AustLit

'An accessible picture book for young children that introduces First Nations history and the term 'terra nullius' to a general audience, from Australian of the Year, community leader and anti-racism advocate Adam Goodes and political adviser and former journalist Ellie Laing, with artwork by Barkindji illustrator David Hardy.

'For thousands and thousands of years,
Aboriginal people lived in the land we call Australia.

The land was where people
built their homes,
played in the sun,
and sat together to tell stories.

When the white people came,
they called the land
Terra Nullius.
They said it was nobody's land.
But it was somebody's land.

'Somebody's Land is an invitation to connect with First Nations culture, to acknowledge the hurt of the past, and to join together as one community with a precious shared history as old as time.

'Adam Goodes and Ellie Laing's powerful words and David Hardy's pictures, full of life, invite children and their families to imagine themselves into Australia's past - to feel the richness of our First Nations' history, to acknowledge that our country was never terra nullius, and to understand what 'welcome to our country' really means.'(Publication summary)

'More than 50 older LGBTI people share their stories and images - of first love and family, of struggle and defiance and resistance and pride. They include prominent Australian activists including Bob Brown, Sally Goldner and the Hon. Michael Kirby. Many of the stories are by ordinary and extraordinary people who may be Indigenous, born overseas, or live in cities or small towns across Australia, New Zealand, UK, US and Ireland. ?David Hardy? presents diverse stories to unsilence lives and put them in print. They add to the history of the LGBTI movement by adding in the power of the personal; life stories that make their mark. 'I hope this book helps people understand who LGBTI people are and who we are not, ' says David. 'We are not invisible. This collection of stories celebrates the myriad ways we identify as LGBTI people. I hope these stories will stir and agitate, comfort and caress, and make you mad and cry and laugh out loud.'' (Publication summary)

'Through a collection of publishable and performable works of fiction, I consider issues and questions around the journeys of people who, as adults, discover their Indigenous heritage. My writing explores questions around shame and silence that, at times, criss-crosses the experience of those taking a journey through Indigenous and gay self.' (Source: Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education website)