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Library | Shelf Number | Material Type | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
Searching... Malvern Library | J 567.91 LAUB | Juvenile Non-Fiction | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
What are the other creatures that lived at the time of the dinosaurs -- those inevitably smaller creatures that had to stay out of the way in order to survive?
There is the "Hesperornis," a bird that cannot fly or walk. Then there's the pterosaur, with the wingspan of a small airplane. Strange reptiles and fish. A cross between a snake and a turtle called a plesiosaur.
You don't believe it? Look inside this book and discover the amazing world that runs, flaps, swims, screeches, cries, and honks.
Author Notes
Patricia Lauber was born in New York City and graduated from Wellesley College. During her lifetime, she wrote more than 125 children's books including the Around-the-House History series, the Clarence the TV Dog series, and contributions to the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series. Volcano: Eruption and Healing of Mount St. Helens received a Newbery Honor in 1986. In 1983, she received The Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Award for her overall contribution to children's nonfiction literature. Besides being an author, she was also an editor of Junior Scholastic and editor-in-chief of Science World. She died on March 12, 2010 at the age of 86.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-- An aptly named and engaging volume that takes readers on a lively tour of the dinosaurs' world. Senses are heightened as the smells and sounds of these exotic terrains are described. The journey begins in the abundant sea where children encounter six-foot-long Hesperornis, birds that cannot walk or fly. Through swamp, forest, and upland, the mighty and the minuscule are brought to life. Lauber describes the tiny, furry animals skittering across the forest floor and points out which trees and shrubs are cousins of plants on Earth today. Many of Henderson's paintings are handsome portraits that eloquently depict the easy grace of Pteranodons and the lush, shaded forest with its carpet of leaf litter. The touches of pastel and gouache add depth and drama to the prehistoric land, sky, and seascapes. The journey ends in the western United States where the first peaks of the Rocky Mountains are starting to thrust up. Lauber then returns to the present day and describes how scientists dig up the past. All of the illustrations are captioned. A logical page layout with double-spaced text and plenty of white background makes the book inviting and unimposing. This enjoyable offering gives a wealth of information and is indexed with a pronunciation key. Most libraries will want to own it as well as Lauber's The News about Dinosaurs (1989) and Dinosaurs Walked Here and Other Stories Fossils Tell (1987, both Bradbury). --Denia Lewis Hester, Dewey School, Evanston, IL (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
This fitting companion to these collaborators' The News About Dinosaurs vividly recreates life 75 million years ago on a site near the present state of Montana. With almost novelistic narrative skill and a You Are Ther e immediacy, Lauber explores the habitats and habits of a variety of prehistoric life forms. In three chapters, she focuses on environment and ecosystems in and around the sea, the swamps and lowland areas and the more heavily forested uplands. The detailed text is paired with striking mixed-media illustrations; some have been created by Henderson for this book, others are reproductions of works in the Museum of the Rockies. An afterword, ``How We Know What We Know,'' offers intriguing insights into the origins of fossilized remains and methods of current scientific investigations. Numerous colorful maps and a useful index with pronunciations round out this informative and entertaining work. Ages 6-10. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Gr. 3-7. Dinosaurs are monsters that really lived right here. With accuracy and beauty, eminent science writer Lauber and artist Henderson recreate what it was like in Montana about 75 million years ago. A warm, shallow sea cuts North America in two, the Rocky Mountains are being born, dinosaurs rule the land, and other creatures share it with them. Henderson did some of the illustrations for Lauber's The News about Dinosaurs [Mr 1 89]. His full- and half-page paintings in a number of media including pastels and gouache combine misty and darkly brooding landscapes with startling dramatic focus on monster-like animals (no one will forget the fearsome plant-eating styracosaurus with three horns and a blue spiked neck frill). Careful captions and text distinguish what is known (back then, birds had teeth; there was no grass anywhere on earth) from what is surmised. There's the usual magical litany of creatures' names--hypsilophodonts, Maiasaura duckbill--and factual information about how they lived in three main habitats of beach, lowland swamp, and uplands. Best of all is the last chapter about fossils, which explains how we know everything that's been discussed so far--how fossils formed, how we find them, and what amazing things they can tell us. This is exciting science. ~--Hazel Rochman