Baabinje's backyard by Ella Noah Bancroft and Bronwyn Bancroft

A beautifully crafted book about a beloved grandmother and her love of her garden encompassing her family and her country, a love passed on from one generation to the next.

The child loves to be in the garden with her baabinje. Here her grandmother shows how she is connected to the land, firmly planting her feet in the soil. Her overalls are colourful, full of pockets containing all she needs when she is in the garden. She shows the little girl the bundjalan which come to the garden because of the flowers she plants, and the things she grows there, while even some weeds can be useful. There is much that they need grown in the garden, so they have little need to visit the supermarket. Some of these are good to eat, but some contain medicines and can help with aches and pains.

Gran tells her how important the soil is, needing to be healthy and full of bugs, she sings the songs of the older generations, ones taught to her, passing on the importance of the soil.

‘Care for the earth and it will care for you’ is whispered in the girl’s ear, reminding her of the responsibility in caring for the garden and by inference the whole of the land on which we live.

Grandmother does not waste anything, all is recycled, and reused. She loves having friends visit. When they talk together, they help with the gardening, planting and weeding. Her garden reflects diversity, with a range of plants, lots of animals and insects visiting and people who drop by.

This wonderful overview of the ties we have to the land and our responsibility in keeping it healthy, will have resonance with all readers, following the way the young girl learns of her place in the land she lives on.

Beautiful illustrations fill each page, drawing the eyes to the richness of the environment, and representing some of the things which the woman cultivates. Children will love the movement and colour presented for their delight, and eagerly follow the journey taken by the girl as her Gran reinforces her love of the land.

Themes: Aboriginal themes, Gardens, Responsibility, Grandmothers, Teaching.

Fran Knight