Wurrtoo: The Wombat Who Fell in Love with the Sky by Tylissa Elisara

Title: Wurrtoo: The Wombat Who Fell in Love with the Sky

Author: Tylissa Elisara

Genre: Adventure

Publisher: Hachette Australia

Published: 27^th March 2024

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 160

Price: $19.99

Synopsis: Described as an Indigenous Blinky Bill meets Winnie the Pooh, this heart-warming and beautifully illustrated middle-grade novel from 2021 black&write! fellow Tylissa Elisara follows Wurrtoo the wombat on his quest to marry the love of his life, the sky, while facing his fears and learning the importance of friendship along the way.

It all began in a burrow. The fifty-fifth burrow of Bushland Avenue to be exact. If you were ever lucky enough to find this beautiful clearing on Kangaroo Island where the arching gum trees kiss, you’d know that Wurrtoo’s home is the one at the end with the big red trapdoor and large gold doorknob. Can you see it?

Wurrtoo the wombat lives a quiet and solitary life in his burrow on Kangaroo Island, hoping to one day travel to the mainland and marry the love of his life, the sky. When Wurrtoo inadvertently saves Kuula the koala from a bushfire, he acquires the adventure companion he didn’t know he needed.

With Kuula by his side, Wurrtoo leaves the safety of his burrow and sets out on an epic journey to cross the island, reach the mainland and climb to the top of tallest tree in the Forest of Dreaming. But it’s fire season, and danger and strange creatures lurk behind every gum tree. To make it, the pair must face their fears together, learn the importance of friendship and discover the power of wombat wishes.

Tylissa Elisara draws on classic children’s literature in the tradition of Winnie the Pooh and Blinky Bill as well as stories from her own Narungga, Kaurna and Adnyamathanha heritage in this unique middle-grade novel about friendship, adventure and facing your fears.

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Wurrtoo is a hairy-nosed wombat, who lives in the fifty-fifth burrow of Bushland Avenue on Kangaroo Island. He’s stayed there alone for a long time, with a big red trapdoor, and a large gold doorknob. Though he lives a solitary life and has for many years, Wurrtoo has a dream. He has fallen in love with the Sky, and longs to travel to the mainland to find the Forest of Dreaming so he can marry the Sky. When a bushfire threatens his home and other animals, Wurrtoo rescues a koala named Kuula, they form a friendship and travel across the island, meeting a range of animals from Paitya to Auntie Swan, and Wurrtoo learns about the Dreaming stories from Kuula – about the Seven Sisters, which is a story that is common to many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and communities throughout their journey, ensuring that Indigenous kids can see and read about their culture in a positive and delightful way, and also giving non-Indigenous kids a chance to see it as well and learn about it. I loved the way Kuula explained things – she was straightforward and matter of fact, yet very generous with her knowledge – especially when she realised that both her and Wurrtoo had very different knowledge bases, much like we all do.

The journey was filled with fun and danger – much like the stories of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, Blinky Bill and Winnie the Pooh, and this story draws from them and from Indigenous knowledge, language, and stories from Tylissa’s Narungga, Kaurna, and Adnyamathanha heritage to create something that for me was unique yet also reminded me of the stories that I enjoyed when I was younger, and I think this was a magical thing – allowing all readers to see something they love and can relate to in a book, making it a powerful story that has a fable-like quality to it, and even felt like it belonged to the oral tradition of storytelling that existed in many cultures before people started writing their stories down. It felt like the kind of oral story you settle down to for comfort and reassurance, to understand that it is okay to be scared, that you can make new friends, and your dreams are what makes you unique. It is about facing your fears through adventure that you never thought you’d have, and using new knowledge to find what you really want – people around you who will love you for who you are.

As Wurrtoo finds out that he isn’t going to be hurt outside, and that he can go out and make friends, readers will also see that they can overcome or deal with their fears and anxieties if they find support to do so. Wurrtoo is in love with the Sky – but this isn’t a love story, because Wurrtoo must learn that the sky is part of Country, and Kuula is the one who teaches him about Country and the Dreaming, and Tylissa has used her own knowledge, and the knowledge she was able to access to create a story that represents Indigenous cultures and connection to Country, using elements of her Narungga, Kaurna, and Adnyamathanha heritage, language and stories to create her world, and the exceptional help she received from the communities for knowledge about food and the Yamuti story. The wonderful thing I found was that the story felt like it was universal and accessible –  so any reader can pick it up and learn something or feel represented – representation is an important thing in literature and Wurrtoo is a great example of using indigenous voices and knowledge to connect with people and share this knowledge, whilst giving Indigenous kids a chance to see their culture in a book.

Kuula and Wurrtoo’s friendship is that beautiful friendship that children have. They connect with people and choose them, and accept them. Kuula is bubbly and fun, and eager to share her knowledge, and I loved this about her. She was vibrant – the exact kind of animal Wurrtoo needed to show him that he could be brave, be himself, and go on a grand adventure. This is such a fun book – I think it has so much in it for everyone – and for a reader of any age, whether reading this alone, having it read to them, or reading it to younger children, it has a beautiful quality that I think will make it an Australian classic, one that we need. One that reflects the diversity of Australia and represents Indigenous culture throughout Australia. I loved this story and hope that others will love it as well.