Beware the Argula

Kirsty Burgu, Beware the Argula, Magabala Books, September 2023, 36 pp., RRP $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922613240

This book is the outcome of an ongoing collaboration between Magabala Books and artists of the remote Kimberley arts centres (see more information here). Kirsty Burgu is a Ngarinyin Worrorra woman from the Mowanjum community not far east of Derby off the Gibb River Road in Western Australia. Kirsty Burgu combines her work as a Christian pastor with a commitment to traditional culture.

Each page of this tale is saturated in the vibrant greens, reds, ochres, blues and yellows of the far north. The flora and fauna of this landscape come to life in poster-style illustrations upon which the morality fable is told, featuring the Argula, a hairy man depicted in many rock art sites of the Kimberley coast. This creature is on the lookout for children and adults who are not respecting the resources of the land. If you take too many fish from one place, for instance, then you might regret your greed when the hairy man arrives. He takes no prisoners.

Though it is a scary fun story, told with lightness of touch, there is a serious message here urging respect, sustainable practices, and a healthy fear of the wild country of the north.

This is a beautifully produced book that will be loved by children from 5 years to 10 years.

Reviewed by Kevin Brophy 

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