Mule Train Mail  by Craig Brown

While working on this book, Craig Brown traveled to the Grand Canyon to observe the only mule train delivery route in the United States. Mule Train Mail introduces readers to Anthony Paya, who wears a cowboy hat, chaps, and spurs, and leads a train of mules on a daily three-hour trek down into the Grand Canyon to bring mail to the townspeople of Supai.

Click here to see pictures of the author's experience with the real mule train.

Read about Mule Train Mail and many curriculum connections in "In the Spotlight" by Sharron L. McElmeel, in Library Sparks (October 2009).
		Click here to learn more about the Havasupai Tribe Click here to learn more about the United States Postal System Download the cover image!

In dusty brown pastels, he draws a quietly fascinating picture of a rare way of life.— New York Times (Read full review.) September 13, 2009 Sunday Children's Books - Bookshelf.

Brown's illustrations, in pastel and colored pencil, look appropriately sun-washed. Informative as well as evocative, and told with crisp clarity.-- Kirkus Reviews

In this engaging text, Brown relates the daily trip made by Anthony the Postman from the top of the Grand Canyon to the village of Supai far below on the canyon floor.... Readers will feel that they are experiencing the heat and dust as well as the beautiful flora and fauna of the region. Shifting perspectives (the book must be held vertically for trail scenes) add to the drama by providing a sense of the canyon’s awesome size while close-ups of the mules highlight the animals’ important role. A fascinating and informative addition. -- School Library Journal (Sept/Oct, 2009)

Author/illustrator Brown used the anthropologist's tool of participant observation to capture the hardships and natural glories of the three-hour, eight-mile mule trek to a tiny village on the floor of the Grand Canyon that is performed every day by Anthony Paya, a U.S. Postal Service carrier. ... What gives this fascinating material extra punch are Brown's illustrations... The contrast between the unaffected renderings of Paya, his dog, and his seven mules and the looming golden sandstone walls of the canyon shows how living creatures are dwarfed by nature.  --Booklist (August 2009)

Vibrant pencil and pastel illustrations bring to life the three-hour journey the postman, Anthony Paya, makes each day on the mule train. Wouldn't this make a wonderful film for Disney to make? —News Chief (June 7, 2009)

...this engaging new book presents a good opportunity to introduce young learners to the idea of public services. The descriptive text and striking pastel and colored pencil illustrations are clearly enhanced by the author’s personal experience riding with the mule train. In addition to its unique topic, the book also raises awareness of the Havasupai Indian Reservation at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. —EconKids (August 1, 2009)

The yellows, browns, and rust colors of the landscape radiate the heat from the surrounding canyon; the palette changes to whites and blues to convey the danger of driving rain and sleet. ...  In vivid contrast to the opening and closing horizontal spreads, Brown depicts the winding trail vertically, adding to the drama of the trip and the potential danger to both men and beasts. — Horn Book (September 1, 2009)

This is a book that could just as easily be an easy reader as a PB. The illustrations are captivating and seem to tell the story.  A map and authors notes about rural mail delivery in the Grand Canyon create a factual story.—Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, a Reading Tub Blog