"Children of the Desert" by Louis Dodge The author wanted to write a tragedy of human nature at cross purposes. It's a delightfully sinister social tale, ageless and yet fresh and decidedly mischievous in its prose. Though it's written in a different style, the book is so engaging that you won't have any trouble getting into the book, no matter what you usually read.

Recreation of Pitjantjatjara children, food hunting, water holes, language notes, story telling; family structure, evil spirit Mamu, Mingkulpa (tobacco plant), cave drawings Musgrave Ranges; educational activities Ernabella Mission, natural ability to draw, clothing, corroboree, walkabout; extensively illustrated; photographed by Noel Wallace.

Fashion model, UN ambassador and courageous spirit, Waris Dirie was born into a family of tribal desert nomads in Somalia. She told her story - enduring female circumcision at five years old; running away through the desert; being discovered by Terence Donovan and becoming a top fashion model - in her book, the worldwide bestseller, DESERT FLOWER. In DESERT DAWN she wrote about becoming a UN Special Ambassador against FGM (female genital mutilation) and returning to her family in Somalia. DESERT CHILDREN tells us how she and the journalist Corinna Milborn have investigated the practice of FGM in Europe - they estimate that up to 500,000 women and girls have undergone or are at risk of FGM. At the moment, France is the only European country in which offenders are convicted and no European country officially recognises the threat of genital mutilation as a reason for asylum. Here are the voices of women who have felt encouraged and emboldened by Waris Dirie's courage. They speak out for the first time and move us to action.

On a trip to the Moroccan market town of Rissani, Ali becomes separated from his father during a sandstorm.

Keats departs from his traditional style for his one and only wordless picture book, Clementina's Cactus. Clementina and her father are out for a walk in the desert when Clementina discovers a lone cactus, all shriveled and prickly. But Clementina discovers there is something beautiful hiding inside that thick skin.

A venerable saguaro cactus stands like a statue in the hot desert landscape, its armlike branches reaching fifty feet into the air. From a distance it appears to be completely still and solitary--but appearances can be deceptive. In fact, this giant tree of the desert is alive with activity. Its spiny trunk and branches are home to a surprising number of animals, and its flowers and fruit feed many desert dwellers. Gila woodpeckers and miniature elf owls make their homes inside the saguaro's trunk. Long-nosed bats and fluttering white doves drink the nectar from its showy white flowers. People also play a role in the saguaro's story: each year the Tohono O'odham Indians gather its sweet fruit in a centuries-old harvest ritual. In this first volume of Sierra Club Books' Tree Tales series, a simple, easy-to-read text and appealing drawings document the life cycle of this amazing cactus tree and the creatures it helps to support. Readers will come away with a better understanding of and a lasting respect for this accomodating giant of the desert.

Book 4 of the Children of the Desert series. Lord Alyea Peysimun gambles everything. Deiq of Stass makes an unexpected commitment. Lord Eredion Sessin trades loyalty for ethics. Don't ever call it love. Since her return from the southlands, Alyea has been de facto Head of a newly minted, not-yet-official desert Family-in Bright Bay. Recent events have exposed her enemies and foiled their plans. But things grow only more complicated. She must risk everything to protect what matters-and redefine her understanding of loyalty. What she does next will send yet another shockwave through power structures both north and south. For centuries Deiq has stood poised on the razor edge between man and monster. The conflict has left him exhausted and suicidal, and he risks even worse if the Jungles find out what he's been up to. When he discovers himself in the midst of a war between rival teyanain factions, the conflicting pressures on him reach new heights. If it is true that ha'ra'hain have souls, Deiq will bet his on the people and cause to which he commits himself. Not even the teyanain can predict what will happen next. Eredion has had more than enough of Bright Bay, but the situation is too precarious for him to retire as Sessin liaison to the king: he has long since moved past restricting himself to protecting Sessin interests, and is trying to rebuild sanity in the Northern Kingdom. When the Head of Sessin Family takes the decision out of his hands, Eredion must confront the gap between what is expected of him and what he believes to be right.