WINNER – 2016 ABIA Awards Reader's Choice Award
SHORTLISTED – 2016 ABIA Awards in the Small Publishers’ Children’s Book of the Year category
SHORTLISTED – Speech Pathology Australia's 2016 Book of the Year Awards (Indigenous Children's category)
Kookoo is a kind and well-loved kookaburra who is famous for entertaining the other bush creatures with his funny stories.
One day Kookoo runs out of kind stories to tell, and he turns to teasing and making fun of the other animals. Refusing to listen to the sage advice of his uncle, Kookoo finds himself alone and ignored by his friends.
When he listens to the sound of his own laughter, it is an unhappy sound. Finally he remembers his uncle's words "Kindness is like a boomerang - if you throw it often, it comes back often..."
Gregg Dreise is a gifted artist, storyteller and musician, and he features the didgeridoo and guitar in his performances at schools, libraries and festivals. He
is a descendant of the Kamilaroi and Euahlayi people of south-west Queensland and north-west New South Wales.
He is the author and illustrator of Cunning Crow; Silly Birds; Kookoo Kookaburra; Mad Magpie and My Culture and Me. All these stories are about teaching morals. They address self-image, friendship, kindness, bullying and Indigenous culture.
Gregg is also the illustrator of the classic story Tiddalik the Frog (Pearson Publishing) and has poetry with his illustrations in the anthology A Boat of Stars; and illustrations in High 5 to the Boys and contributions towards Why I Love Australia. He has a Children’s Music CD titled Sing. Dance. Walk Together.
