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Stories from the Billabong
In Stories from the Billabong, a renowned author authentically and elegantly retells ten of Australia's ancient aboriginal legends. Here readers discover how Great Mother Snake created and peopled the world with plants and creatures, what makes frogs croak, why kangaroos have pouches, and just what it is that makes platypuses so special. The illustrations are by the aboriginal artist and storyteller Francis Firebrace, whose distinctive, colorful work is known throughout Australia and beyond. He uses the four traditional colors of aboriginal art (black, white, red, and yellow), as well as his experiences as a member of the Yorta-Yorta, to make these stories live on the page. A beautiful, imaginative book to open new frontiers in children’s minds, Stories from the Billabong shows a master storyteller and distinguished artist each at the height of their powers.
64 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2008
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95 people want to read
About the author
James Vance Marshall
37 books12 followersPseudonym of Donald Gordon Payne.
Donald Gordon Payne was an English author of adventure novels and travel books.
Donald Gordon Payne was born in Denmark Hill in South East London in January 1924. His father, Francis, was a New Zealander, who served in the First World War with the ANZACS. His mother was Evelyn Rodgers, a nurse during the Great War.
He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School and then at Charterhouse School. As a child he travelled with his parents to New Zealand and parts of the East coast of Australia – an experience which left him with a lifelong affection for these countries.
Deferring his place at Corpus Christi College Oxford, he enlisted in the Fleet Air Arm in 1943. After training at Sealand, near Liverpool, and at Kingston, Ontario, Canada he was awarded his wings and joined Swordfish Squadron 811 and later 835. He took part in Atlantic and Russian convoys in 1944 and 1945 as a Swordfish pilot, mainly on anti-submarine duties.
After the war he studied at Oxford and became an editor and ghost writer for the London based publishing firm of Christopher Johnson. From there he moved into a full-time career as a writer.
Using James Vance Marshall as a pseudonym, Payne wrote such books as A River Ran Out of Eden (1962) and White-Out (1999). His most famous book is probably Walkabout (1959), first published as The Children and later made into a movie starring Jenny Agutter.
Payne has also used Ian Cameron and Donald Gordon as pseudonyms. As Donald Gordon, he published, among others, Riders of the Storm (2002), an official history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. As Ian Cameron, he wrote The Lost Ones (1961), later dramatized by Disney as The Island at the Top of the World, as well as The Mountain at the Bottom of the World (1975) and The White Ship (1975).
He disliked publicity of any kind, preferring to stay out of the limelight. During his long and distinguished publishing career he made few author appearances, notably for the Royal Geographical Society, the Royal Lifeboat Institution and the Reader's Digest.
He lived in Surrey, England, and had four sons and one daughter. He passed away on 22 August, 2018 at the age of 94.
Donald Gordon Payne was an English author of adventure novels and travel books.
Donald Gordon Payne was born in Denmark Hill in South East London in January 1924. His father, Francis, was a New Zealander, who served in the First World War with the ANZACS. His mother was Evelyn Rodgers, a nurse during the Great War.
He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School and then at Charterhouse School. As a child he travelled with his parents to New Zealand and parts of the East coast of Australia – an experience which left him with a lifelong affection for these countries.
Deferring his place at Corpus Christi College Oxford, he enlisted in the Fleet Air Arm in 1943. After training at Sealand, near Liverpool, and at Kingston, Ontario, Canada he was awarded his wings and joined Swordfish Squadron 811 and later 835. He took part in Atlantic and Russian convoys in 1944 and 1945 as a Swordfish pilot, mainly on anti-submarine duties.
After the war he studied at Oxford and became an editor and ghost writer for the London based publishing firm of Christopher Johnson. From there he moved into a full-time career as a writer.
Using James Vance Marshall as a pseudonym, Payne wrote such books as A River Ran Out of Eden (1962) and White-Out (1999). His most famous book is probably Walkabout (1959), first published as The Children and later made into a movie starring Jenny Agutter.
Payne has also used Ian Cameron and Donald Gordon as pseudonyms. As Donald Gordon, he published, among others, Riders of the Storm (2002), an official history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. As Ian Cameron, he wrote The Lost Ones (1961), later dramatized by Disney as The Island at the Top of the World, as well as The Mountain at the Bottom of the World (1975) and The White Ship (1975).
He disliked publicity of any kind, preferring to stay out of the limelight. During his long and distinguished publishing career he made few author appearances, notably for the Royal Geographical Society, the Royal Lifeboat Institution and the Reader's Digest.
He lived in Surrey, England, and had four sons and one daughter. He passed away on 22 August, 2018 at the age of 94.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
October 14, 2022
Stories from the Billabong is an oversize paperback, containing ten traditional Aboriginal tales.
"These are some of the oldest stories in the world. Tens of thousands of years before Tutankhamen was buried in his *pyramid, these stories of the Dreamtime were being told beside the campfires and waterholes of the Aboriginal desert. They were told by word of mouth, because the Aboriginal people of Australia have no written language."
The tales have been collected together and given to the Australian author James Vance Marshall to be retold. Perhaps James Vance Marshall's best known novel is "Walkabout", the story of two children lost in the Australian outback, from which the film was made. The author has retold these tales very charmingly, in a timeless way which captures both the traditional and the narrative feel. At the end of each tale is an informative short piece about the creature described, such as the reader may find in an encyclopaedia.
Equally important in this project are the illustrations, interwoven into the text. They are by the Aboriginal artist, Francis Firebrace and lift this book above most picture books for children. Francis Firebrace comes from the Aboriginal tribe Yorta-Yorta, and has been both telling and illustrating stories of the Dreamtime for many years. In this book, his acrylic paintings use the four traditional Aboriginal colours of black, white, red and yellow. There are immensely attractive, patterned and stylised designs, with instantly recognisable motifs, appealing to adults and children alike. At the end of the book there is a helpful double-page spread, illustrating the symbols used, and their meanings. There is also a glossary of terms, and a short history of the Aboriginal people.
The stories themselves are captivating, revealing a deep wisdom and strong moral code. I would recommend this book to anyone either unfamiliar with Aboriginal traditions, or with Australian flora and fauna.
"As it was in the Dreamtime, so it is today - and perhaps will be for ever."
Here is a complete list of the stories in the book:
"The Rainbow Serpent and the Story of Creation"
"How the Kangaroo got her Pouch"
"Why Frogs can only Croak"
"Why Brolgas Dance"
"Why the Platypus is such a Special Creature"
"The Mountain Rose"
"The Two Moths and the Flowers of the Mountain"
"How the Crocodile got its Scales"
"The Lizard-Man and the Creation of Uluru"
"The Butterflies and the Mystery of Death"
*note: Tutankhamun was never in fact, buried in this way, but in a tomb. This is perhaps a perfect example of how the oral tradition can lead to fanciful imaginings.
"These are some of the oldest stories in the world. Tens of thousands of years before Tutankhamen was buried in his *pyramid, these stories of the Dreamtime were being told beside the campfires and waterholes of the Aboriginal desert. They were told by word of mouth, because the Aboriginal people of Australia have no written language."
The tales have been collected together and given to the Australian author James Vance Marshall to be retold. Perhaps James Vance Marshall's best known novel is "Walkabout", the story of two children lost in the Australian outback, from which the film was made. The author has retold these tales very charmingly, in a timeless way which captures both the traditional and the narrative feel. At the end of each tale is an informative short piece about the creature described, such as the reader may find in an encyclopaedia.
Equally important in this project are the illustrations, interwoven into the text. They are by the Aboriginal artist, Francis Firebrace and lift this book above most picture books for children. Francis Firebrace comes from the Aboriginal tribe Yorta-Yorta, and has been both telling and illustrating stories of the Dreamtime for many years. In this book, his acrylic paintings use the four traditional Aboriginal colours of black, white, red and yellow. There are immensely attractive, patterned and stylised designs, with instantly recognisable motifs, appealing to adults and children alike. At the end of the book there is a helpful double-page spread, illustrating the symbols used, and their meanings. There is also a glossary of terms, and a short history of the Aboriginal people.
The stories themselves are captivating, revealing a deep wisdom and strong moral code. I would recommend this book to anyone either unfamiliar with Aboriginal traditions, or with Australian flora and fauna.
"As it was in the Dreamtime, so it is today - and perhaps will be for ever."
Here is a complete list of the stories in the book:
"The Rainbow Serpent and the Story of Creation"
"How the Kangaroo got her Pouch"
"Why Frogs can only Croak"
"Why Brolgas Dance"
"Why the Platypus is such a Special Creature"
"The Mountain Rose"
"The Two Moths and the Flowers of the Mountain"
"How the Crocodile got its Scales"
"The Lizard-Man and the Creation of Uluru"
"The Butterflies and the Mystery of Death"
*note: Tutankhamun was never in fact, buried in this way, but in a tomb. This is perhaps a perfect example of how the oral tradition can lead to fanciful imaginings.
November 5, 2025
Stories from the Billabong was such a fun read!
All the stories were so interesting, some sad, and some happy.
And the illustrations are beautiful!🤩
Definitely 5 stars!⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
All the stories were so interesting, some sad, and some happy.
And the illustrations are beautiful!🤩
Definitely 5 stars!⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
January 21, 2024
These are some of the oldest stories in the world. Tens of thousands of years before Tutankhamen was buried in his pyramid, these stories of the Dreamtime were being told beside the campfires and waterholes of the Australian desert. They were told by word of mouth, because the Aboriginal people of Australia have no written language. However, a few years ago a group of Aboriginal storytellers collected the myths and legends of their people and had them 'translated' into the written word.
Another recent charity shop find which we couldn't resist as we have family and friends in Australia. The more we learn about the Aboriginal culture and history, the more we are stunned by how rich and varied it is.
This is a wonderful collection of folklore and mythology. It covers the creation of the world, the origins of Uluru, how many of the distinct creatures came about, and much much more.
I really enjoyed reading this and liked the added touches which gave context and background to the stories. 5 stars.
Another recent charity shop find which we couldn't resist as we have family and friends in Australia. The more we learn about the Aboriginal culture and history, the more we are stunned by how rich and varied it is.
This is a wonderful collection of folklore and mythology. It covers the creation of the world, the origins of Uluru, how many of the distinct creatures came about, and much much more.
I really enjoyed reading this and liked the added touches which gave context and background to the stories. 5 stars.
April 15, 2020
My Folklore WOW book that I chose was “Stories from the Billabong” by James Vance Marshall (Illustrations by Francis Firebrace). This book contains 10 of Australia's ancient aboriginal legends about how certain animals became the way that they are. For example, one of the stories is about how the kangaroo got its pouch, another is about why frogs croak, and another is about how crocodiles got their scales.
I think that this book could work for 3rd grade to 5th grade because while it’s a picture book, there are lots of connections that can be made by upper-grade students to culture and information about animals. I would like to use this book for a combination of science and social studies instruction, because I think it would be really interesting to explore the folktales behind how animals became the way that they are in comparison to what we know from science about why animals are the way that they are. I think it would be interesting to research similar concepts across different cultures and see how there are similarities and differences in what explanations were created. I think it would also be interesting to see the inferential comprehension strategies that my students could use after reading this book or hearing it as a read-aloud to detect the significance of these tales, rather than just the literal comprehension of the “characters” and events. I think it would spark a lot of questions from students and maybe even create some investigable questions that we could explore in science experiments.
This book was a WOW book for me because the explanations for how the kangaroo got its pouch, why frogs croak, and how crocodiles got their scales are things that I had never heard of before and I thought it was very interesting. I’ve always found it exciting to learn about how different cultures come up with different explanations for things, and it made me want to research how this culture’s interpretations of animals compares to other cultures’ interpretations of animals. I also really liked the illustrations in the book and how the illustrator specifically used four main colors that were traditional colors of aboriginal art.
I think that this book could work for 3rd grade to 5th grade because while it’s a picture book, there are lots of connections that can be made by upper-grade students to culture and information about animals. I would like to use this book for a combination of science and social studies instruction, because I think it would be really interesting to explore the folktales behind how animals became the way that they are in comparison to what we know from science about why animals are the way that they are. I think it would be interesting to research similar concepts across different cultures and see how there are similarities and differences in what explanations were created. I think it would also be interesting to see the inferential comprehension strategies that my students could use after reading this book or hearing it as a read-aloud to detect the significance of these tales, rather than just the literal comprehension of the “characters” and events. I think it would spark a lot of questions from students and maybe even create some investigable questions that we could explore in science experiments.
This book was a WOW book for me because the explanations for how the kangaroo got its pouch, why frogs croak, and how crocodiles got their scales are things that I had never heard of before and I thought it was very interesting. I’ve always found it exciting to learn about how different cultures come up with different explanations for things, and it made me want to research how this culture’s interpretations of animals compares to other cultures’ interpretations of animals. I also really liked the illustrations in the book and how the illustrator specifically used four main colors that were traditional colors of aboriginal art.
July 24, 2017
Stories from the Billabong is a picture book format re-telling of ten Australian aboriginal folk tales, each illustrated with colorful acrylic paintings in the style of traditional aboriginal designs and figures (both animal and human). Principal characters in the stories include: the Rainbow Serpent; the Kangaroo; the Spirit of the Creator (disguised as a Wombat); Lybrebird; Little Green Frog; Brogla, a young girl; Broolie-Broolie, an evil magician; Platypus; Krubi, and young girl, and the warrior Bami, her betrothed; Bogong, the man-moth, and his wife, Myee; Pukawah, a Gunivugi tribesman; Alinga, the lizard-man; Gingee the cockatoo; Mullian the eagle hawk; the Great Spirit; and the Spirit of Death. Each tale includes a one-page postscript providing scientific, cultural, and/or geographical context related to the subsequent story, and the book also includes a glossary of terms and aboriginal symbols along with additional information about aboriginal Australians.
November 27, 2017
I really enjoyed reading Stories From the Billabong retold by James Vance Marshall and illustrated by Francis Firebrace. This is a wonderful cultural book about stories passed down from the Australian Aboriginals. Each story is about an animal and why or how it does the thing it is known to do. For example, it tells a story of how the kangaroos got their pouch, why frogs can only croak, how the crocodile got its scales and more. Each story is a true story that has been told to generation after generation, as aboriginals do not have a written language. I would highly recommend this wonderful cultural book.
November 26, 2018
Stories from the Billla bong is an amazing book that tells the myths and legends of the aboriginal Australians. The artwork, Glossary, and symbol page a few things that I feel help this book create all the right things for an amazing culturally responsive book. Most of the Myths in this book are stories that I have never heard before reading, but now that I have, I will never forget the background they came from. This is a great book to get younger kids interested in reading multicultural literature because it is very picture heavy, and tells about fiction stories but still teaches about what the Aboriginals believed, and how they applied the lessons of each story to their lives.
April 7, 2019
The children's book, "Stories from the Billabong" by James Vance Marshall is a uniquely illustrated and intriguing book that explores folklore from another culture. The vibrant red, orange, and black illustrations give this book a unique appearance and makes it very eye-catching for young children. The stories are wonderfully designed to help give children a differing perspective on the creation of the world and another culture's views on creation. This book also introduces children to creatures that they may be unfamiliar and provides a story to better understand certain qualities or attributes of that particular animal.
February 18, 2020
4.0 out of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this tale of 10 Aboriginal Australian tales. It explained why and how they believe different animals came to be. Very interesting stories and art style
Stories from the Billabong tells stories of how different creatures and places come to be through descriptive stories, colorful illustrations, and also gives background information to help answer any further questions readers may have after reading. From learning about why kangaroos have pouches to hearing the tale of how crocodiles got it scales, this book is filled with the tales of the Aboriginal people of Australia’s lore, while utilizing the earth tones and symbols that are important to them. Through the short stories, there are also a lot of descriptive imagery in exchange for pictures and would be a great start to bridge a child from picture books to chapter books.
Because of the length of the stories, I would say that these stories are aimed at older elementary students. They would also have the comprehension skills to take in the stories as well as ask some good questions to follow along with the story. If you are wanting to read this to a younger child, perhaps take it one story at a time with breaks in between so that they have time to think and ponder over what happened in the previous story. Also, as there are few pictures in this book, younger readers may not have the attention span for this book.
I really enjoyed this tale of 10 Aboriginal Australian tales. It explained why and how they believe different animals came to be. Very interesting stories and art style
Stories from the Billabong tells stories of how different creatures and places come to be through descriptive stories, colorful illustrations, and also gives background information to help answer any further questions readers may have after reading. From learning about why kangaroos have pouches to hearing the tale of how crocodiles got it scales, this book is filled with the tales of the Aboriginal people of Australia’s lore, while utilizing the earth tones and symbols that are important to them. Through the short stories, there are also a lot of descriptive imagery in exchange for pictures and would be a great start to bridge a child from picture books to chapter books.
Because of the length of the stories, I would say that these stories are aimed at older elementary students. They would also have the comprehension skills to take in the stories as well as ask some good questions to follow along with the story. If you are wanting to read this to a younger child, perhaps take it one story at a time with breaks in between so that they have time to think and ponder over what happened in the previous story. Also, as there are few pictures in this book, younger readers may not have the attention span for this book.
July 16, 2021
This picture book is comprised of 10 aboriginal legends. After each legend is a short blurb about the real life animal or natural phenomena. I enjoyed the comparison of the legends and the how it plays out in real life. The 6th graders I read this with did not quite understand that these legends were based on real life animals howevver. Being unfamiliar with Australian wildlife, they thought that some of the animals were made up. We also had conversations about different art styles and how different cultures developed different art.
April 12, 2023
I think in terms of a book this is fine, and it tells its story in a very good manner. I think in terms of a children's book it is lackluster. Other children's books tell less complex stories but make up for it being fun or having a message hidden inside of it. This story does not do either of those as it is a relatively boring story, that does not necessarily grasp the eye of the reader. Other children's books have explosive illustrations that children will love, while this book is lacking in the illustration department as well.
February 18, 2020
This was an enjoyable book to read. I really liked how it was a collection of popular folk tales from another country to get familiar with other traditions. Australia stood out to me when reading this book. I think children should enjoy this because of all the stories revolve around animals and lessons. Overall, I think that this a good book and it would be a good book to use for class discussion.
April 5, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. I liked how it was a collection of popular folk tales from Australia that have stood the test of time. I think children will especially enjoy this because all of the stories revolve around animals and lessons. Overall, I think that this is a great book and that it would be a good book to use in the classroom for discussion.
October 10, 2024
This is 10 stories about ten traditional Aboriginal tales. There are stories such as "how the kangaroo got its pouch" and "why frogs croak". it's a fun book to tell stories from Australia's Folk Lore along the Billabong. as previously stated, its 10 very different stories, there is a lot of bright colorful images but just be sure that the reader knows that the storied do not coincide.
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November 2, 2021This book is perfect for children of all ages that enjoy fables. It is an Aesop prize novel. Although there are very few pictures the messages are intricate enough for the reader to form images in their mind.
December 13, 2017
Good smattering of Australian stories and folktales.
December 14, 2023
The book “Stories from billabong” by James Vance Marshall was a very creative and intricate children's book that retells some old Australian tales. The stories range from Australian wildlife to most of the nature in the country. The Illustrations are very different compared to other children's books. They give sort of an old feeling to them which could be a confusing for children when reading this.
March 20, 2019
Read after A Final Reckoning (Henty), during study of Victorian Era colonies & emigration. Very well-told, easy to narrate, honors the Aboriginal people & shows beautiful artwork in the symbolic style. 🦋🐊🦂🦇🌊🇦🇺
December 3, 2012
Stories from the Billabong is a collection of ten different stories from Australia's Aboriginal tribes. The stories that are included are “The Rainbow Serpent and the Story of Creation, How the Kangaroo got her pouch, Why Frogs can only Croak, Why Brolgas Dance, Why the Platypous is such a Special Creature, The Mountain Rose, The Two Moths and the Flowers of the Mountain, How the Crocodile got its Scales, the Lizard-Man and the Creation of Uluru, and The Butterflies and the Mystery of Death”. Each one of these stories describes the tribes cultures and beliefs. What makes this story great is that the illustrator comes from a aboriginal tribe so he was familiar with the stories and drawing that relate to their culture. In the book jacket he said “he wants to spread these stories in order to create a better understanding of his people and culture”(Vance Marshall, 2008). There are many aspects of this book that make it a great book to use during a time you start lesson on multiculturalism. What I loved about the book is that each story gave in insight into the tribe. In the back of the book it has a insert about the Aboriginal Australians, a glossary of terms used in the story, and there symbols with their meanings.
May 8, 2016
This book asserts (more than once) that Aboriginal culture is "by far the oldest continuing culture on earth," and that these stories themselves are tens of thousands of years old, a difficult claim to prove, or even support; equating technological level with culture is more of a nineteenth-century fallacy than a modern one, and even consistency of, say, artwork, hardly demonstrates that the art meant anything close to the same thing to the different people producing it over time. And how do you prove the antiquity of oral tradition? There have been various attempts, but they all rely on a comparative method that would be difficult to apply in Australia.
So these claims sound to me like a fantasy, but, hey, what do I know? Something's gotta be oldest, right?
Except one of these stories is so clearly not tens of thousands of years old -- it could scarcely have been written before the mid-sixties, and probably not before the mid-eighties, with its cloying emphasis on tolerance and self-esteem.
The books has other flaws (and even other strengths, such as the art), but this is the fatal one. If you're going to make exaggerated claims about the antiquity of some stories, you should try harder not to include an obvious modern fake.
So these claims sound to me like a fantasy, but, hey, what do I know? Something's gotta be oldest, right?
Except one of these stories is so clearly not tens of thousands of years old -- it could scarcely have been written before the mid-sixties, and probably not before the mid-eighties, with its cloying emphasis on tolerance and self-esteem.
The books has other flaws (and even other strengths, such as the art), but this is the fatal one. If you're going to make exaggerated claims about the antiquity of some stories, you should try harder not to include an obvious modern fake.
December 1, 2013
This is an incredible book. Each story is presented exactly as I would expect from a tribal view (not that I have personal tribal experience), and it is followed with current facts. The follow-up facts don’t automatically discount the stories. They simply state whether the species is extinct, endangered, protected, or other, as well as some facts about its life. Not only is it a multicultural book, but a factual and informational book too. The pictures are presented so beautifully that no more is needed to see the stories unfold in the reader’s mind.
On another note, I don’t think I would put this in an elementary classroom lightly. It could raise religious questions that are not a teacher’s place to discuss with a student. The stories are about how things came to be. If one student believes differently than the book, he or she could either become confused, or irritated that such a book exists. It is hard to understand how a child will react to a book unless you know them intimately. It might be able to be a class-read book though. Something everyone could discuss – perhaps about Aboriginals, or Australia.
On another note, I don’t think I would put this in an elementary classroom lightly. It could raise religious questions that are not a teacher’s place to discuss with a student. The stories are about how things came to be. If one student believes differently than the book, he or she could either become confused, or irritated that such a book exists. It is hard to understand how a child will react to a book unless you know them intimately. It might be able to be a class-read book though. Something everyone could discuss – perhaps about Aboriginals, or Australia.
April 24, 2014
This book is a collection of myths and legends put into many different stories. These myths and legends are inspired by the dreaming of the Yorta Yorta people whose traditional lands occupy the north-eastern part of the present day Australian state of Victoria. The stories or tales range in topics from the Rainbow Serpent and the Story of Creation, to The Lizard-Man and the Creation of Uluru, and The Butterflies and the Mystery of Death. The tales are not only about the people of the Yorta Yorta, but are also educational with regard to animals. For example there is a tale in the book regarding how the Kangaroo got their pouch. The illustrations for each tale are beautiful to look at and traditional symbols are woven throughout each page. There are also explanation sections, in which the various animals, moths, rocks and flowers are set in their contemporary context. I thought this book was different, but interesting enough for kids to enjoy on a personal level. I myself would not recommend this book because I don't like myths or legends, but kids might enjoy them so they could be useful in a classroom.
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April 27, 2016Stories from the Billabong written by James Vance Marshall and Illustrated by Francis Fireball explore the theme of cultural diversity by telling the story of ten Australia ancient aboriginal legends. The ten stories include the Australian Aborigines people perspective on how culture is intertwined with how certain aspects of life formed. The tales are not only for entertainment and to tell an interesting story, however the tails reflect the people of the Yorta Yorta, whose traditional lands occupy the north eastern part of present day Austrialam state of Victoriea. The collection of tails range in variety from simple to more complex meaning explain various natural phenomena. Legends range from curiosities of how frogs croak, the Great Mother Snake’s creations of the world, kangaroo’s uniqueness and reasons why the platypus is wise and must never be hunted. This book allows young readers to understand diversity of cultural beliefs. I liked how the book was appealing to kids through interesting stories, however is also helpful for teachers to use in classrooms on a lesson of myths and legends.
April 29, 2014
Stories from the Billabong is also a Notable Book for a Global Society award winner. It is a fun and informative book about Australian culture. The book is told through ten different wise tales of the old Australian culture. It brings the stories to life through imaginative words and true stories that tell how the world was brought about. All the stories in the book are authentic and are written from experience that the author spent with one of Australias tribes. Not only were the stories amazing but the illustrations were unique and authentic to the culture, they used the four primary colors of the ancient culture. I thought that the time and accuracy that went into to creating this book of stories was incredible and definitely added to how I felt about the book. This isn't however something I would put in my classroom as curriculum, but I might read one or two of the stories just to broaden students minds about different cultures. This is a great book to start introducing other cultures and our appreciation for them.
April 29, 2015
Stories from the Billabong by James Vance Marshall won the Global Society Award. Stories from the Billabong is a compilation of ten different Australian ancient legends. The illustrations in this book are by the aboriginal artist Francis Firebrace whose artwork is well known throughout Australia. By using the four traditional colors throughout the pages Firebrace really makes the legends play out in the reader’s mind This book meets the generally-accepted criteria of quality for the genre of folklore and story telling. The style is most definitely unique with the aboriginal art throughout. The book also has an appealing format and the legends seem very real. The book invites reflection upon what it was like to live during the time of the aboriginal artwork and makes the reader wonder where the legends came from to begin with.
The book would be fun to show in class.
December 9, 2014
Stories from the Billabong is a collection of stories of myths and legends created by the Yorta Yorts people from eastern Australia. There are many interesting tales, such as The Lizard-Man, The Mystery of Death, and the Story of Creation. Sections of the book are set to explain certain things such as animals, flowers, and rocks, and include different aboriginal symbols that are on the pages and explained in the glossary in the back of the book.
An activity that students can do in classrooms could be to research an ancient myth and write a paper on it.
Genre: Cultural
Format: Chapter Book
Reading Level: High
Theme/Topic: Culture, Myths
Gender: All
Race: All
Socioeconomic Status: All
Marshall, J. V., & Jones, F. F. (2008). Stories from the billabong. London, England: Frances Lincoln Children's Books.
An activity that students can do in classrooms could be to research an ancient myth and write a paper on it.
Genre: Cultural
Format: Chapter Book
Reading Level: High
Theme/Topic: Culture, Myths
Gender: All
Race: All
Socioeconomic Status: All
Marshall, J. V., & Jones, F. F. (2008). Stories from the billabong. London, England: Frances Lincoln Children's Books.
December 4, 2012
Stories from the Billabong is an interesting book about the beginnings and whys of Aboriginal Australia. A collection of folktales, we learn "Why the Frog Croaks" and "How the Earth Was Made" by mother snake. There is plenty of text but it is accompanied by bright and vivid illustrations. At the end of the book there is a list of common aboriginal tribe words as well as their symbols which I found quite interesting.
This book would be great to use as a middle school lesson of comparing creation and "why" stories from an assortment of different cultures. This book was a fairly easy read and as it only contained ten stories, was easy to turn through in one sitting. Stories from the Billabong combined traditional Australian animals with a fun text to create this great collection.
This book would be great to use as a middle school lesson of comparing creation and "why" stories from an assortment of different cultures. This book was a fairly easy read and as it only contained ten stories, was easy to turn through in one sitting. Stories from the Billabong combined traditional Australian animals with a fun text to create this great collection.
April 21, 2014
Stories from the billabong is a collection of aborigine legends for how things came about in the world. One of the stories tells how the kangaroo gots its pouch, another is about why the frog croaks. All the stories have supernatural things that happen in them. Like how the great snake came out of the earth, made the skies rain for years, and just by the tracks of her path and the dip of her nose she created the rivers and mountains. Or the lizard man created the greatest boomerang but lost it when he threw it so he went in search of it but it had become buried and is now the great red mountain where lizard descendants of the lizard man live. This book not only tells the aborigine legends but also give descriptions of the real things along with native aborigine drawings.
February 5, 2014
I had to read this for a children's lit class and found the ten short stories from Aboriginal culture very enjoyable. The more memorable ones included: Kangaroo getting her pouch, what makes the Platypus special, why the crocodile is now man's most feared enemy and a Paul Bunyan tall tale of a story explaining how many of Australia's most popular landmarks were formed. These stories, told orally and passed down through many generations have been collected and written down to be shared with the world and what a marvelous gift they are. Read this book and share it with kids both young and old. You'll come away feeling like you've just taken a delightful trip to the Australian outback.
December 4, 2012
Stories from the Billabong is a book filled with ancient legends from the Aboriginal Australians, the Yorta-Yorta. These legends consist of: how the crocodile got his scales, how the kangaroo got her pouch, why Borglas dance, just to name a few. This book is rich in culture and is recognized as a Notable Book for Global Society. I really enjoyed this book because it talks about things we all know or think about but from a spiritual and cultural perspective and interests readers in other view points.
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