ALA Booklist
(Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 CST 2017)
Tyrannosaurus rex may be the biggest, scariest (and probably the only) tyrannosaur you can name, but this book sets out to change that. After leading off with T. rex, it briefly introduces 10 more species of tyrannosaurs through naturalistic looking digital illustrations, information on where and when their fossils were discovered, time lines for species, and phonetic spellings of their names. Stewart's concise text describes the public reaction when the first T. rex skeleton was displayed in 1915, as well as the 2014 discovery in China of a new tyrannosaur. On some pages, "Dr. Steve Says" boxes offer comments from coauthor Brusatte, a paleontologist who consulted with the Chinese scientists on their find and confirmed that it was a new tyrannosaur (popularly known as Pinocchio rex). Csotonyi, a natural-history illustrator, contributes colorful scenes showing scientists at work or dinosaurs in the wild, as well as sepia-toned portraits of tyrannosaurs. An appended hands-on activity challenges kids to compare relative tyrannosaur sizes through chalk drawings on a paved playground. A lively addition to the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series.
Kirkus Reviews
Tyrannosaurus rex poses with 10 recently discovered relatives in this toothy portrait gallery.Speaking as "Dr. Steve," co-author Brusatte—paleontologist and tyrannosaur lover—explains to young dinomanes how the titular tyranno (formally dubbed Qianzhousaurus, nicknamed for its long nose) was unearthed and reconstructed before going on to introduce nine other 21st-century discoveries. Each comes with a general description, a "fact file" of basic statistics, a collective timeline that neatly groups contemporaries, and a realistically posed and rendered individual portrait in a natural setting. Following a simple but effective activity involving chalk, a tape measure, and a very large expanse of concrete, an equally cogent infographic at the end illustrates size extremes in this prehistoric clan by juxtaposing images of a human child, a like-sized Kileskus, a full size T. Rex, and a (slightly smaller) school bus. The dinos display a wide range of coloration and skin and feather patterns as well as distinctive crests or other physical features, but Dr. Steve, who is white, is the only individualized human figure until a closing album of snapshot photos.A winning, and necessary, update to Kathleen Zoehfeld's Terrible Tyrannosaurs (2001, illustrated by Lucia Washburn). (pronunciation guide, glossary, museum list) (Informational picture book. 6-8)
Horn Book
(Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)
Readers familiar with T. rex are introduced to other members of the tyrannsaurids family, including Qianzhousaurus, or Pinocchio rex, a long-snouted dinosaur recently identified by paleontolgist co-author Brusatte. Each is portrayed on an overly busy layout that includes a main illustration of the dinosaur in its habitat, framed by a field guidelike "fact file" box, timeline, and sidebar quote from "Dr. Steve." Glos.