Dinosaur Lady

by Linda Skeers

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Dinosaur Lady is an illustrated biography of Mary Anning, a fossilist who is widely regarded as one of the first paleontologists helping to define the discipline in addition to making significant contributions and discoveries. Due out 7th July 2020 from Sourcebooks, it's 40 pages and will be available in hardcover and ebook formats.

I love children's nonfiction. This is a well written, factually based, beautifully illustrated biography aimed at younger readers (~4-8 years of age) which manages to provide a kid-friendly version of Anning's often frustrating and impoverished life. She was rejected by the scientific establishment at the same time they were acknowledging her as an expert in her field. The book gleefully provides the information that she correctly identified coprolites as fossilized feces as well as identifying fossilized ink sacs from early cephalopods (squids).

The text is age appropriate and engaging. The art is beautifully rendered and supports the text very well. This is definitely a book which would grab the interest of most kids. I found it interesting and learned quite a lot of information of which I was previously unaware.

The book includes an abbreviated timeline of Anning's discoveries and contributions along with contemporary occurrences as well as a short glossary.

Five stars. This would make a great selection for a classroom or public library, as well as the child's home library or a gift.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes