SAGUARO'S GIFTS

A saguaro’s crown of blossoms unfurls in the night to the excitement of the desert dwellers.

Nectar lures a small bat who wishes the tall cactus a happy 100th birthday, and an owl returns to its home in the green, spiky trunk. Morning arrives, along with hummingbirds, doves, bees, and butterflies—jostling one another to see and taste the gifts the blooming flowers offer. The seemingly desolate landscape teems with activity while Cyrus’ jaunty verses describe the saguaro from the perspectives of the animals that depend on it as a source of food, shelter, and refuge. Unfortunately, the uneven verses take the life cycle of the flowers and subsequent fruit out of sequence. A tortoise drops by, looking for food, and observes, “Blossoms wither in the sun. / The pollination party’s done.” Yet the flowers had just begun blooming the night before—much too early for withering (as later illustrations attest), let alone for the ripened fruit the confused reptile hopes to find. The author’s skimpy fact sheet also fails to mention many important details, such as the fact that saguaros are found exclusively in the Sonoran Desert. Atkins’ rich illustrations capture the vibrant desert ecosystem with wonderful detail; in one illustration, a bobcat scampers to the top of the saguaro, and in another, a coyote hungrily peers into a rabbit’s burrow. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A striking if imperfect homage to the venerable saguaro.