This delightful retelling of a Native American folktale is “a satisfying selection, creatively designed, with beautiful pictures and striking imagery” ( School Library Journal ). Coyote is used to playing tricks, but in this tale, the tables are turned. Stopping to take a quick nap by the big salty lake where he’s supposed to bring home salt for cooking, Coyote’s discovered by some mischievous butterflies. Playing their own trick, they carry Coyote home without his salt. Coyote is completely confused—until the third time when Coyote wakes up at home with his salt and discovers the butterflies have been having a bit of fun. Kindergarten-Grade 3?A delightful retelling of a Tewa legend. Lovable, lazy coyote is sent by his wife to the big salty lake to bring back salt for cooking. When he is caught napping on the shore by butterflies, they decide to fool him and carry him home without the salt. This trick is thrice repeated until at last coyote awakes at home with the bag of salt beside him. This so pleases his wife that she cooks a feast for all of their friends, including the laughing butterflies who to this day cannot fly in a straight line but flutter to and fro chortling over their successful joke. The book concludes with a helpful author's note on the character of coyote himself and the origin of the tale. The softly textured batik illustrations add feeling and depth to this simple legend. Dusty oranges, blues, tans, and greens capture the New Mexican landscape and bring to life the vibrant scenes of the mesa and the animals' expressions and antics. A satisfying selection, creatively designed, with beautiful pictures and striking imagery.?Beth Tegart, Oneida City Schools, NY Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. Ages 6^-8. Arriving at the great salty lake to fetch salt for his wife, Coyote rewards himself with a nap. While sleeping, he is carried through the air by mischievous butterflies, who take him back home--without the salt. After the confused Coyote tries several times to complete his errand, the butterflies take pity on him and return him to his home with a bag full of salt. This gently humorous tale ends with a great feast attended by all Coyote's animal friends, including the butterflies. To this day, the butterflies remember the trick they played on Coyote and "flutter high and low, to and fro, laughing too hard to fly straight." Cactus sitting in a verdant meadow may give some readers pause, but the large pictures, in bright, appealing colors, make the book suitable for reading aloud to groups and for storytelling. An author's note gives the source for the tale, which is based on a Tewa legend, as well as references to other versions. Janice Del Negro Harriet Peck Taylor is an award-winning author, illustrator, and artist who lives in Boulder, Colorado. She received a BFA in Fine Art and a BA in Education from the University of Colorado in 1977. She began her career in fine art and continues to work as a professional artist. Her work is in public and private collections throughout the world. You can visit her at HarrietPeckTaylor.com.