This is a soothing goodnight lullaby created by Ezekiel Kwaymullina and his mother, Sally Morgan, who are descended from the Palyku people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The board book format is suitable for very young children with both text and illustrations offering storytelling at its finest. Throughout the day, Australia’s favourite animals appear including the frog, magpie, galah, goanna, crocodile, turtle, snake, pelican, crow and dingo. These entice very young viewers to stop and notice each one has a special characteristic – the galah scratches and the snake slithers, for example. Each animal is featured on a double page spread, with stylised backgrounds of the Australian environment enriched with descriptive adjectives and tongue-twisting verbs, such as ‘Down rocky ridges snake slithers’.
The rich language introduces a range of prepositions such as over, among, between and down. Alliteration, such as ‘kookaburra calls’ and ‘snake slithers’ add to a rich read aloud and listening experience. The adult and young viewer sharing this story will experience the very natural rhythm and rhyme, such as ‘with blue tides pelican dives’. Hidden amongst the minutely detailed artwork covering each double page spread is a tiny blue bird, which the observant child will excitedly discover. It is small and partially hidden amongst the highly patterned, lushly coloured illustrations which fill each page with fascinating patterns and details seen in the environment. At the end of this exuberant parade of animals, all are gathered beneath the stars appearing totally exhausted, all eyes closed and all sound asleep.
Aboriginal and or Torres Strait Islander Resource
