CHEEKY DOGS: TO LAKE NASH AND BACK

In this exuberant illustrated memoir, action-packed images and poetic words trace Dion Beasley's fascination with cheeky dogs and his unconventional journey into the world of contemporary art.

'Every morning 
Is it time yet?
Nearly Joie says.
Out of the freezer comes the meat.
Bones and sausages and chicken necks.
Butcher knife on the bricks, me chopping up.
Be careful! Or you'll cut your finger off.
We can't have that Joie says.'

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Meet deaf artist, Dion Beasley, and the people he calls family. Dodging road trains by day and giant blue monsters at night, Dion weaves his way through life on an electric scooter, collecting rocks and dogs to make art. In his dreams he sees animals from overseas and his mother's country, Lake Nash, but every morning, without fail, he puts on his favourite socks and gets ready to feed the dogs. Is it time yet? 

'Cheeky Dogs: To Lake Nash and Back transcends the picture book genre, much in the way that Shaun Tan’s work does.' Cassie Lynch, Books+Publishing.

Created with support from the Northern Territory Government and published in 2019 by Allen & Unwin.

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Praise

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'The language and narrative style of Beasley’s memoir is captivating and, while it takes a few pages to orient yourself within this long picture-book-as-memoir, once you’re used to the style, you can’t put it down.' Cassie Lynch, Books+Publishing.

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Resources & Links

• Listen to Johanna Bell chat about Cheeky Dogs: To Lake Nash and Back on ABC Alice Springs.

• Read more about Johanna and Dion

• Listen to Johanna Bell on ABC Local Radio about how cheeky camp dogs are a vehicle for addressing literacy gaps 

• Ask us a question via our Too Many Cheeky Dogs Facebook page