Melissa Greenwood, Miimi and Buwaarr, Mother and Baby, HarperCollins Publishers, March 2024, 24 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9780733343018
Miimi (mother) shares the story of her love for her Buwaarr (baby), as she bestows her Gumbaynggirr culture to the next generation.
A beautiful selection of aphorisms passes from mother to baby about her hopes and dreams for their future,
I want you to walk proudly in life knowing who you are…
…all the answers that you seek in this lifetime… lie within your heart.
Melissa Greenwood, a Goori nyami (woman) generously shares her Gumbaynggirr language and artistic storytelling, that is a feast for the eyes and ears. Soft hues of pink, yellow, and brown draw readers into a story filled with love from a mother to her baby. The lyrical words echo over 80,000 years of ancestry as it relays the wisdom of the Gumbaynggirr people through its environment and totems.
Readers will be mesmerised by the heartfelt story and inspired illustrations in this ode to mothers and babies.
Other works in the series include Miimi Marraal, Mother Earth, My Little Barlaagany (Sunshine), Giinagay Gaagal, Hello Ocean, and (coming in October) Giinagay Juluum, Hello Mountains.
For more beautiful artwork Miimi and Jiinda is an Indigenous Australian Art and Design label founded in 2018 by Melissa Greenwood.
Reviewed by Shelley Stephens
