Dig, Wait, Listen: A Desert Toad’s Tale by April Pulley Sayre

January 7, 2013

Dig, Wait, Listen: A Desert Toad’s Tale by April Pulley Sayre

Dig, Wait, Listen:
A Desert Toad’s Tale
by April Pulley Sayre
illustrated by Barbara Bash
Greenwillow

Skitter, skitter, scratch.

Thunk, thunk, thunk.
Clink, clunk,
clink, clunk.

Pop, pop, pop.

Desert toad waits, burrowed way down deep in the desert sand.  She listens for the sounds of the rain.  It will start with a light plip, plop before it pounds across the desert floor.  It sounds dangerous but toad needs this rain so that she can lay her eggs.

Sayre’s text is simple, short and poetic as it introduces young readers to Couch’s spadefoot toad.  Very few people will see this toad because it spends much of its life underground where, even in the desert, it is cool and damp.

As Sayre’s readers learn about these awesome toads, they are also introduced to a variety of other desert wildlife including giant desert hairy scorpions, ord’s kangaroo rats and gila woodpeckers.

Bash’s watercolors, pencil and ink art work captures the range of vibrant colors found in the desert as well as the subtleties of a world that seasonally feels very monochromatic as plants and animals struggle for survival.

With a brief, lively text, this book makes a great read aloud and will appeal to animal lovers of all ages.

–SueBE

 

 

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