Desert Baths

September 1, 2012

K-Gr 2-Children are taught at a very young age that if there's one thing this ecosystem lacks, it's water. Pattison uses this as a jumping-off point to explore the hygiene of animals and birds living in the desert. The text is cadenced without rhyming, giving it a soothing feeling. It reads almost like a lullaby, which works well considering most of these desert animals are nocturnal. But this lullaby might spur readers to do additional research, since the facts are fascinating. For instance, in just a few lines of text, the author describes the unusual process the scaled quail goes through to get clean (called "anointing"): it uses an ant. Rietz's richly colored illustrations are realistic, so readers can get a feel for the desert habitat. One of the most eye-catching details is the patterned frame around each spread. Eagle-eyed viewers will want to spot these textures on other pages. A six-page "For Creative Minds" section includes enrichment activities. This book is a must-have for libraries in desert regions since it is so applicable to many curriculum topics. But even libraries in other areas might consider purchasing it as it will hold children's interest at many levels.-Susan E. Murray, formerly at Glendale Public Library, AZ

Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2012
Throughout a day and night, a dozen U.S. desert animals demonstrate that not all animals use water to bathe. This intriguing combination of biology and earth science follows the model of Prairie Storms (2011), by the same pair. Here, while a short text describes an animal's behavior, the illustrations also reveal the time of day. From the turkey vulture's early-morning sun bath to the bobcat kitten's tongue-wash late at night, each creature is shown in its natural habitat in Rietz's realistic paintings, done with a mix of watercolor and digital effects. As in the previous title, these double-page spreads are framed with unlabeled but relevant border designs. Six pages of backmatter include "fun facts," an adaptations matching game, a U.S. map, further information about animal cleaning methods and telling time by the sun's position, and instructions for making a sundial, but no index. The creatures described are fascinating, but the text lacks an explanatory, unifying introduction or conclusion. It is only through careful reading of the backmatter that readers will discover the point of the text--the variety of ways animals get rid of dirt, germs, bugs and parasites--or the orientation of the illustrations (looking north) that demonstrates the time of day. A useful classroom teaching tool; it is also available in Spanish. (Informational picture book. 5-9)

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October 15, 2012
Grades K-2 Pattison's picture book centers on a daily event that all children are familiar with (and many are loath to accomplish) to introduce the concept of adaptation in a very specific ecosystem. The examples given are fairly noveleven adult readers may be impressed to learn that scaled quail use ants to groom their feathers, or that the desert gecko can remove dirt from its eyes with its own tongue. The textured, brown-heavy watercolor illustrations power a narrative that takes place during the course of one day, as each page depicts the sun in a different position in the hot desert sky. Before the extended bath time is through, readers meet bobcats, coyotes, javelinas, mule deer, roadrunners, turkey vultures, and more. Six pages of educational materials are included in the back matter and are available online, and reproduction of these age-appropriate activities for use in the classroom is encouraged.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)