1. Accidents
2. Bush tucker
3. Country
4. Culture
5. Dreams
6. Family
7. Floods
8. Indigenous knowledge
9. Mayali people (N44) (NT SD53-01)
10. Monsoons
11. Respect
12. Rivers and creeks
13. Snakes
14. Waterholes
15. Weather
16. Wild foods

When Dale has a dream about a death adder threatening the life of his 15 year old brother Sean he and the families are unaware that Sean has already secretly gone to the Death Adder Ridge to look for snakes. He knows he is not allowed to go, it is a sacred place not even the old men go there. Sean has broken a serious taboo, he has disrespected Culture and Country awakening the land’s spirit and setting off a chain of events that are life-threatening to him and to his family and his community.

This is a book that explores the complex relationships between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous characters through the eyes of the children. All the families have a long history in the community and their friendship and respect run deep. It is a world where Aboriginal traditions and Culture are observed by Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike. When Sean goes missing his parents’ natural instinct is to search for him but they know they need to respect Indigenous traditions. Though they try to keep Sean’s transgression quiet, word soon seeps out and tensions and accusations rise within the community as fast as the floodwaters.

‘The Spirit of Barrumbi’ is a sequel to Leonie Norrrington’s award-winning ’Barrumbi Kids’. The book includes words in the Mayali language and Kriol. At the end of the book there is an explanatory list of the words used throughout.
Leonie Norrington is a Non-Indigenous author who grew up in a remote Indigenous community in the Northern Territory

Series : Barrumbi Kids series : Book 2

1. Scholastic Australia Teachers Book Notes for ‘The Spirit of Barrumbi ‘by Leonie Norrington http://www.scool.scholastic.com.au/schoolzone/toolkit/assets/pdfs/the-spirit-of-barrumbi.pdf
2. Between a Rock and a Hardcover bookblog. December 2, 2010. Review by rosness of ‘The Spirit of Barrumbi’ by Leonie Norrington https://rosness.wordpress.com/2010/12/02/the-spirit-of-barrumbi-by-leonie-norrington/
3. Leonie Norrington website https://www.leonienorrington.com.au/
4. ABC Radio National ‘Life Matters’ with Natasha Mitchell. January 28, 2013. ‘Indigenous literacy - Interview with Leonie Norrington’ https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lifematters/indigenous-literacy/4483030#
5. Screen Australia, ‘NITV and Screen Australia announce children’s series, ‘Barrumbi Kids’ 3 June 2021 https://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/sa/media-centre/news/2021/06-03-nitv-screen-australia-barrumbi-kids
6. Deadly Story ‘Aboriginal Spirituality https://www.deadlystory.com/page/culture/Life_Lore/Spirituality