Today is Indigenous Literacy Day; a day where we celebrate the culture, stories and language of our First Nations peoples.

Indigenous Literacy Day is organised by The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF), a not-for-profit organisation that seeks to foster a love of reading and books with First Nations children in remote communities. Below are four recent titles published by the ILF, which feature First Nations languages and are delightful stories to read with small children.

Winthali: Fire by Joe Ross, Stacey Bush, Remi Ross and Boheme Ross

Greedy Old Man Crocodile (Lallanggarra) won’t share his fire with the Bunuba people, but Brown Falcon (Girrganyi), with the help of the young animals comes up with a clever plan to take a fire-stick from his home at Jarrambaya.

This story belongs to the Danggu people of the Fitzroy Valley.

Suitable for ages 3 and up.

The Monsters of McKyus by McKyus Levi, and Cath Leach

Have you ever seen a Mug Monster or a Chomper Plant? How about a Sila Rex? (He’s Godzilla’s grandson).

This book is filled with monsters from the imagination of a brilliant boy on a faraway island. Some are scary, some are cute, and some… well, you’ll have to read the book to find out.

But beware! Some of the monsters are also very dangerous.

Suitable for ages 4 and up.

Purlka-ngamaji-Kakaji by Emma Bear

On a hunting trip a family spies a big goanna. The youngest son wanted to kill it but his mother said no because it was a Mummy Goanna. They decided to leave her alone so she could lay her eggs in a hole by the boab tree. But that night, they all thought about how good it will be when those babies grow up and how many more goannas there will be to hunt!

Suitable for ages 3 and up.

Jarrampa by Marshia Cook, Tamua Nuggett and Cazarus Baker

Jarrampa are yabbies - tasty to eat but a challenge to catch because of those claws. One old woman had a clever way of catching them - she put meat between her toes before putting her feet into the billabong. When the crabs started nibbling, she quickly wrapped her feet and the jarrampa in a cloth, then emptied them into a bucket. Later, the family would gather around the campfire to share in a delicious meal of yabbies.

Suitable for ages 3 and up.

To learn more about Indigenous Literacy Day, to follow the work of the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, or to donate directly; visit the ILF website here. Readings will be donating 10% of funds from all books sold today (Wednesday 7 September) to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation.