Mary Hunter Austin (1868-1934) was an American writer of fiction and non-fiction. For 17 years she made a special study of Indian life in the Mojave Desert, and her publications set forth the intimate knowledge she thus acquired. She was a prolific novelist, poet, critic, and playwright, as well as an early feminist and defender of Native American and Spanish-American rights. She is best known for her tribute to the deserts of the American Southwest, The Land of Little Rain (1903). Amongst her other works are The Flock (1906), Santa Lucia: A Common Story (1908), Lost Borders: The People of the Desert (1909), Fire (1912), The Trail Book (1918) and Starry Adventure (1931).