The Eagle and the Crow
Title: The Eagle and the Crow
Author: JM Field
Publisher: University of Queensland Press
Shortlist: Non-Fiction
Part instruction manual and part philosophical text, The Eagle and the Crow is a profound work of First Nations knowledge and research. Written as a series of lyric essays, JM Field’s book traverses Gamilaraay conceptions of time and place, the ways English can quietly disrupt languages and cultures, and the form and practical functions of kinship systems. Most importantly, Field’s fascinating insights from mathematics offer a map for the revitalisation of Gamilaraay social structures once prohibited during the Missionary Era. Generous yet restrained, this collection is an important act of resistance.
Judges’ Report
In this generous and beautiful book, JM Field writes about language – about the violence that colonialism and colonisers do to it and the ways that it can be claimed, reclaimed, generated and regenerated. This is a work of resistance, sovereignty and survivance, speaking of and to First Nations pasts, presents and futures. Demonstrating the genius of Gamilaraay knowledge and philosophies, Field offers a work that is stunning in its ability to teach all of us about kinship, mathematics and the vastness and rigour of the possibilities of human interrelationships. The Eagle & the Crow rewards careful reading and rereading. We are lucky to be gifted this work to sit with and learn from.
Extract
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About the Author
JM Field
VPLA book photography by Shannyn Higgins
The Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards are proudly supported by the Victorian Government.
