From Publishers Weekly
A kangaroo and a kakuru form one of many eye-catching pairs among these engaging comparisons of modern-day animals and dinosaurs. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 1-3 It helps, when studying dinosaurs, to have a good imagination and an inquisitive mind. Since most young children are well-equipped with both imagination and curiosity, it's refreshing to find a dinosaur book whose premise emphasizes imaginative hypothesizing over dry bones and dull facts. Unfortunately, this book doesn't quite pull it off. The premise is good; to help children understand dinosaurs, Dinosaurs Cousins? compares dinosaurs to animals that are living now. For example, the well-armored ankylosaurus is compared to a modern-day armadillo, while a duck-billed dinosaur gets matched up with (what else?) a duck-billed duck. The problem is that the book doesn't always clearly differentiate between scientific fact and/or hypothesis, and imaginative fancy. The aforementioned comparison of ducks and duck-billed dinosaurs is a case in point; yes, scientists now believe birds are related to dinosaurs, but not necessarily because both have duck bills. The illustrations confuse the issue even further; duck-billed dinosaurs are shown with the same coloring as the ducks; and drawings of a rhino and a triceratops are almost indistinguishable. True, a child might not notice or care, but books such as Aliki's My Visit to the Dinosaurs (Crowell, 1985) and Carrick's Patrick's Dinosaur (Houghton, 1983) are clearer in both their purpose and their intent. Cathryn A. Camper, Minneapolis Pub . Lib .
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.