Worthy of a growl but not a roar.
Dino facts exposed—in rhyme!
Beason and Epelbaum introduce readers to a black woman paleontologist and her friend Rex, a cartoon T. Rex, who work to dispel common and historical myths about dinosaurs. As the rhyming lecture unfolds, Rex—and, later, a small herd of dino friends—morphs to mirror the changes described, which reflect advances in scientific thought. Overall, Beason’s concept is amusing and her rhyming quartets (aabb) flow smoothly. She ends the story by letting readers know that our current theories about the thunder lizards are still evolving: “Roaring or not, let’s give dinos three cheers! / They ruled on this planet for millions of years. / We still love them all—Brontosaurus to Rex! / Who knows what we’ll learn about dinosaurs next?” The weak spot in the story may be the visual emendations seen in Rex and the other dinosaurs: As the characters are illustrated in a rounded, friendly, cartoon style, some of the changes (such as Rex’s posture or Triceratops’ crest) depicted are unsatisfyingly subtle. The backmatter, however, includes enough information to help caregivers explain the changes. This correction is somewhat undercut by anatomically inaccurate accompanying line drawings of Brontosaurus and Stegosaurus. Given the subject matter, the book may be a welcome snack at storytime, but it won’t be top of the food chain.
Worthy of a growl but not a roar. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4926-9365-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
“It’s time to head back home,” the narrator concludes. “You’ve touched the Earth in so many ways.” Who knew it would be so...
A pro bono Twinkie of a book invites readers to fly off in a magic plane to bring clean water to our planet’s oceans, deserts, and brown children.
Following a confusingly phrased suggestion beneath a soft-focus world map to “touch the Earth. Now touch where you live,” a shake of the volume transforms it into a plane with eyes and feathered wings that flies with the press of a flat, gray “button” painted onto the page. Pressing like buttons along the journey releases a gush of fresh water from the ground—and later, illogically, provides a filtration device that changes water “from yucky to clean”—for thirsty groups of smiling, brown-skinned people. At other stops, a tap on the button will “help irrigate the desert,” and touching floating bottles and other debris in the ocean supposedly makes it all disappear so the fish can return. The 20 children Coh places on a globe toward the end are varied of skin tone, but three of the four young saviors she plants in the flier’s cockpit as audience stand-ins are white. The closing poem isn’t so openly parochial, though it seldom rises above vague feel-good sentiments: “Love the Earth, the moon and sun. / All the children can be one.”
“It’s time to head back home,” the narrator concludes. “You’ve touched the Earth in so many ways.” Who knew it would be so easy to clean the place up and give everyone a drink? (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: April 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5107-2083-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
Sturdy split pages allow readers to create their own inventive combinations from among a handful of prehistoric critters. Hard on the heels of Flip-O-Saurus (2010) drops this companion gallery, printed on durable boards and offering opportunities to mix and match body thirds of eight prehistoric mammals, plus a fish and a bird, to create such portmanteau creatures as a “Gas-Lo-Therium,” or a “Mega-Tor-Don.” The “Mam-Nyc-Nia” places the head of a mammoth next to the wings and torso of an Icaronycteris (prehistoric bat) and the hind legs of a Macrauchenia (a llamalike creature with a short trunk), to amusing effect. Drehsen adds first-person captions on the versos, which will also mix and match to produce chuckles: “Do you like my nose? It’s actually a short trunk…” “I may remind you of an ostrich, because my wings aren’t built for flying…” “My tail looks like a dolphin’s.” With but ten layers to flip, young paleontologists will run through most of the permutations in just a few minutes, but Ball’s precisely detailed ink-and-watercolor portraits of each animal formally posed against plain cream colored backdrops may provide a slightly more enduring draw. A silhouette key on the front pastedown includes a pronunciation guide and indicates scale. Overall, a pleasing complement to more substantive treatments. (Novelty nonfiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7892-1099-9
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Abbeville Kids
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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