There is something magical about dinosaurs, these amazing animals that look like the dragons of make-believe but lived millions and millions of years ago. I have always been fascinated with dinosaurs and was one of the first to go out and see Jurassic Park (and got scared silly!). Now I have a little boy who has shown a little bit of interest in dinosaurs so I am flooding him with dino toys, The Land Before Time movies and of course dinosaur books. Now if you put a dinosaur in the story, my son will listen for hours. Yolen and Teague have hit on a bit of a winner here with their How Do Dinosaurs series.
The basic story progression is similar with each of the stories where questions are asked such as “How do dinosaurs say goodnight” and the story suggests ways in which the dinosaur may respond that are negative or naughty. The second half of the book asserts that he doesn't do this and goes on to say how the dinosaur reacts positively to the given situation. It is soon evident that the dinosaur is a metaphor for a child, especially since all the dinosaurs parents are people.
Mark Teague's illustrations are bright and large. Into each page he has incorporated the name of the type of dinosaur in the illustration, which is great for little dinosaur experts.
The series so far includes 16 different titles such as:
How do Dinosaurs Play With Their Friends
How do Dinosaurs Say I Love You
How do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food
How do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight
How do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms
How do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon
How do Dinosaurs Go to School
The stories are lovely though at times seem a little too directed at getting the correct behaviour for kids. I wonder whether kids realize that the story is trying to socialize them into the correct behaviours or if they enjoy the naughty dinosaurs.
Reccommended for ages 4 -6. 7/10
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