Nala the Koala

Penny Min Ferguson

Puffin, 2020

24pp., hbk., RRP $A17.99

9781760898830

Fire has destroyed Nala’s treetop home and now she must find somewhere new to live.  But being a koala means that not just any place will do and the quest is not as easy as it seems…

This is a timely story in the wake of the devastation of last summer and the weather beginning to warm up again with a new fire season on the horizon. It is an opportunity to investigate just what Nala and all her cousins need to survive – indeed, any of the species that were so affected by the events of last summer – and what it is that humans can do to assist that. 

Told in the pictures as much as the words, and primarily aimed at young readers, there is also the opportunity to examine how humans may have contributed to those catastrophic fires through our everyday actions. Given recent events in the NSW parliament, older readers could also investigate whether fire is the greatest threat to koala populations or if it is a much broader issue than that.

With all royalties being donated to WIRES , this is an opportunity to initiate some meaningful, in-context research that will resonate with students across all ages.  The power of the picture book to raise awareness and take action.