Tamarra

A Story of Termites on Gurindji Country

By Violet Wadrill

Tamarra: A Story of Termites on Gurindji Country is a fascinating, illustrated science book that takes kids inside the life of termites through storytelling from the Gurindji People.
 
Did you know there are four types of termite poo? Or that a warm paste made from termite mound is used to strengthen a Gurindji baby’s body and spirit? Or that spinifex (which termites eat) is one of the strongest plants in the world?
 
Created as a collaboration between over 30 First Nations and non-Indigenous contributors, the story and artworks explore how termites and their mounds connect different parts of Country, from tiny Gurindji babies and their loving grandmothers, to spiky spinifex plants growing in the hot sun.
 
Written in traditional Gurindji, Gurindji Kriol and English (with a QR code to an audio version spoken in language), Tamarra is a truly original story with beautiful artwork that takes readers on an educational and cultural journey through Gurindji Country.
 
Suitable for children aged 7 to 12 years.
 
In Stock
$29.99 RRP
ISBN
9781741178302
Publish date
05 July 2023
Category
Australia
Format
Hardback
Page count
80
Weight
732 grams
Dimensions
260 x 260 mm

About the author

The co-creators of Tamarra are a diverse group of First Nations and non-Indigenous people. For over four months in 2021, they came together on Gurindji Country to explore a shared interest in termites and with a curiosity about how they could create a new kind of storybook together.
 
The Gurindji cultural custodians who led the project are Violet Wadrill, Topsy Dodd Ngarnjal and Leah Leaman who are members of Karungkarni Art, the local arts centre. Other key Gurindji contributors were Cecelia Edwards and Cassandra Algy, and students from Kalkaringi School who participated through workshops and art-making. Key non-Indigenous contributors were linguist Professor Felicity Meakins, who has worked with the Gurindji community for over twenty years, and artist Briony Barr and microbiologist Dr Gregory Crocetti, who collaborate as Scale Free Network.
 

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