The heartbeat of the land by Cathy Freeman with Coral Vass & Tannya Harricks

Cathy Freeman runs towards us on the front cover, exciting readers as they put the name to the face, making them recall the footage they have seen: Cathy in her white suit winning at the Sydney Olympic Games.

Running is what she does within the covers of this book, running across the land of her ancestors, listening to its heartbeat. But the land is in dire straits. The mountains wail, the skies groan, the rocks cry out, each demanding her attention with their tears. They point out the dying trees, the dry riverbeds, the warming seas. The land is sick they tell her. So she collects seeds and runs from north to south and east to west spreading the seeds everywhere she can. She encourages others to do this as well. First they ignore her, then walk by distracted by other things, but eventually join in her scheme, spreading seeds as well. Soon the land is regenerated and the mountains, seas and rocks beam with delight, booming out their familiar heartbeat which helps Cathy run.

Within the text are words from the Kuku Yalanji language, that of the Aboriginal community from Far North Queensland where Cathy was born. Children will love predicting what the words mean using clues on each page, and their deliberations will be supported by the glossary at the end of the book.
 

The seeds of change are replicated in the wonderful endpapers, the opening pair showing a range of seeds which will intrigue the readers, and the last endpapers showing a diverse range of Australian flora just waiting to be identified. Between the covers, the illustrations by Harricks describe many parts of Australia, from mountains and rives, to wide open skies, coastal regions, and towns and cuties. Astute eyes will spot the degradation that is happening to the land and some of the causes. The overwhelming optimism of the book is reflected in the pictures at the end where Cathy’s work is bearing fruit. More about the illustrator Tanya Harricks can be found here. 

Larrikin House promotes the love of reading and to this end is publishing a range of books and hosts book fairs. More can be found about this business here.