‘Walking the Rock Country in Kakadu’ is a companion book to the earlier ‘Walking in Gagudju Country: Exploring the Monsoon Forest’ created by the same team, Diane Lucus, Ben Tyler and Emma Long. Both books employ a similar layout and approach and explore and explain different areas of Kakadu National Park.
‘Walking the Rock Country in Kakadu’ takes the reader into Kunwarddehwardde, the rock country of the Arnhem Land rock plateau that extends into Kakadu. The book’s title in Kundjeyhmi, the language used in the book, is ‘Karrire kundenge karribolknan Kunwarddehwardde’ which means, ‘Let’s walk, let’s look at the rock country.’
The book is set in the early dry season and the group set off to walk through the rock country. They explore and encounter many different types of habitats and animals and information about them is woven into the stories Gagadju man Ben tells. These add interest and insight into this unique landscape. We learn just as children do by listening to adults share stories about Country, about safety and survival, fire, and the right time to burn and the danger and damage caused by introduced pests such as cane toads and European bees.
The artwork on the double-page spreads and the endpapers is bold and bright. The colours are vivid and intense and filled with intricate details of the abundance of plant and animal life found in the area. Smaller illustrations are integrated with the text with the Kundjeyhmi words for plants and animals. An extensive glossary of the Kundjeyhmi words is included.
Diane Lucas has lived and taught on Gagadju Country for many years and gives thanks to the Elders who so willingly passed on their knowledge. Ben Tyler is a Bininj man who grew up on Gagudju (Kakadu) country learning about the land and bush tucker on his mother’s country, Murumburr, in central Kakadu National Park.
Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander Resource
