The title refers to a little-known stretch of Mexican forest beginning 400 miles south of Arizona and terminating in the tropics of Central America. Bowden, a naturalist at the University of Arizona and author of Desierto ( LJ 6/15/91) and, with photographer Dykinga, The Sonoran Desert ( LJ 10/15/92), has written a long, rather anecdotal account of his many trips to this habitat, which is comparatively dry yet harbors distinctive, diversified flora and fauna. The subjective text dwells primarily on the author's reactions to the lives of the native population, the forest itself, and the inevitable encroachment of 20th-century agricultural and industrial disturbances. The author quotes paragraphs from accounts of other travelers to the region, including four Spanish survivors of a 16th-century expedition. Photographs, a map of the area, a list of plant species, and a calendar of native fiestas accompany the text. Recommended as an addition to collections on Mexico or world habitats but probably of lesser interest to libraries outside the southwest United States.