Exploring Mentor Texts: Around One Cactus - Owls, Bats and Leaping Rats

This treat of a mentor text is a little older (published in 2003), but I just love the way it is crafted, using a cumulative format mirroring the style of "There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly" or "The House That Jack Built."

Picture Book: AROUND ONE CACTUS - OWLS, BATS, AND LEAPING RATS
Author: Anthony D. Fredericks
Illustrator: Jennifer DiRubbio

Things I loved about this book:

• The first page is a letter written to the reader by a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake introducing the desert habitat and importance of the saguaro cactus. It is interesting and inviting!
• The spreads that provide facts about the seven creatures who rely on the cactus are written in a cumulative fashion with wonderful rhyming couplets.
• Each spread ends with the lines, "Beside the cactus tall and grand, A haven for creatures in a waterless land," continually emphasizing the importance of the main character of the story.
• The Backmatter includes an illustration of each of the eight species (including the cactus) with a short fact-filled paragraph and a "Fantastic Fact". 

Some of my favorite lines:

• (On a gorgeous 2-page spread of the desert in early evening)
  

"He observed the giant in the fading light, But the critters were resting far from sight. So he turned and slowly walked away. Then the creatures woke to play and prey."

• (On the final spread)

"A world of survivors in a sun-baked land are sheltered and harbored by a cactus grand. The spiny plant with its weathered face is a noble guard in this busy place.

I just love the language and structure of this whole story, as it weaves in amazing facts about desert dwellers! Have you ever read it? You should!