NB Indigenous Literature Week was renamed as
First Nations Reading Week in June 2022.
Indigenous Literature Week at ANZLitLovers begins tomorrow to coincide with NAIDOC Week here in Australia. (8 to 15 July).
NAIDOC Week is when Australians celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and this year the NAIDOC Week theme is Because of her, we can, celebrating the invaluable contributions that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women have made – and continue to make – to our communities, our families, our rich history and to our nation.
Indigenous women have been prominent in the development of Indigenous writing as a distinctive genre. Through their words and storytelling, they have given voice to Indigenous history, culture, lives and ambitions, leading readers on a journey of learning and understanding. Although I had read and been shocked by Sally Morgan’s My Place back in 1988, and I had read some memoirs since then, I did not I read my first novel by an Indigenous author until 2005: it was Butterfly Song by Terri Janke, and it made me realise that for Indigenous women, there are all sorts of extra barriers and cultural expectations that surround empowering experiences like graduating from university. It made me realise that Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal Australian are distinct and by implication, that there were other distinctive Indigenous cultures for me to discover. And it also made me realise that although I had been reading voraciously since childhood, in over forty years in this country, I had never before read any First Nations fiction. Because of Terri Janke, I can…
If you’ve never read a book by an Indigenous Australian woman author, find out more about 2018 Indigenous Literature Week here, and begin your journey with one of these books.
Please feel free to recommend others not included here!
Larissa Behrendt of the Eualeyai/Kamilaroi people
- Home winner of the 2002 David Unaipon Award and the Commonwealth Writers Prize, South East Asia and South Pacific Region, Best First Book, 2005, see my review
- Legacy Winner of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award Prize for Indigenous Writing, 2010 (see my ANZ LitLovers review)
- Finding Eliza, Power and Colonial Storytelling, see
- ‘Under skin, in blood’ (short story), see Sue’s review at Whispering Gums
Ngarta Jinny Bent, with Jukuna Mona Chuguna of the the Walmajarri people
- Two Sisters
Hazel Brown, of the Noongar people of the southern coast of Western Australia
- Kayang and Me (with Kim Scott), see my review
Vivienne Cleven of the Kamilaroi people
- Bitin’ Back Shortlisted for the SA Premier’s Award, 2002, Winner of the David Unaipon Award, 2000
- Her Sister’s Eye Winner of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards, Prize for Indigenous Writing, 2004
Claire G Coleman who identifies with the South Coast Noongar people of Western Australia
- Terra Nullius, see my review
Dylan Coleman, member of the Kokatha Mula Nation
Editors Pat Dudgeon from the Bardi people of the Kimberley area in Western Australia, Jeannie Herbert, an Indigenous woman born and raised in the Kimberley area and Darlene Oxenham, a Malgana woman from Shark Bay on the coast of Western Australia
- Us Women, Our Ways, Our World an anthology of essays, see Weezelle’s review at Words and Leaves
Ali Cobby Eckermann who identifies with the Yankunytjatjara / Kokatha people from the north west desert country of South Australia
- Ruby Moonlight, see Sue’s review at Whispering Gums
- Too Afraid to Cry, see Sue’s review at Whispering Gums and Kim’s at Reading Matters
Lizzie Marrkilyi Ellis, of the Ngaatjatjarra, one of the language groups making up the Western Desert people of Central Australia
Pictures from my Memory: My story as a Ngaatjatjarra woman, see
Liz Hayden, an indigenous woman from Western Australia
- ‘Our Warrior, Our Brother’ in Review of Australian Fiction Vol 15 Issue 4, see Marilyn’s review at Me, You and Books
Anita Heiss member of the Wiradjuri nation of central New South Wales
- Am I Black Enough for You?
- I’m Not Racist, But…: A Collection of Social Observations (Salt Modern Poets S.)
- The Intervention, an Anthology (Edited, with Rosie Scott)
- Dhuuluu-Yala: To Talk Straight,
- see Bill’s review at The Australian Legend
- Barbed Wire and Cherry Blossoms, recommended by @khoulohan, see
- Lisa’s review at ANZ LitLovers
- Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia (Editor), see
- Lisa’s review at ANZ LitLovers
Rita Huggins, an elder and Jackie Huggins, of the Bidjara Central Queensland and Birri-Gubba Juru North Queensland peoples,
- Auntie Rita, see the review by Yvonne from Stumbling Through the Past
Terri Janke descendant of the Wuthathi/Yadaighana and Meriam people
- Butterfly Song (I enjoyed this when I read it before starting this blog)
Ruby Langford Ginibi
- Don’t Take Your Love to Town
Jeanine Leane, a Wiradjuri woman
Melissa Lucashenko of the Ygambeh/Bundjalung people
- Steam Pigs (Winner of the 1998 Dobbie Award for Women’s Fiction; shortlisted for the l999 New South Wales Premier’s fiction award and the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize, First Published Book)
- Hard Yards
- Mullumbimby,
- Too Much Lip
Keelan Mailman, of the Bidjara people
Sue McPherson, of Wiradjuri descent
- Grace Beside Me
- review by Jeniwren at GoodReads ,
- and see Sonia’s comment from Sonia a.k.a. smaxine27 about why she enjoyed this book here).
Sally Morgan from the Palku (or Bailgu) people of the Pilbara
- My Place: Autobiography,
- Sister Heart
- see smaxine27’s review
- and Louise’s at A Strong Belief in Wicker (which is, BTW, the best source of YA reviews that I know of)
Marie Munkara, of Rembarranga descent
- Every Secret Thing, winner of the 2008 David Unaipon Award and the 2010 NT Book of the Year,
- A Most Peculiar Act
- See Sonia’s comment from Sonia a.k.a. smaxine27 about why she enjoyed this book here,
- and see my ANZ LitLovers review.
- Of Ashes and Rivers That Flow to the Sea,
Margo Neale, an Indigenous woman from Queensland, of Indigenous and Irish descent
- Songlines, Tracking the Seven Sisters, (editor) see my ANZ LitLovers review
Oodgeroo Noonuccal a.k.a. Kath Walker of the Quandamooka people of Stradbroke Island, Queensland
- We are Going (1964), the first book to be published by an Aboriginal woman
- My People, see Mairi’s review at Up the Creek with a Pen
- Stradbroke Dreaming
NT Writers Centre
- This Country Anytime Anywhere, IADPress, featuring works by emerging writers as well as many winners of Northern Territory literary awards, including Marie Munkara, winner of the 2008 David Unaipon Award for Every Secret Thing (also judged the 2010 Northern Territory Book of the Year Award).
Siv Palmer from the Yuwallaraay Aboriginal Nation in far west New South Wales.
Doris Pilkington Garimara, of the Martu,
- Follow the Rabbit-proof Fence, review by Bill from The Australian Legend
Ellen Van Neerven, a writer of Mununjali and Dutch heritage who identifies with the Yugambeh people of the Gold Coast and Scenic Rim
- Heat and Light This book won the David Unaipon Award in 2013, and has been widely reviewed and shortlisted.
- See Sonia’s comment about why she enjoyed this book here,
- Sue’s review at Whispering Gums,
- see Weezelle’s review at Words and Leaves
- my ANZ LitLovers review.
‘The Sweetest Thing’ in Review of Australian Fiction, Vol 10, No 4, May 2014 see Sue’s review at Whispering Gums
- Comfort Food, see Jess White’s review at Jessica White, Writer and Researcher
Lesley Williams a Murri Elder, and Tammy Williams, a Murri woman
- Not Just Black and White, see my ANZ LitLovers review
Tara June Winch of the Wiradjuri people
- Swallow the Air Winner of the David Unaipon Award for Indigenous Writers,
- see my ANZ LitLovers review, and
- another by Marilyn Brady at Me, You and Books, and
- another from Sue at Whispering Gums.
- After the Carnage(2016)
- see my ANZ LitLovers review
- see Karenlee’s review at Karenlee Thompson
Fiona Wirrer-George Oochunyung, of Mbaiwum descent
Alexis Wright of the Waanyi people
- Carpentaria (winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award 2007. I read it before starting this blog.) See Bill’s review at The Australian Legend.
- Plains of Promise (Black Australian Writers)
- The Swan Book, shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award 2014,
- Tracker, Stories of Tracker Tilmouth
Reviews to come for ILW 2018 include
- The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf, by Ambelin Kwaymullina (updated 5/6/19, see here), and
- How to Be Deaf by Rosie Malezer (updated 5/6/19, see here)
PS Please use the #IndigLitWeek & #NAIDOC hashtags on Twitter.
This is a wonderful list. I definitely need to read more of these women.
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: TravellinPenguin on July 7, 2018
at 11:03 am
Aren’t they wonderful!
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 12:18 pm
Hear, hear – thank you Lisa, much valuable work and expertise compiling this, thank you. Many names which are new to me.
LikeLike
By: Nathan Hobby on July 7, 2018
at 12:33 pm
Ah yes, but it’s a shared enterprise – look at all those reviews from other readers as well as mine:)
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 12:35 pm
Hi Lisa, I have read some of the books mentioned. I am in Hobart at the moment and the library I visit is quite small. However, I will try to find some of the ones I haven’t read. I would also suggest Sister Heart by Sally Morgan. It is about the Stolen Generation from a child’s perspective. In verse, beautifully written, but so sad.
LikeLike
By: Meg on July 7, 2018
at 11:04 am
I certainly will chase that one up, but as you will see later in the week, I have a review of a novel called Barga Boy Jackson that tells the story of child removal in WA. It’s heartrending without being maudlin.
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 12:20 pm
Great list Lisa. And thanks for all the links. Your list is getting bigger and bigger. As I think I’ve said, I’ve started Munkara’s memoir but probably won’t be able to post a review until we get to Darwin. We have Internet here in Gore but leave here for the bush on Monday morning.
LikeLike
By: whisperinggums on July 7, 2018
at 11:18 am
LOL You’ll have great stories of your own to tell when you get back!
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 12:15 pm
Hope so!
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: whisperinggums on July 7, 2018
at 1:52 pm
You bet it’s a great list – my goodness! I’m plugging along with my indigenous Americans – (I read some indigenous Austraians once in awhile, too, though).
This year I caught There There by Tommy Orange which is about urban natives in today’s world. Excellent – and I want to read N. Scott Momaday’s
House Made of Dawn, too (a classic) . (so many books, sigh)
There There –
https://beckylindroos.wordpress.com/06-2018/there-there-by-tommy-orange/
LikeLike
By: beckylindroos on July 7, 2018
at 11:33 am
Yes, isn’t it amazing! I never thought when I started #IndigLitWeek that it would grow to something like this – these days it’s even listed on the official NAIDOC week website. But I hadn’t realised until I did this post, just how many of the authors I’d read were women!!
Thanks for sharing your post about Tommy Orange:)
PS I can’t comment on your review, is it meant to be blocked to comments?
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 12:17 pm
Great list Lisa, Indigenous women are certainly leading the way in Oz Lit, and thanks for including my reviews. Alexis Wright is amongst the top 2 or 3 of all our writers, but I hope also that I can persuade a few of your readers to sample the little known Two Sisters and Pictures From My Memory – memoirs by women born and raised in the deserts of WA. Meanwhile, from a WA point of view, you’ve pointed me to a couple of others I must read.
I wonder also if you would include Kayang and Me in this list.
LikeLike
By: wadholloway on July 7, 2018
at 1:08 pm
Oh yes, *smacks forehead* I missed Kayang and Me because I had it listed under Kim Scott’s name because it’s co-authored with him. I’ll fix that, thanks for reminding me!
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on July 7, 2018
at 3:50 pm
[…] list of sensational Indigenous women writers here, […]
LikeLike
By: Six Degrees of Separation, from Tales of the City, to… | ANZ LitLovers LitBlog on July 7, 2018
at 1:15 pm
Such a great resource, Lisa. Thanks for putting it together (and for linking to my review).
LikeLike
By: kimbofo on July 7, 2018
at 11:29 pm
You’re welcome!
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: Lisa Hill on July 8, 2018
at 8:49 am
Reblogged this on WordMothers and commented:
NAIDOC week kicks off today, with 2018 dedicated to celebrating women. Check out Lisa Hill’s wonderful list of Indigenous women writers!
LikeLike
By: Nicole Melanson on July 8, 2018
at 6:40 pm
Thanks, Nicole!
LikeLiked by 1 person
By: Lisa Hill on July 10, 2018
at 9:46 am
Hello Lisa and fellow blog readers,
It’s Sonia. I’m in awe of NAIDOC’s 2018 theme, ‘Because of Her We Can’, and Lisa’s evocation of it through her listing of literature produced by Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women authors. However, I noticed this year that Maori writers weren’t included in the listing despite its focus on Australian indigenous writers. Part of my literary research and scholarship is inclusive of Black Australian indigenous women’s writings.
I first became aware of Australian Aborigines when I read the essays “On the Line and the Black Pen” by Eva Johnson from the anthology, Word.: On Being a [Woman] Writer (On Writing Herself). As Lisa emphasized in her statement, indigenous women writers in particular have presented nuanced provocative perspectives on the history, culture, and social values of Aboriginal people and communities. Since reading Johnson’s essay, I’ve read compiled and read other Aborigine writers like Sally Morgan, Larissa Behrendt, Doris Pilkington, Ali Cobby Eckermann, Marie Munkara, Gayle Kennedy, etc.
In observance of 2018 Indigenous Literature Week, I’m currently reading Tony Birch’s story collection Common People, selected essays from Anita Heiss’ anthology Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia, and selected stories from Maori writer Patricia Grace’s Collected Stories. I look to reading Lisa’s book reviews and commentary from blog readers this week.
LikeLike
By: smaxine27 on July 10, 2018
at 6:47 am
*snap*! I am currently reading Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia too: what a wonderful collection it is!
You will be pleased to hear that I do have a review of a Maori author later in the week, but I don’t think I’ll have time to finish Patricia Grace’s Katrina and Ned, it’s quite long. And I’m quite cross with myself, I do have a novel called Bloom by a Maori woman, but I cannot find it where it should be on my shelves. I can’t think where it might be…
LikeLike
By: Lisa Hill on July 10, 2018
at 9:39 am
[…] ANZ LitLovers Indigenous Literature Week […]
LikeLike
By: Don’t Take Your Love to Town, Ruby Langford Ginibi | theaustralianlegend on July 12, 2018
at 3:28 pm
[…] a book review to finish for Lisa Hill’s wonderful celebration of Indigenous Literature she holds each year during […]
LikeLike
By: Winter Discontent Hints At Spring | Up the Creek with a pen … on July 16, 2018
at 8:46 pm