Imagine Tyrannosaurus rex with feathers—only one of the surprising theories put forth in this title by the author of Albertosaurus: Death of a Predator also part of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Alberta, Canada, “Discoveries of Palaeontology” series. Here, Keiran focuses on the 1995 discovery of a rare fossil ornithomimid, one of the small toothless theropod dinosaurs that resembles an ostrich and may have a common ancestor with modern birds. She recounts the excavation of the fossil step-by-step with many full-color photographs of the scientists at work. She describes new tools palaeontologists use to make sense of the past, for example digital scan, computerized tomography in which repeated scans are used to reconstruct fossils in three dimensions. She gives some of the latest scientific theories about the evolution of birds, stating: “It is believed that feathers evolved from dinosaur scales before the appearance of tyrannosaurs and bird-mimic dinosaurs, making it possible that Tyrannosaurus and the Ornithomimus had their own coverings of feathers.” Interspersed with the more straightforward text, she provides “Bird-Mimic Chronicles” the story of the life of a particular Ornithomimus from hatching to adulthood, mating, raising a family, and eventual death. The text of this dinosaur title is challenging and less able readers may have difficulty keeping the various themes apart, but those who persist will be rewarded. Includes a glossary, timeline of reptiles, and a “Meet the Scientist” section. Current and intriguing. (Nonfiction. 10+)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 1-55192-348-3
Page Count: 64
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2002
An impressive sequel.
Boy and fox follow separate paths in postwar rebuilding.
A year after Peter finds refuge with former soldier Vola, he prepares to leave to return to his childhood home. He plans to join the Junior Water Warriors, young people repurposing the machines and structures of war to reclaim reservoirs and rivers poisoned in the conflict, and then to set out on his own to live apart from others. At 13, Peter is competent and self-contained. Vola marvels at the construction of the floor of the cabin he’s built on her land, but the losses he’s sustained have left a mark. He imposes a penance on himself, reimagining the story of rescuing the orphaned kit Pax as one in which he follows his father’s counsel to kill the animal before he could form a connection. He thinks of his heart as having a stone inside it. Pax, meanwhile, has fathered three kits who claim his attention and devotion. Alternating chapters from the fox’s point of view demonstrate Pax’s care for his family—his mate, Bristle; her brother; and the three kits. Pax becomes especially attached to his daughter, who accompanies him on a journey that intersects with Peter’s and allows Peter to not only redeem his past, but imagine a future. This is a deftly nuanced look at the fragility and strength of the human heart. All the human characters read as White. Illustrations not seen.
An impressive sequel. (Fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-293034-7
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
Remarking that ``nothing about the weather is very simple,'' Simon goes on to describe how the sun, atmosphere, earth's rotation, ground cover, altitude, pollution, and other factors influence it; briefly, he also tells how weather balloons gather information. Even for this outstanding author, it's a tough, complex topic, and he's not entirely successful in simplifying it; moreover, the import of the striking uncaptioned color photos here isn't always clear. One passage—``Cumulus clouds sometimes build up into towering masses called cumulus congestus, or swelling cumulus, which may turn into cumulonimbus clouds''—is superimposed on a blue-gray, cloud-covered landscape. But which kind of clouds are these? Another photo, in blue-black and white, shows what might be precipitation in the upper atmosphere, or rain falling on a darkened landscape, or...? Generally competent and certainly attractive, but not Simon's best. (Nonfiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-688-10546-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1993
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