Ernie says goodbye to his friends Rosie, Frank, Tessa, Nicky, Clive, and Celeste, and promises to write to them. He flies over the desert and crosses the floodplains and the East Alligator River to his new home in Arnhem Land in the Australian outback, where he will live for a year while his parents work in a hospital there.

Ernie writes to each friend about a different season — Kudjewk, Bangekerreng, Yekke, Wurrkeng, Kurrung, or Kurnumeleng — explaining what that time of year brings and revealing the exciting things that he and his new friends are doing. Back home, his six old friends share what they have learned and try some of the activities of the Australian outback.

Author Alison Lester

Recommended for ages 3 years+