The Enchanted Lizard/La Lagartijita Magica

A bilingual childrens book that doubles as a textbook for learning Spanish, The Enchanted Lizard/La Lagartijita Magica is set in the noted pottery-making village of Mata Ortiz, in the Chihuahuan desert of northern Mexico. In the story, villagers live happily in the sunlight and sleep peacefully under the moon, though mischievous spirits fly through the streets and enter the dreams of children. A pet lizard named Lila protects Marina from evil spirits, and warns her when they come near. Lila is especially helpful when Marina and Enrique secretly set out to make a pot to enter in a major competition, and Beto, a boy from a neighboring village, sets out to thwart them.