Mysterious Mole & Old Croc by Helen Milroy

Mysterious Mole & Old Croc is the fifth book in the captivating Tales from the Bush Mob series. Written and illustrated by well-known First Nations creative Helen Milroy, this series provides all readers with a story that shares lessons about life. There is a valuable introduction to the series in the beginning of the book as well as illustrations of the birds and animals that feature throughout the story.

In this new narrative, the story is set out in five sections: Mysterious Mole, Old Croc, Down Came the Rain, A Cunning Plan and Platypus to the Rescue. Molly the Mole is blind and should live quietly underground but sadly she has become allergic to dust and now has to spend more time above ground. Old Croc is so old all he wants is peace and quiet. He is afraid of the dark and caves and spends nighttime either in the water or on the banks gazing up at the stars. As drought worsens his billabong is taken over by other animals and he is not happy. Finally, the drought breaks and the rains come. Molly is trapped in the flood and is rescued by Old Croc. They form an unlikely but important friendship and cleverly concoct a plan to create their own billabong away from the other animals. This causes a long term problem and all of the animals have to work together to find a solution. The Epilogue provides a summary of lessons learned by all of the animals.

The engaging and glossy full-page illustrations are delightful and add depth and visual interest to the story. The endpapers give a birds-eye view of where each of the bush mob live. A wonderful read-aloud story to share with Early Childhood and lower primary students. 

Themes: First Nation’s Stories, Australian Animals, Danger, Collaboration, Problem Solving, Friendship.

Kathryn Beilby