The Desert Is My Mother/El Desierto Es Mi Madre

                                                                    http://www.patmora.com/books/the-desert-is-my-mother/

Mora, Pat. 1994. The Desert is My Mother/El Desierto Es Mi Madre. Ill. by Daniel Lechon. Houston, TX: Arte Publico Press. ISBN 1611924081

Summary

In Pat Mora's bilingual picture book The Desert is My Mother/El Desierto Es Mi Madre, a young girl celebrates her love of her desert home. The girl extols the desert's ability to nourish, comfort, heal, and teach by comparing the desert to a mother, a strong desert mother. 

Critical Analysis 

Mora uses repetitive patterns to create the lyrical rhythm of her poetry, on every page of text the girl tells the reader what she asks of the desert with a statement beginning with "I say" followed by a one sentence statement of how the desert answers. Each line of the poem is provided in both English and Spanish. The opposite page illustrates the desert imagery of the text. The desert setting is integral to Mora's picture book, and her text reveals its beauty through metaphor, such as comparing raindrops to teasing, wind to singing, warm air to caresses, and ultimately the desert to a mother. The words used are simple and the theme of the book is universal: a child appreciating all the gifts her environment has to offer. 

Daniel Lechon's paintings bring to life Mora's poem for young readers; each illustration is rich with warm American southwest desert colors. Objects that children may not know, such as prickly pears, chamomile, and cactus blooms, are clearly illustrated for readers. His depiction of a young girl with long dark hair enjoying the desert provides a very understated marker of Hispanic culture that any reader could find relatable. 

Mora's poem is the strength of this book; her words, with a lyrical simplicity, clearly convey to the reader the feelings someone can have for the desert. As someone with no familiarity with the desert, this  picture book gives me an understanding of the child's love for the desert. 

Awards

The Desert is My Mother/El Desierto Es Mi Madre is the winner of the Skipping Stone Honor Award which celebrates ecological and cultural diversity. 

Reviews

A January 15, 1995 review in Booklist states, "With a playful, poetic text, this bilingual picture book celebrates a child's connection with her desert home. "I say feed me. / She serves red prickly pear on a spiked cactus." On each double-page spread the child makes a demand, and the pictures show how the desert satisfies her. The feelings are universal; the words are precise and physical."

Publisher's Weekly, December 05, 1995, writes that, "Mora invokes the grand powers of the desert."

Connections

This book could be used for a desert themed story time. It could be read along with Barbara Cooney's Roxaboxen, a picture book where children find things around the desert to build their imaginary town. Also, The Three Little Javelinas by Susan Howell would be a great companion, it is an American southwest retelling  of The Three Little Pigs that would be further reinforcement of  the desert setting for children.

References 

Books in Print. Texas Woman's University Library. Accessed September 04, 2013.