Jenni Barnett

Native Companions Jenni Barnett

Rex Graham, a part-Aboriginal student of anthropology, is searching for his own indigenous ancestral history: customs, language and dreamtime legends. Due to a lifetime bond to his Aboriginal grandmother, he is enlightened after her passing, when he discoverers the key to his lost people's history and traditional history: preserved in artwork bequeathed to him on her deathbed. Driven by a passion to learn the truth about the simplistic drawings, the legends unfold as epic mythology: filled with adventure, drama and a wealth of traditional Aboriginal survival and culture.

Barnett captures the strong bond the Booran people have with nature-how they lived off and with the land, communicating with it, respecting it, learning from it. Like any good collection of myths, there is also the educational aspect of these tales. Readers will learn about the spirits the Booran people believe in, manhood initiation ceremonies, and other cultural practices such as communication rules and skin signs with other tribes. Blending a fictional premise with well-researched legends, this book is a great starter read for those interesting in learning more about Aboriginal stories, and includes a glossary of mixed aboriginal language, index of communities and bibliography at the end of the story.