Enoch the Emu, by Gordon Winch & Doreen Gristwood

Enoch looked at the eggs
as Wilhelmina disappeared down the track.
“HUH!” he said. What a fuss about
a little bit of egg sitting!”

Enoch the Emu is good at kicking, eating, strutting and hanging out with his mates at the Emu Club, but he is not good at doing his bit around the nest. When his wife Wilhelmina gets sick of looking after the eggs she has laid, she decides to leave. Now Enoch must look after the eggs. At first he thinks it will be easy, but as the weeks drag by he realises just how hard it is. Still, when the eggs hatch he is as proud as can be – and can’t wait to show off his chicks to his mates at the club.

Enoch the Emu is a classic picture book, first published in 1984 and newly rereleased. A fun, fictional story, it is based on the fact that it is the male emu who sits on the eggs laid by the female and then raises the chicks. The illustrations are gently whimsical, with lots of little details for youngsters to spot and enjoy

A timeless treasure, it is wonderful to see Enoch the Emu back in print.

 

Enoch the Emu, by Gordon Winch & Doreen Gristwood
Scholastic Australia 2013
ISBN 9781742838717

Available from good bookstores and online.