Author: Karen Briggs https://storyboxhub.com/authors-and-illustrators/karen-briggs
5. Guide to the Kimberley https://www.australia.com/en/places/broome-and-surrounds/guide-to-the-kimberley.html
6. Discover Wyndham https://www.visitkununurra.com/explore/wyndham