'[W]e are strong, we are beautiful and we should be proud of our culture, our stories, our languages.' - Danzal Baker (aka Baker Boy)

Homeland Calling is a collection of poems created from hip-hop song lyrics that channel culture and challenge stereotypes. Written by First Nations youth from communities all around Australia, the powerful words display a maturity beyond their years. Edited by award-winning author and poet Ellen van Neerven, and brought to you by Desert Pea Media, the verses in this book are the result of young artists exploring their place in the world, expressing the future they want for themselves and their communities. These young people are the future, and their passion for their culture, languages and homelands is beyond inspiring.

Check out many of the original songs and music videos on Spotify or YouTube. All royalties from the sale of the book will go towards Desert Pea Media's training and development programs in Indigenous communities.

Artwork by Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist Lakkari Pitt.

Join Yolŋu artist Ms N. Yunupiŋu and her granddaughter Siena Mayutu Wurmarri Stubbs on a counting adventure across Country, spotting animals of Arnhem Land and learning Yolŋu Matha, the language of the Yolŋu people, along the way. With a simple narrative and colourful illustrations celebrating the artist’s distinctive works, this bilingual board book introduces young children to numbers up to five and makes counting fun.

This book is a collaboration between Buku-Larrŋgay Mulka Centre and the National Gallery of Victoria.

Aboriginal design is of a distinctly cultural nature, based in the Dreaming and in ancient practices grounded in Country. It is visible in the aerodynamic boomerang, the ingenious design of fish traps and the precise layouts of community settlements that strengthen social cohesion.

Alison Page and Paul Memmott show how these design principles of sophisticated function, sustainability and storytelling, refined over many millennia, are now being applied to contemporary practices. Design: Building on Country issues a challenge for a new Australian design ethos, one that truly responds to the essence of Country and its people.

About the series: Each book is a collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous writers and editors; the series is edited by Margo Neale, senior Indigenous curator at the National Museum of Australia.

Other titles in the series include:Songlines by Margo Neale & Lynne Kelly (2020); Country by Bill Gammage & Bruce Pascoe (2021); Plants by Zena Cumpston, Michael Fletcher & Lesley Head (2022); Astronomy (2022); Law (2023

'There must be payback.'

'There must, you are right,' Grandfather agrees.

'What can you offer in exchange?'

Grandfather holds up his arms, open, offering himself as a sacrifice. 'I am old.'

Deklan 'Dek' Archer and his mates arrive at school to a tense atmosphere. 'Old Mate', Mr Henry, who has lived in town for a long time, has been found murdered. He had been selling grog on the black market for years. To add to these worries, the Year 12s, who were on camp, are now missing. The police think there is a link between the missing students and the murder.

Dek and his friends are torn. Dek and Willum, his best mate, have an important football match that evening - professional recruiters are in town. Neither wants to let their coach down but they feel they must search for their friends.

Deklan's grandfather, a renowned tracker with certain otherworld gifts turns up, and expects him to go bush. This choice will change Dek's life and family forever. A journey that moves deep in to an ancient landscape uncovers secrets, and the past, which is never far away, continues to call them.

Both are tracking the truth but something is watching and hunting them.

An innovative collection of poetry and prose from a vibrant new Indigenous voice on the Australian literary scene.

I told you this was a thirst so great it could carve rivers.

This fierce debut from award-winning writer Evelyn Araluen confronts the tropes and iconography of an unreconciled nation with biting satire and lyrical fury. Dropbear interrogates the complexities of colonial and personal history with an alternately playful, tender and mournful intertextual voice, deftly navigating the responsibilities that gather from sovereign country, the spectres of memory and the debris of settler-coloniality. This innovative mix of poetry and essay offers an eloquent witness to the entangled present, an uncompromising provocation of history, and an embattled but redemptive hope for a decolonial future.

What does it mean to be a citizen of Australia?

• Being an Australian comes with rights and responsibilities. This timely book highlights the questions we face as a nation and suggests a way forward walking together.

• Written by Wiradjuri man Duncan Smith and award-winning author Nicole Godwin with artwork by Yorta Yorta Dja Dja Warung descendent Jandamarra Cadd.

• Thought provoking and inspiring curriculum links to English, Literature.

'It has been over 100 years since our father was born, 80 years since Father enlisted in the AIF, and over 60 years since he died. How do we go beyond what we knew from our Mother's stories of him? The past, present and future need to be spoken about and shared.' -- Jackie Huggins

Born an only child in North Queensland, Jack Huggins had an idyllic childhood in Ayr, where his family somehow escaped the harsh Queensland government treatment of First Nations' peoples. His father was in the army in World War I and Jack followed in his footsteps into World War II. He was captured by the Japanese in Singapore and spent much of the war on the notorious Burma-Thailand railway.

The narrative and personal reflections give insight into love, loss and the need to understand one man's journey, as seen through the eyes of his children seeking to learn more. It is an affectionate portrait and a moving account of courage in wartime which helps a reader understand the sacrifices made by our soldiers.

One crocodile with many sharp teeth, two snake-necked turtles swimming in a billabong, three water goannas soaking up the sun... Learn to count with the animals of Australia's West Arnhem Land and the traditional art of indigenous Kunwinjku culture.

One, two, three. Nakudji, bokenh, danjbik. Accompanied by illustrations drawing on traditional Kunwinjku art, each of the twelve entries of this counting book showcases a different animal of West Arnhem Land, Australia. From crocodiles and echidnas to wallabies, children and adults alike will enjoy learning the Kunwinjku names for numbers and animals, as well as discovering more about these animals' habitat and behavior, and what they mean to the indigenous Bininj.

Whether teaching you how dragonflies indicate the passing of the seasons or how to catch and cook barramundi, the fascinating Kunwinjku Counting Book offers insight into the complex ecology of West Arnhem Land and the vibrant traditions of Bininj culture. More than just a counting book, this is also a beautifully illustrated work of art, a tribute to the indigenous people of Australia, and a fascinating nature guide to Northern Territory ecology.

The story of an Aboriginal woman who worked as a police officer and fought for justice both within and beyond the Australian police force.

The story of an Aboriginal woman who worked as a police officer and fought for justice both within and beyond the Australian police force.

A proud Gunai/Kurnai woman, Veronica Gorrie grew up dauntless, full of cheek and a fierce sense of justice. After watching her friends and family suffer under a deeply compromised law-enforcement system, Gorrie signed up for training to become one of a rare few Aboriginal police officers in Australia. In her ten years in the force, she witnessed appalling institutional racism and sexism, and fought past those things to provide courageous and compassionate service to civilians in need, many Aboriginal themselves.

With a great gift for storytelling and a wicked sense of humour, Gorrie frankly and movingly explores the impact of racism on her family and her life, the impact of intergenerational trauma resulting from cultural dispossession, and the inevitable difficulties of making her way in the white- and male-dominated workplace of the police force.

Black and Blue is a memoir of remarkable fortitude and resilience, told with wit, wisdom, and great heart.

A joyful celebration of family and culture, the Welcome to Our Country series introduces First Nations history to children. From Australian of the Year Adam Goodes, co-writer Ellie Laing, and Barkindji illustrator David Hardy.

'There are books you encounter as an adult that you wish you could press into the hands of your younger self. Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray is one of those books - a novel that turns Australia's long-mythologised settler history into a raw and resilient heartsong.' - Guardian

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Gundagai, 1852



The powerful Murrumbidgee River surges through town leaving death and destruction in its wake. It is a stark reminder that while the river can give life, it can just as easily take it away.



Wagadhaany is one of the lucky ones. She survives. But is her life now better than the fate she escaped? Forced to move away from her miyagan, she walks through each day with no trace of dance in her step, her broken heart forever calling her back home to Gundagai.



When she meets Wiradyuri stockman Yindyamarra, Wagadhaany's heart slowly begins to heal. But still, she dreams of a better life, away from the degradation of being owned. She longs to set out along the river of her ancestors, in search of lost family and country. Can she find the courage to defy the White man's law? And if she does, will it bring hope ... or heartache?



Set on timeless Wiradyuri country, where the life-giving waters of the rivers can make or break dreams, and based on devastating true events, Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray (River of Dreams) is an epic story of love, loss and belonging.



Praise for Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray (River of Dreams)

'Heiss fuses fiction with realism, conjuring a resonance still felt in Blak struggle today ... packs heart into every page.' - Saturday Paper



'Tells a powerful and affecting tale of Aboriginal people's identity, community and deep connection to country.' - Canberra Times



'A profoundly moving showcase of Heiss' skill ... Intimate, reflective, and impossible to put down.' - The AU Review



'Engrossing and wonderful storytelling. I really loved these strong, brave Wiradyuri characters.' - Melissa Lucashenko



'A powerful story of family, place and belonging.' - Kate Grenville



'A remarkable story of courage and a love of country ... Anita Heiss writes with heart and energy on every page.' - Tony Birch



'It is a love story, a story of loss, a hopeful story. The river is a guide, but you have to be open to its spiritual lessons.' - Terri Janke



'Anita Heiss is at the height of her storytelling powers in this inspiring, heart-breaking, profound tale.' - Larissa Behrendt



'The novel flows like the great Murrumbidgee River itself, with powerful undercurrents that sweep the reader along - I feel it's a book that all Australians should read, to try and understand why our colonial past still causes so much pain and grievance.' - Kate Forsyth

Age range 4+

'Welcome home lost children To land singing you back home Listen to its language Learn how to speak its song'

From the award-winning creator ofBaby Business(2019) andCooee Mittigar(2019) comes a stunning bilingual story of healing and belonging.

Told in English and Darug, Open Your Heart to Country is a moving account of reconnection to Country from a First Nations perspective. Sharing the nourishing power of returning home and being immersed in the language of Country, this picture book invites readers to reflect on the importance of place, not only for First Nations' peoples but for everyone.

With exquisite illustrations and soft, lilting text, Open Your Heart to Country appeals to the very young, while sharing a deeper message for older readers. A book the whole family can enjoy.

'Open Your Heart to Countryis the stunning fourth picture book from Dharug woman and award-winning author/illustrator Jasmine Seymour. It's a story of welcome and belonging told in two languages, illustrated using Seymour's signature technique, which combines painting, printmaking and digital collage...This is an exquisite book whose simple, lyrical narrative and feeling of gentle encouragement will appeal to readers aged three and up.' -- Jacqui Davies,Books+Publishing

The story of an urban-based high achieving Wiradyuri woman working to break down stereotypes and build bridges between black and white Australia.

I'm Aboriginal. I'm just not the Aboriginal person a lot of people want or expect me to be.

What does it mean to be Aboriginal? Why is Australia so obsessed with notions of identity? Anita Heiss, successful author and passionate advocate for Aboriginal literacy, rights and representation, was born a member of the Wiradyuri nation of central New South Wales but was raised in the suburbs of Sydney and educated at the local Catholic school.

In this heartfelt and revealing memoir, told in her distinctive, wry style, with large doses of humour, Anita Heiss gives a firsthand account of her experiences as a woman with a Wiradyuri mother and Austrian father. Anita explains the development of her activist consciousness, how she strives to be happy and healthy, and the work she undertakes every day to ensure the world she leaves behind will be more equitable and understanding than it is today.

The first-ever anthology of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander speculative fiction – written, curated, edited and designed by blackfellas, for blackfellas and about blackfellas. In these stories, ‘this all come back’: all those things that have been taken from us, that we collectively mourn the loss of, or attempt to recover and revive, as well as those that we thought we’d gotten rid of, that are always returning to haunt and hound us.

Some writers summon ancestral spirits from the past, while others look straight down the barrel of potential futures, which always end up curving back around to hold us from behind. Dazzling, imaginative and unsettling, This All Come Back Now centres and celebrates communities and culture. It’s a love letter to kin and country, to memory and future-thinking.

No one is innocent in this story.

First Rule: Make them like you.

Second Rule: Make them need you.

Third Rule: Make them pay.



They think I'm a young, idealistic law student, that I'm passionate about reforming a corrupt and brutal system.



They think I'm working hard to impress them.



They think I'm here to save an innocent man on death row.



They're wrong. I'm going to bury him.

'Gripping and full of tension, with twist after unexpected twist. You won't just read The Murder Rule, you'll devour it.'

- Karin Slaughter, New York Times bestselling author of Pieces of Her

'To Paradise is a transcendent, visionary novel of stunning scope and depth. A novel so layered, so rich, so relevant, so full of the joys and terrors-the pure mystery-of human life, is not only rare, it's revolutionary.'- Michael Cunningham

From the author of the modern classicA Little Life, a bold, brilliant novel spanning three centuries and three different versions of the American experiment, about lovers, family, loss and the elusive promise of utopia.

In an alternate version of 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where people may live and love whomever they please (or so it seems). The fragile young scion of a distinguished family resists betrothal to a worthy suitor, drawn to a charming music teacher of no means. In a 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS epidemic, a young Hawaiian man lives with his much older, wealthier partner, hiding his troubled childhood and the fate of his father. And in 2093, in a world riven by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule, a powerful scientist's damaged granddaughter tries to navigate life without him - and solve the mystery of her husband's disappearances.

These three sections are joined in an enthralling and ingenious symphony, as recurring notes and themes deepen and enrich one another: A townhouse in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village; illness, and treatments that come at a terrible cost; wealth and squalor; the weak and the strong; race; the definition of family, and of nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of the powerful, and of revolutionaries; the longing to find a place in an earthly paradise, and the gradual realization that it can't exist. What unites not just the characters, but these Americas, are their reckonings with the qualities that make us human: Fear. Love. Shame. Need. Loneliness.

To Paradise is a fin-de-siecle novel of marvellous literary effect, but above all it is a work of emotional genius. The great power of this remarkable novel is driven by Yanagihara's understanding of the aching desire to protect those we love - partners, lovers, children, friends, family and even our fellow citizens - and the pain that ensues when we cannot.

Say hello to Sadie ... a superstar baker with a big heart!In this book, Sadie needs to- throw a surprise birthday for her mum. - help out at the Cookgrove fundraising day.- welcome someone new to her class.But Sadie's sweet intentions do not always go to plan! Her vanilla ice-cream cake for Mum is as flat as a pancake. Her cupcake stall has tough competition. And her welcome treat is not welcomed!Can Sadie find a way to save the day?In these three sprinkle-filled stories (complete with recipes!) the unstoppable Sadie shows that any problem can be solved with generosity, kindness and, of course, a delicious baked treat.