Sally Morgan (text), and Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr (illustrator), Little Bird’s Day, Magabala Books, April 2019, 40 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 978192576892
Little Bird’s Day follows a day in the life of Little Bird, as she sings the world alive, feasts in the flowers, spins across the sky and bathes in the rain. It is a simple storythat magnificently captures the beauty of nature, and the rhythms of daily life.
Little Bird’s Day perfectly fuses text and image to create a masterpiece which is a delight to read. Illustrated by Johnny Warrkatja Malibirr, a Yolnu man from the Ganalbingu clan, the pictures feel bold and earthy, and incorporate traditional aboriginal art motifs.
The text by Aboriginal author Sally Morgan has a lovely gentle lilt to it and uses beautiful poetic language as it cycles seamlessly between third-person story-telling, an omniscient voice speaking to Little Bird, and the voice of Little Bird herself.
A beautiful book to read in bed in the mornings and at bedtime, I’d recommend Little Bird for pre-primary and early-primary aged children. I’d also recommend this book be read to babies as they will enjoy the poetic text as well as the contrasting shapes and colours in the illustrations.
Reviewed by Rebecca Blakeney