SHORTLISTED, 2018 SPEECH PATHOLOGY AUSTRALIA BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDS, INDIGENOUS CHILDREN CATEGORY
When a group of desert children invite their school teacher, Mrs White, home for dinner to show her why their homework is always grubby, no-one expects what is to come! They are happily showing Mrs White their higgledy piggledy garden when suddenly a big red sand storm comes billowing over the hill. Sand and spinifex whips at their legs and flies at their heads. They can hardly see through the storm. They hurry back home, only to discover that everything is now red. Their lovely clean house is covered in red dust. The beds are red. The washing on the line is red. The table is red. Their delicious dinner is red and ruined. And Mrs White’s clean white dress has turned into a dusty red dress. Now Mrs White finally knows why the children’s homework is always so grubby!
.Josie Wowolla Boyle is a Wonghi woman who was born in the desert of Western Australia. She is an acclaimed storyteller, singer and artist who has been enchanting children of all ages since the 1980's. Josie performs in primary, secondary and tertiary institutions. She has made a number of recordings, worked as an artist in residence and featured on ABC's 5 Nations' Dreaming stories. She is also a regular presenter in literature and music festivals across WA. Her books include Bubbay:A Christmas Adventure, The Spotty Dotty Lady and Mrs White and the Red Desert
Maggie Prewett is a descendent of the Ngarluma people of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. She grew up in Perth, and studied Design and Illustration at Perth Technical College.
From an early age, art and literature were encouraged, thereby providing Maggie with a basis for life that has been filled with artistic enjoyment. Her paintings and ink drawings are held in collections throughout Australia and she has participated in a number of group exhibitions. Maggie has lived in Broome in the far north of Western Australia since the 1970s.