Secrets of the Stone

by Harriet Peck Taylor

Coyote and Badger are friends. They hunt together in the desert of the American Southwest. When they spot Jackrabbit, they take off at once, just as hungry animals have done since the world began. Pursuing Jackrabbit, Coyote and Badger come upon an amazing sight -- the walls of a cave, covered with pictures of their ancient ancestors. Later, in a dream, Coyote goes back to the time when the creatures in the rock art roamed the land. Even a jackrabbit is there . . . In simple words and striking batik art, Harriet Peck Taylor contrasts the present with the distant past and shows that some things havent changed at all.

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 15, 2000

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pursuing Jackrabbit one day, Coyote and Badger discover a strange and secret cave, one with mysterious figures painted on the wall. Soon all of their animal friends have gathered, and they gaze on these images, interpreting them in various ways, from depictions of their ancestors to attempts to speak to the spirit world. Falling asleep beside the fire the animals light in the cave, Coyote dreams he has traveled back in time to the period when the cave art made made, witnessing the animals and human figures depicted there in real life...

Published in 2000, Secrets of the Stone is the seventh and final picture book from author/artist Harriet Peck Taylor, and the sixth I have read. I had to request it through interlibrary loan, as I am particularly interested in this creator's artwork, and it is not available in my own library system. On the whole, I found it very engaging. Needless to say, I enjoyed the lovely batik artwork, with the gorgeous color scheme and the charming stylized figures. Each two-page spread features a full-page illustration on the left-hand page and a white page with text and a decorative border on the right-hand one. The folk style of the painting was very appealing to me. The story itself was interesting, and I appreciated the inclusion of the theme of cave art (or parietal art), although I think I would have preferred to learn a little bit more about it. There is a brief afterward from the author, giving more information about the rock art of the American Southwest, but incorporating more discovery into the story would have been more satisfying, I think. T.A. Barron did this very well in his Ghost Hands , an exploration of the Cave of Hands, in Argentina. Despite this critique, I do think this one has merit, as an introduction to the idea of cave art, especially in the American Southwest. I would recommend it for that purpose, as well as to fellow admirers of the artist. Perhaps it could be paired with Barron's book, or with Hannah Salyer's excellent Ancestory: The Mystery and Majesty of Ancient Cave Art .

Note: If half stars were available, I would give this a 3.5 star rating.

[Karen H · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still love Harriet Peck Taylor. Beautiful stories, beautiful illustrations. Can't wait to use this book on a children's day at the Native American museum in NV I volunteer at. The illustrations show Ancestoral Puebloan petroglyphs that can be seen for real in this area of the country. It will be a good way to involve littles in the local history.

[Mariah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this second hand as I loved the art and fell in love with the story!

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

We read this on the same day we read the other books about stone art. The illustrations are bright and very colorful. The story was a little blah. Some animals end up in a cave and see some ancient drawings and then one of them falls asleep and has a dream where the pictures come alive and tell a story. This would have worked well except you don't really know he's asleep - it just gets kind of weird all the sudden. The kids sat through it but didn't really care for it. I'll pass on this one the next time around.