Maisie Yarrcali Barlow is an Elder and storyteller from Northern Queensland. She belongs to the Jirrbal people. During her childhood in Ravenshoe Queensland, Maisie Barlow was refused entry to primary school because of her Aboriginality. Barlow moved to Wairuna Station where some of her relatives were working and became a carer for the children of the station owner. When the children began learning to read and write, Maisie Barlow took the opportunity to learn with them. Masie Barlow penned the book Jirrbal Rainforest Dreamtime Stories and teaches Jirrbal language and culture in Ravenshoe State School.
Jirrbal : Rainforest Dreamtime Stories
Broome
:
Magabala Books
,
2001
Z950240
2001
selected work
prose
autobiography
children's
dreaming story
'Jirrbal Rainforest Dreamtime Stories are witty and wise moral fables from the tablelands of Northern Queensland. They are traditional, as told to young people for thousands of years, and as told to the author Maisie (Yarrcali) Barlow herself, when she was a child of the rainforest. The animal characters have been brought to life in breathtaking simplicity, full of lively personality and charm, by Michael (Boiyool) Anning. The last chapter tells about growing up in the rainforest country.' (Source: Back Cover)
