Book Review - The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek by Jenny Wagner & Ron Brooks

A sweet picture book about belonging and Australian culture.

The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek features the titular creature coming to life in the titular creek and suffering an existential crisis. In pursuit of his identity, he interacts with a host of animals native to Australia including a wallaby and an emu, all of whom are very judgemental of the Bunyip's qualities. However, the worst culprit for this is the human, who barely seems interested in his visitor, too busy with his mind on clinical scientific study. Of course, the book doesn't leave Bunyip in the lurch at the end. All I'll say is there's hope for him yet.

Wagner's well-placed words are given textured life by Brooks' rich artwork. Their talents combined make The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek feel like a golden brown classic with a timeless moral. Hans Christian Anderson's Ugly Duckling has a more light-hearted equivalent that more readers should know about.

I recommend The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek to those who enjoy tales about finding your place in the world but also Australian wildlife.