THE TINAJA TONIGHT

If you’re thirsty in the middle of the Southwestern desert and you have claws, feathers, or fur, where do you go?

To a welcome water-filled depression worn into bedrock: the tinaja. As soon as the desert begins to cool with the setting of the scorching sun, sounds of rustling signal the stirring of creatures making their ways among the growing shadows. Timid quails, grunting javelinas, cautious mule deer, yipping coyotes, jackrabbits, foxes, bats, and rattlesnakes—each takes a turn for a drink, always watching for a dreaded hawk or prowling cougar. As the sun rises, heating the land, the animals shelter in the shade and wait for the evening once again. Bissonette’s poetic narrative, sprinkled with alliteration, leads readers seamlessly from one desert denizen to another. “A mountain lion approaches….It circles the tinaja with a slow sort of swagger.” Clarifying information bites regarding each featured element or animal accompanies the text. Inexplicably, the pronunciation of tinaja, a Spanish word, is not included anywhere. Weiler wraps the cooling landscape in purples, oranges, and blues. However, some depictions of the desert dwellers are inaccurate. The mountain lion resembles a domestic cat, and the javelinas are depicted with fur instead of bristles; others, such as the ringtail cat and foxes, are spot-on.

Uneven artwork aside, this exploration of water’s vital presence in an arid environment is sure to please.