Isobel Bevis, Leanne Zilm and Cindy Lane honoured in annual Whitley Awards

Fremantle Press congratulates Ebony Froome and Leanne Zilm who have won a Whitley Award in the category of Children’s Cultural Zoology for Djinang Bonar: Seeing Seasons. Ningaloo: Australia’s Wild Wonder illustrator Cindy Lane was also recognised, taking out best illustrator.

Ebony said Djinang Bonar was the first publication of its kind because of the way it steps the reader through each Noongar season, describing the indicators that identify seasonal changes throughout the year while integrating the Noongar words for common animals and plants into the text.

Accepting the award via video, Ebony said, ‘I was inspired to write this book during visits to my local library with my first baby where I found that there wasn’t much content sharing Noongar perspectives and stories. I decided to create something myself to share this knowledge with my kids and anyone else who was interested to learn. I’d like to give a heartfelt thank you to the team at Fremantle Press for taking me on and for connecting me with Leanne, who was able to bring the book to life with her beautiful artwork, which makes it such a pleasure to read.’

Awarded annually, the Whitley Awards were created in tribute to eminent ichthyologist and former Curator of Fishes at the Australian Museum, Gilbert Whitley. They are presented by the Royal Zoological Society of NSW for outstanding publications that profile the unique wildlife of the Australasian region.

The Royal Zoological Society of NSW aims to promote and advance the science of zoology and protect, preserve and conserve the indigenous animals of Australasia and their associated habitats.

Djinang Bonar: Seeing Seasons by Isobel Bevis and Leanne Zilm and Ningaloo by Tim Winton and Cindy Lane are available from all good bookstores and online.