Inspired by young author, Tamzyne Richardson’s poem, this picture book celebrates the culture of the Yawuru People, the country, the history of migration and cultural diversity, significant places and everyday life in Broome.
The book is the result of a community-publishing project involving local school children and Broome author-illustrator, Bronwyn Houston. ‘I live in a place where the seasons are many and bush fruits come and go. I live where lightning bolts are blue and the thunder growls.’ Each stanza describing a feature of the Kimberley town is expanded upon by succinct blocks of additional information and accompanied by digital collages of brightly coloured illustrations in ink, pencil, pastels and acrylics.
Readers learn that the dry season is heralded with the arrival of rainbow-watercolour dragonflies ready to feast on buzzing mosquitoes that have bred during the wet, and the Yawuru names for the local bush tucker, including the magabala or bush banana. Full of fascinating facts and features that make Broome unique from the history of the pearling industry to making bush damper under the stars, this child’s eye view of a popular Northwest coastal tourist destination is engaging and informative. A double page spread at the end of the book introduces the 12 primary school students who collaborated on the project.
Tamzyne Richardson is descended from the Yawuru and Bardi people of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Author-Illustrator Bronwyn Houston is descended from the Nyiyaparli and Yindjiparndi people of the Wana clan in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander Resource
