Review #7: Dinothesaurus: Prehistoric Poems and Paintings

Bibliography

Florian, Douglas.  2009.   DINOTHESAURUS:  PREHISTORIC POEMS AND PAINTINGS.  New York, NY:  Simon & Schuster.  ISBN 9781416979784

Plot Summary

Writer/illustrator Florian presents a series of poems describing 18 species of dinosaur.  These are bookended with brief poems on “The Age of Dinosaurs” and “The End of Dinosaurs” that serve, respectively, as a kind of introduction and coda.  A two-page “Glossarysaurus” at the end gives further information on the subjects of each poem.  Also at the end are a page of entries on several notable dinosaur museums in North America and several suggestions for further reading.

Critical Analysis

The rhyming poems have a delightfully humorous quality and wordplay reminiscent of the poems of Ogden Nash (“The pterrifying pterosaurs/Flew ptours the ptime of dinosaurs.”).  Each dinosaur poem is named for its featured species, with a pronunciation guide and translation of the creature’s scientific name below the title.  From 4 to 12 lines in length, each poem highlights a particular noteworthy aspect of the dinosaur species—the 3 horns of Triceratops, the massive head of Stegoceras, etc. 

Each poem has a two-page spread illustration.  The illustrations are done in gouache, collage, colored pencils, stencils, “dinosaur dust,” and rubber stamps.  In some illustrations children or objects are used to give some idea of the dinosaur’s scale.  Different media and graphic designs are used in different illustrations.  The art is interesting and varied, but is not realistic and gives only a vague idea of what many of the dinosaurs are supposed to have looked like.

The brief entries in the “Glossarysaurus” and the notes on museums and further reading are accessibly written and informative.  The book might be okay for reading aloud to small children, but would be best for older readers.  Dinosaur-loving children should love it, and might be stimulated to learn more about dinosaurs on their own.

Review Excerpts

“Florian’s art—in gouache, collage, colored pencil, stencils, etc.—is gorgeous and fun.”  NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

“This smart marriage of dinosaurs and poetry will delight a wide audience.”  SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL

Connections

Note how some of the illustrations illustrate figures of speech in the poems.  Have students make drawings of figures of speech they know.

Other early books of animal poems:

Alarcon, Francisco X.  ANIMAL POEMS OF THE IGUAZU.  ISBN 9780892392254

Florian, Douglas.  ZOO’S WHO.  ISBN 0152046399

Rosen, Michael.  THE CUCKOO’S HAIKU.  ISBN 9780763630492