Black Cockatoo & Dirrarn cover art

Black Cockatoo & Dirrarn

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Black Cockatoo & Dirrarn

By: Carl Merrison, Hakea Hustler
Narrated by: Haylee Rivers
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About this listen

Black Cockatoo

Black Cockatoo is a vignette that follows Mia, a young Aboriginal girl, as she explores the fragile connections of family and culture. Mia is a 13-year-old girl from a remote community in the Kimberley. She is saddened by the loss of her brother as he distances himself from the family. She feels powerless to change the things she sees around her … until one day she rescues her totem animal, the dirran black cockatoo, and soon discovers her own inner strength.

Dirrarn

We first met Mia in Black Cockatoo, as she navigated her way through culture, Country and familial ties. Dirrarn follows Mia as she finds herself at boarding school and the challenges of living thousands of kilometres away from home, family and the big sky country she loves. Mia along with her best friend, Naya, negotiate new friends, new ways of thinking and new ways of being in a different world. As Mia wrestles with all that is unfamiliar, she soon must learn to stand in her truth when confronted with unending challenges.

2019, Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book of the Year Younger Readers, Nominated

2019, Australian Book Industry Award Book of the Year for Younger Children, Short-listed

2019, Speech Pathology Australia, Winner

2019, Queensland Literary Awards, Winner

2024, Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book of the Year Younger Readers, Nominated

©2023 Carl Merrison and Hakea Hustler (P)2024 Bolinda Publishing
Growing Up & Facts of Life Literature & Fiction Multicultural Stories

Critic Reviews

'This is a highly original and gentle small tale set in the Kimberley about the power of standing up for yourself, your culture and ever-present family ties.' (Halls Creek Herald)

'Subtle and touching, Black Cockatoo reaches into the heart and will speak to anyone’s need to find their place in this world and the freedom to do so.' (Writing WA)

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Great Australian Story

Two heartfelt stories that follow a girl from WA as she finds her own path.

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.