The ancient Chinese thought they were magical dragons.Scientists thought they could only float on water since they wereso big. Boy, were they wrong Even today, notions about dinosaursare being revised as new discoveries are made. This lively bookoffers fascinating insight into how certain theories wereformulated, and then how those theories were proved ordisproved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* K-Gr. 3. What could be more heartening to childrenthan the unabashed admission that grown-ups make mistakes? Sciencehas had its share of theories once accepted as fact but latersuperseded, and the mystery of dinosaur fossils seems to havebrought out the imaginative side of scientists. Beginning with theancient Chinese, who decided that dinosaur fossils came fromdragons that still lived, the story fast-forwards tonineteenth-century scientists, who guessed that Iguanodon'ssharp, conical bone was a spike on its head, rather than a spur onits hand. One mistaken idea after another is examined andillustrated with an ink drawing juxtaposed against a single-colorbackground. Further information comes to light, and the informationis corrected on a page showing a dinosaur drawing tinted withfull-color washes. Intelligently designed and imaginativelyconceived, the artwork makes the text more understandable and thewhole book more beautiful. It also reflects the outlook of thetext, portraying the scientists of each generation as earnest,sometimes puzzled searchers who did the best they could with theevidence available. The ending returns to the Chinese beliefs,stating that if birds are the descendants of dinosaurs, then theystill live. Best of all, the closing paragraph acknowledges thatthe search is not over yet: the children fascinated by this bookmay one day find new answers to old questions about the dinosaurs.Carolyn Phelan
Copyright ? American Library Association. All rightsreserved

From School Library Journal
Grade 2-4–Kudlinski presents a number of early dino theories–aspike on the nose of the Iguanodon, drawings that depicteddinosaurs dragging their tails in the mud and running on spraddled,lizardlike legs–and shows, in her simple text, how furtherdiscoveries disproved these, and other, assumptions. She includesdata on present-day concerns with such topics as scales andfeathers, coloration, and infant care. She discusses the demise ofthe dinosaurs, the probable evolution of birds, and the fact thatsome books still on library shelves and even for sale in bookstoresmay be promulgating old, disproved theories. One small carp:lizards do not just lay their eggs on the ground, then leave. Theytend to dig holes or provide other shelter for their eggs first,and then, yes, they leave. Graced with colorful, realisticillustrations that reflect the text, this book is simple,attractive, and informative, and a take-off point for a discussionon the scientific method.–Patricia Manning, formerly atEastchester Public Library, NY
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