Magabala acquires Pascoe & Norris’s “Big Sky”

Magabala Books has acquired Big Sky: When the Emu Left the Earth by First Nations author Bruce Pascoe and astrophysicist Ray Norris.

A Yuin, Bunurong and Tasmanian man, Pascoe is the author of many books for young people and adults including Dark Emu and Young Dark Emu (both Magabala). In 2018, Pascoe was awarded the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature.

After studying at Cambridge University and University of Manchester in the UK, Norris moved to Australia to work for CSIRO as head of astrophysics. He is now semi-retired.

Pascoe said, “This book is a dream of mine and Ray’s, to share the ancient night sky knowledge that Aboriginal people have known for centuries. All humans crave an understanding of our circumstances and destiny, and we often look up at night and find ourselves enmeshed by the tracery of cosmic connections. This book answers that need.”

Norris said, “Thousands of years ago, Aboriginal Australians had a superb and detailed knowledge of the sky, and understood the movements of the stars and planets to a degree that would put Galileo to shame. This book is a synthesis of Bruce Pascoe’s cultural knowledge and my research studies, with my Aboriginal friends, resulting in a deep exploration of the many achievements of the ancient Aboriginal astronomers.”

Magabala publisher Rachel Bin Salleh said, “As far back as we can remember, we have told stories to make sense of who we are. Big Sky […] is a conversation between two brilliant minds that touch upon the universal truths that made us.

“Who we are is a direct reflection of the night sky, a map; stars as memory keepers; the infinite cosmos our skin; light as consciousness and the dense inkiness, the truths we are yet to see.”

Big Sky is slated for release in 2026.

Category: Local news Rights and acquisitions