Betty Baker (1928–1987)

Funny story that seems reasonably respectful and accurate. Unfortunately Baker is (apparently) not Native, and some aspects of the vibe seem a little 'off' now. Fortunately, we have a lot more Native people getting their own books published, and we can replace these with the ones that honor the people themselves.

Most of the Prairie Dogs in the district are convinced that Dupper is rabbit-brained. But then, most of them see the world very differently from the way Dupper sees it. Only Dupper's eye catches the beauty of shadows made by darkening storm clouds, and the magic of grass that shimmers in the sunlight after the rain has passed. And though the others in the community don't appreciate his artistic nature, Dupper has no doubt that the designs he scratches on mud-covered cans are something very show more special indeed. show less

Delightful historical fiction that brings two girls to life as if they're contemporary to the young reader. Too bad there's an unfortunate depiction of Indians. I mean, it's not horrible, but it is insufficiently respectful that I have to take a star off.

When a poor woodcutter disturbs the home of a powerful lightning lizard, he is forced to promise one of his daughters as payment for the damage he has caused. His beautiful eldest daughter, who longs to live in town, rather than in a remote canyon, weeps so loudly that the lizard refuses to have her as his housekeeper, and the next is too fat to fit through his front door. It is the third daughter, Seri - always gentle and kind - who becomes the lizard's captive servant, and it is Latki - show more the fourth and youngest daughter - who sets out to rescue her, with only a yucca spear and her ability to communicate with animals to aid her...

Published in 1979, Latki and the Lightning Lizard is shelved in the folklore section of my library, although it is clearly a work of fantasy. There are some obvious southwestern influences to be seen in the tale - the landscape, for one - but other elements, such as the chainmail-wearing lizard, are clearly original (well, as original as such things ever are). The colophon even lists this as fantasy. Leaving aside that odd mis-categorization, I'm not sure just what to make of this long out of print title. Baker's narrative reads well enough, but isn't especially captivating, and the illustrations by Donald Carrick were not to my taste. The black and white drawings weren't terrible, but the color spreads struck me as garish, and the overall "feel" of the book is very dated. Definitely not one I would advise readers to expend much energy in seeking out. show less