In the Desert

Fifteen poems from Elliott spotlight Saharan desert fauna in this evocative, place-rooted collection. Employing a range of poetic styles, spare but effective second-person lines pay tribute to the creaturely essences of the fennec fox, deathstalker scorpion, Anubis baboon, and many others. “You are spotted,” read the double-edged opening and closing lines of a piece about a Saharan cheetah stalking prey. Other carefully composed verses incorporate rhymes: “Yikes!/ Spikes!” is the entirety of a telling two-liner about the desert hedgehog. Wright’s digitally finished, warm-toned gouache and acrylic paintings take full advantage of the spreads. On one, an ostrich’s behind fills the verso with feathers, while its long pink neck peeks over the top of the recto to gaze at a nest. Notes about featured subjects conclude. Ages 3–7. (Mar.)