Dig, Wait, Listen: A Desert Toad's Tale
PreSchool-Grade 2-Under the sand, a spadefoot toad waits for the sound  of rain. She remains in her burrow as creatures, including  peccaries, a rattlesnake, and a kangaroo rat, pass above her but  finally emerges to lay her eggs when the distinctive patter of  rain begins. Clear, often lovely watercolors illustrate the  creature's wait, the desert animals, and the brief time the toad  and tadpoles spend on the desert floor after the rain. The  nature lesson is propelled by frequent sound effects and the  palpable need for rain. Notes at the end give additional  information on the habits of this toad and her animal neighbors.  Pair this title with Lynn Stone's Desert Animals at Night  (Rourke, 1997) or Bash's Desert Giant (Little, Brown, 1990) for  a look at desert life. Or, compare the spadefoot toad with her  flashier amphibian relatives of the rain forest in Joy Cowley's  The Red-Eyed Tree Frog (Scholastic, 1999). The only book for  children specifically about the spadefoot toad, Sayre's title is  a useful and pleasing addition.Ellen Heath, Orchard School,  Ridgewood, NJCopyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.