More feedback from readers of Gadi Mirrabooka:

I purchased your book and I’m very excited about telling some of the stories as a part of our “dreaming” main lesson. I would really like an indigenous representative who is sensitive to the development of young children and has a gift for storytelling to visit our school and the children of class one. Is this something you could do? Or is their someone you may know who would do it?
Tamara

We go it! Thank you Helen. We are already enjoying it. My daughter is doing a class presentation, with book in hand, on “how birds got their colours”
Alexandra

I enjoyed Gadi Mirrabooka which I bought for our adopted daughter (Belinda) who tells me she was born the 8th child of Joan Coral Firebrace (and Ross Morgan) in Shepparton in 1975. She was put up for adoption because her mother felt she could not care for another child. Belinda is now the head of the Aboriginal teaching unit at the Victorian Police Academy. She is teaching several young aboriginal new police recruits. She has met with several of her birth family and thinks that Francis might be a cousin. I am a medical Physician who graduated in Adelaide and then worked with the Queensland Institute for Medical Research reviewing aboriginal child health. With my wife (a nurse) and two young boys, we visited all the then aboriginal missions and government settlements in Queensland from Cherbourg to Bamaga and including Palm Island and Yarrabah. Every child under 15 years was examined and many were tested for blood deficiencies and intestinal parasites. Recommendations were made improve hygiene, diet and education to the Queensland Government resulting in many more maternity and children’s nurses being appointed. Later I was involved in a WHO world-wide project to determine and improve nutrition and infectious diseases in children of several countries, including Australia. We looked into ways of preventing deafness in children of the Tiwi Islands. My son (now Professor of Medicine in Hobart) worked for some years on problems of diabetes and kidney failure throughout the Northern Territory. He resigned because of a hopeless NT government. The two other books are for two of my grandchildren who would be very interested.
David

Thank you so much for the information. Looking so much forward to read the book hoping to learn much more of the Aborignals life, traditions, ceremonies, story etc. I was that lucky to be in Western Australia last december and got a lot of knowledge from an aboriginal. And I was surprised that the stories, ceremonies, intepretation of nature etc. was that similar to the indigenous Americans, who I’m working with and being very close to. The Micmac in Northeast US (Maine).
Jargen

I’ve ordered the books on the website. I can’t wait to get my hands on them! They are going to be distributed to our call centres for the call centre agents to enjoy.
Eve

This book was first published Nov 2001 as part of a world series on folklore by Libraries Unlimited USA. Had many reprints. Now a classic.