Dorothy Wall writes and illustrates ‘The Adventures of Blinky Bill’

Dorothy Wall (1894-1942), author and illustrator, was born in Wellington, New Zealand

Her most famous book, Blinky Bill: The Quaint Little Australian, is based on stories told to Peter, her only child. It was published in 1933. Blinky Bill Grows Up (1934) and Blinky Bill and Nutsy (1937) followed. These books feature a young, mischievous koala and his friends, all dressed in trousers, dresses, aprons and bonnets.   

The characters, all animals, act out suburban domestic situations in stylised bushland settings. The Illustrations in the books show Dorothy’s love of the native plants and wildlife surrounding her home in the Blue Mountains.

Successive generations of children have delighted in the mischievous koala with his characteristics of adventurousness, impudence and curiosity.