Customer Reviews

The Dinosaur Papers: 1676-1906

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was walking through the bookstore when what to my wondering eyes should appear but this volume. It was sealed, but I snatched it up despite the pricetag due to the anticipation of what the title suggested.

When I opened it, I almost dropped in shock. Here in my little hands were Mantell's paper on Iguanadon and Buckland's on Megalosaurus. And that was just two of the appetizers.

Not impressed yet? How about a salad-or-soup course of Leidy's description of Hadrosaurus? Feel like a main course of Dollo's papers on the Iguanadons of Bernissart, dressed with Seeley's discussion of Archaeopteryx? You can choose between a side dish of Marsh's reconstructions of Trike and Stego. And for dessert? Osborn on Brown's discovery of T-Rex.

These are papers of legend that you may have heard about in summaries of Dinosaur history but never thought you'd ever see released to the general public - and there are even more than those I've mentioned. Did I also mention that they also come with the original drawings included?

This is a no-brainer that everyone with more than a passing interest in dinosaurs should have in their library. The only reason I left a star off was the lack of a useful tool - there are no side or foot notes to inform you when science has proven these papers wrong, although Weishampel's chapter intros do clarify some points. But then, if this book is of interest to you, you're presumably pretty much updated anyway.

This is a great work in that it outlines in great historical detail how we as dinosaur vertebrate paleontologists got to where we are today. It is great to study the details of specific "Dragon Bones", but it means so much more when you can appreciate on whose shoulders we now stand. Also very richly illustrated with the original artwork. It really puts things in perspective.

How great to have these historic documents available.

I can only emphasize what "kellyanni" said in an earlier review:

"This is a no-brainer that everyone with more than a passing interest in dinosaurs should have in their library. The only reason I left a star off was the lack of a useful tool - there are no side or foot notes to inform you when science has proven these papers wrong, although Weishampel's chapter intros do clarify some points. But then, if this book is of interest to you, you're presumably pretty much updated anyway."