Reorganise your bookshef

Meet these Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander authors – all available for purchase in the Museum Store, of course!

Dark Emu

Bruce Pascoe’s ground-breaking 2014 work reinforces that the First Peoples of Australia had sophisticated methods of food production and land management and debunks the hunter-gatherer stereotype.

Pascoe’s 2014 book was for adult audiences, whilst striking a cord with younger readers. As such, the author has produced Young Dark Emu for upper-primary readers. Young Dark Emu is now being taught in the Australian curriculum, so it makes the perfect back-to-school book for kids heading into their final years of primary school.

The Yield

Winner of the 2020 Miles Franklin Literary Award, Tara June Winch’s The Yield follows August Gondiwindi as she returns to Australia after a decade living abroad, and her grandfather, Albert “Poppy” Gondiwindi, who has recently died. This is a story of homecoming, both physically and culturally.

Too Much Lip

Story of homecoming from celebrated Indigenous Australian author, Melissa Lucashenko’s Too Much Lip centres on the funeral of protagonist Kerry Salter’s grandfather. Kerry can’t wait to get away from her hometown again and all the trouble that follows her there.

Bush Tracks

This picture book is great for introducing young children to Australian animals, with accompanying artwork by Balarinji.

Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia

Edited by Anita Heiss, authors such as Tony Birch, Celeste Liddle, Miranda Tapsell and many more, write about what it means to grow up Aboriginal in Australia.

The White Girl

Tony Birch’s latest novel is set in the 1960s during the last vestiges of Australia’s reprehensible child removal policy. Loving grandmother Odette must save her fair-skinned granddaughter Sissy from the new policeman in town.

Welcome to Country: A Travel Guide to Indigenous Australia

Travel has been a far-off fantasy this year, but as Australia opens up, respected Indigenous author and academic Marcia Langton’s travel guide might be just the thing as we reimagine what travel means and seek to reconnect to Australia.

Black and Proud

Go behind the scenes story of the instantly iconic image of St Kilda football player Nicky Winmar lifting up his jersey, pointing to his chest and declaring: “I’m Black and I’m proud to be Black.”

Black Pearls: The Aboriginal and Islander Sports Hall of Fame

In case there’s still room in your resident sport lover’s stocking, this book about 270+ First Peoples sporting icons is sure to fill that space.

Our Home, Our Heartbeat

Adapted from Briggs’ celebrated song “The Children Came Back” and featuring vibrant artwork from illustrators Kate Moon and Rachael Sarra, Our Home, Our Heartbeat celebrates past and present Indigenous legends, as well as emerging generations, honouring the oldest continuing culture on Earth.

Colouring Country: An Australian Dreamtime Colouring Book

Lockdown has seen us pick up many hobbies, from sourdough to jigsaw puzzles. Carry on the tradition with this colouring book of Indigenous Australian artwork.