ALA Booklist (Thu Jun 01 00:00:00 CDT 2006)

The focus of this second entry in the Encyclopedia Prehistorica series of pop-up informational books, which began with Dinosaurs (2005), is not as narrow as the title suggests. An overview of the Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic eras starts things off, and the lively facts about high-profile predators (a massive megalodon could "swallow a hippopotamus whole") are interspersed with information about not particularly monstrous creatures and sidebars about paleontological research. The pops, however, are the main event. On one spread, a gape-mouthed shark plunges toward unsuspecting readers; on another, frosted plastic mimics the ocean's surface. Gatefolds and inset minibooks expand the capacity of the book's seven spreads. Unfortunately, the paper sculptures occasionally obscure the text or catch on the booklets' pages, the artwork often lacks identifying captions, and some of the creatures are introduced without referencing their proper time period. But even if children find the details difficult to synthesize, the sheer wonder generated by the collaborators' dimensional sleight-of-hand will more than justify purchase.

Horn Book (Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2006)

This second Encyclopedia Prehistorica volume is broadly divided into geologic eras and takes readers into the sea to marvel at prehistoric marine creatures. A large and colorful pop-up dominates each of six double-page spreads; smaller booklets on every page offer further informative and creatively represented images. Each pop-up is accompanied by brief and intriguing factual descriptions.

School Library Journal

Gr 1-5-This companion to Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Dinosaurs (Candlewick, 2005) uses equally amazing pop-up illustrations to introduce a fascinating array of ancient sea creatures. From the creepy-crawly invertebrates of the Paleozoic Era to the toothy reptiles of the Mesozoic to the mammoth mammals of the Cenozoic, the enjoyably chatty text offers brief sketches of the changing environment and its inhabitants. The colorful spreads feature large, often breathtaking paper-engineered renderings of prehistoric species, supplemented by smaller, booklike foldouts that provide additional information along with more visual fireworks. Readers will meet a feisty pterygotus (a lobster look-alike that grew to seven feet), an eight-ton sarcosuchus (a crocodilian with a "horrendous overbite, and-nearly 100 teeth, some the size of railroad spikes!"), and a massive megalodon (a shark ancestor with jaws that "could open wide enough to swallow a hippopotamus whole"). Spectacular effects include a three-dimensional kronosaurus skeleton with intricately sculpted vertebrae, tinted plastic inserts that evoke murky underwater scenes, and an action-packed, pop-up battle between two long-necked behemoths. There is not much detail here, but the authors do include amusing tidbits about outlandish fossil hunters and references to legendary monsters (Kraken, giant sea snakes, etc). Fun from cover to cover, this attention-grabbing offering will captivate readers, despite its delicate structure and limited shelf life.-Joy Fleishhacker, School Library Journal Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.