Two classic Australian books turn 100
This year we are celebrating the 100-year anniversary of two very influential Australian books – Snugglepot and Cuddlepie and The Magic Pudding.
The Snugglepot and Cuddlepie series was written and illustrated by May Gibbs. The books are about two gumnut babies named Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, who look like the nuts of Eucalyptus trees. The villains of the story are known as the “Banksia Men’, resembling Banksia cones. May Gibbs based the characters on the local plants found in Western Australia, where she grew up as a child after her family relocated from England.
The Magic Pudding: The Adventures of Bunyip Bluegum and his friends Bill Barnacle and Sam Sawnoff was written and illustrated by Norman Lindsay. The story features an angry magical pudding who can reform itself after it is eaten, allowing it to be eaten infinitely! The main characters spend the book defending it against Pudding Thieves.
Both of these stories are set in Australia, and are famous for their use the imagery of unique Australian flora and fauna.
ANU Library has a number of books in our collection related to these classic titles, including:
The Magic Pudding
- ‘The Magic Pudding: being the adventures of Bunyip Bluegum and his friends Bill Barnacle and Sam Sawnoff’ (Art & Music)
- The soundtrack recording of the Marionette Theatre of Australia rod puppet production of The Magic Pudding (Art & Music)
- Norman Lindsay’s pen drawing (Chifley)
- Norman Lindsay’s cats (Art & Music)
- Norman Lindsay on art, life and literature (Chifley)
- Norman Lindsay; his books, manuscripts and autograph letters (Print Repository)
- Letters of Norman Lindsay (Art & Music)
- Favourite etching by Norman Lindsay (Chifley)
- The comic art of Norman Lindsay (Chifley)
- The Magic Pudding – The Opera (Online)
Snugglepot and Cuddlepie
- The complete adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (Art & Music)
- Guide to the papers of May Gibbs in the Mitchell Library (Print Repository)
- Eucalyptus (Online)
- The Banksias (Menzies rare book) – these were featured in an article earlier this year, as they are the LARGEST volumes in the ANU Library collection.
A display featuring both of these texts, as well as other works by May Gibbs and Norman Lindsay, is on display in the JB Chifley Library foyer!
