Dance, Bilby, Dance

Dance, Bilby, Dance by Tricia Oktober, author and illustrator (Ford Street Publishing) PB RRP $14.95 ISBN 9781925272147

Reviewed by Kate Saunders

Dance, Bilby, Dance by Tricia Oktober is a delightfully simple picture book, delivered effortlessly and very Australian in essence. 

Bilby wants to dance. He sees other wildlife -- the willy-willies and the moths --  twirling, whirling and pirouetting around him, and he wants to do the same. So, when Bilby catches sight of his shadow beneath him, he practises until he too can flutter like a leaf and prance like an emu. That is until his shadow becomes so big it changes into a bunyip!

Simple illustrations, smooth and perfect word choice, and cute characterisation make this book a pleasure to read, and even better to take outside and enjoy. This book teaches early learners that wildlife is there at one’s fingertips and that we can be one with it. It will absorb, educate and  provide an appealing, tangible freedom that extends beyond any virtual world.

This is a charming picture book for preschool children.