HOME IS THE DESERT

Life in various habitats in Arizona is appealingly described here by the wife of a herpetologist, director of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum outside of Tucson. As the mother of four small sons who collect snakes as well as bobcats, wolves, tarantulas, and other uncommon pets, Mrs. Woodin has developed a domestic amiliarity with nature. Not only her own exuberant desert household, but such unlikely spots as a dangerous river canyon, the surrounding desert, and barren mountains circled by lava fields are seen from personal perspective. Camping trips and collecting expeditions, often with children, the remarkable scenery, a sense of freedom and oneness with family and nature, approached with a fund of Eastern college girl knowledge, add up to a life to be envied. Indeed, this portrait of a modern outdoor life in an unusual environment should attract even city dwellers who are not overly fond of snakes, scorpions, and other minor drawbacks of the desert world.