Sand Dune Daisy, written by travel author Lili DeBarbieri and illustrated by award-winning artist Fred Barraza, is a magical blend of art, high adventure, and natural history. Daisy is a playful, young pocket mouse who must navigate her way through a challenging environment meeting a colorful cast of desert characters and conditions along the way. DeBarbieri's charming narrative takes readers on an action-packed journey through this dune locale with charismatic desert wildlife and ecology. The book is inspired by the real but little known wonderland that is the sand dunes of the American Southwest, igniting wonder for the natural world in children of all ages.
Lili DeBarbieri is a travel writer, noted author, and librarian. A Philadelphia native, she has traveled extensively across six continents before settling in the American Southwest. Lili has received many honors and awards as the author of the best-selling books Location Filming in Arizona and A Guide to Southern Arizona's Historic Farms and Ranches, both finalists in the New Mexico Arizona Book Awards. Lili is also a local stringer for Agence France-Presse, the international news agency. An accomplished freelance writer, her work continues to be featured in a diverse range of publications including Amazon bestsellers The Utah Prairie Dog and Mighty Colorado. Lili's blog Farm Traveler appears on Hobby Farms.com where she writes on her travels around the U.S. seeking out the country s most unique and sustainable farms, sharing tips for travelers and homesteaders alike. This is her first children's book.
Manuel Fred Barraza is a multimedia artist, working in printmaking, painting, drawing, illustration, and sculpture. He was born and raised in the Grant County area of Southwest New Mexico. After serving in the United States Marine Corps he received his degree in Fine Arts. Barraza took a day job with the New Mexico State Library's Rural Bookmobile Southwest, providing library services to rural communities in a six county region in southwest New Mexico. He retired in 2008. He taught drawing classes at Western New Mexico University for five and a half years. Many of the characteristics in his artwork can be attributed to influences in his travels in the Marine Corps and the people and landscapes of New Mexico. Barraza has created book covers and illustrations for over a dozen books and has illustrated the bilingual book The Cactus Wren and the Cholla by Valerie Chellew Garcia. He has designed posters for special Silver City, New Mexico, events, the United States Forest Service, and New Mexico Libraries.
