Customer Reviews

The Ultimate Dinosaur Book

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I received this book in 1996,it was the most complete and updated,non-technical book available on dinosaurs,so at that time,much of the information contained was new to me and accurate. After that year,my interest in dinos sank and did not returned until quite recently,so I did not had my eyes focused on paleontology. But when I read about new dinosaur discoveries on the net,like the feathered Sinsauropteryx,the value of this book sank immidiatley.
For example,Seismosaurus is no longer considered the world`s longest dinosaur - it has been replaced by Argentinosaurus. And T-rex is neither considered the world`s largest meat-eater any more - it has been replaced by two others as well.
So,if you want an accurate book,this is not the right one.
It will provide the dinosaur-loving children the wrong information!
But now,I won`t let this review be occupied only by the negative comments. It does have some light sides too!
For example,it provides very usefull information on dinosaur classification. Each group (theropods,sauropods,ornithopods,armored & ceratopians)is presented in detail,with a few species from each,the theropods beeing represented by most. All of the most popular are presented in at least two pages,some times five. Some of those are Iguanodon,T-rex,Triceratops,Stegosaurus,and Apatosaurus.
There are lots of good illustrations of skeletons,as well as drawings of what they might looked like in life,and at last,models of them.There is also some fast facts corner on each dinosaur. Here,the most important facts are covered,like size,when it lived,family and order,distribution,food,etc.
At the back of the book,there is also a quite accurate index of all 638 dinosaur genera described at that time,and if there are any synonyms,like Dynamosaurus,there is always a "=" which refers to the right name of the dinosaur.
So,my final word about this book is,it is great,but wait until there comes out a revised edition before buying it.
But if you want a suitable book,not too childish or not to technical either,this is the perfect one!

I bought the book so that I can teach my 5 year old son more about dinosaurs. He becomes fascinated with dinosaurs after watching Jurassic Park and its sequel Lost World. After reading the book, I found I have learnt a lot. The book, true to what its title claims, is ultimate in that it starts from how the Earth was formed, the periods during which different types of dinosaurs flourished; how the dinosaurs evolved and extinguished; how the fossils were formed through to how they were discovered. It also features classification of the dinosaurs. The colorful illustrations also include the dinosaurs (e.g. Mamenchisaurus which had got the longest neck among all the dinosaurs) unearthed in China.

I have passed on the knowledge to my son who can now identify more than 20 types of dinosaurs and can tell the difference between a Brachiosaurus from a Diplodocus. He has also been able to draw a lively T-Rex. My daughter is just 2 years old and I can't wait for her to grow up so that I can tell her more about dinosaurs.

My son has fallen in love with this book at the age of 2 and still (2 years later) it's his favoutite.The quality of illustrations, the lifelike expressions of dinosaur's faces - everything is superb. If you do not mind your kid's fist words to be T.Rex instead of mammy -buy it!

My 3 year old son and I have been poring over this book ever since he got it three weeks ago. The illustrations and photos are absolutely fabulous. Each page contains a wealth of information about each of the 50 or so featured dinosaurs, and an extensive index in the back provides a small blurb about hundreds more.

We go through several pages a night, reading different portions of each page, learning about a different aspect of each dinosaur. My son has already memorized where his favorite dinosaurs reside in the book, and the book is sturdy enough to handle his rapid and not-to-gentle page-turning.

I know this one will be a favorite for a long time. I recommend it for anyone of any age who loves dinosaurs.

This was the perfect book for a dinosaur enthusiast, it has just the right mix of information and pictures, and its at the right level for someone like me who already knew the basics about dinosaurs.

The bulk of the book is a series of features about some very cool dinosaurs like Deinoychus, Baryonyx and of course, T-Rex.

This book is cool, with lots of good information. If you like dinosaurs, get it!! Maybe its just me though, cause I think Dinosaurs were the coolest things in the universe.

I enjoyed it very much. It was informative and gave alot of good information.

A very good book. The book provides a lot of info on dinosaurs. the A to Z section gives brief descriptions of many dinosaurs. I especially love the page about spinosaurus

A very good book. The book provides a lot of info on dinosaurs. the A to Z section gives brief descriptions of many dinosaurs. I especially love the page about spinosaurus

I leaned it does not matter what the subject is,it matters what you read.I like this book because...it tells about my favorite subject DINOSAURS.