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The Dinosaurs: A Fantastic New View of a Lost Era
Drawings and commentary describe the world of the dinosaur and how dinosaurs moved, ate, lived, and died
176 pages, Hardcover
First published November 1, 1981
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 24, 2022
This book is basically a show case of William Stouts dinosaur paintings and illustrations put into an educational format. There are a lot of amazing illustrations, several hundred I would guess, so this was obviously a labor of love by Stout. The accompanying text starts off with some basic history but for the most part it's like a collection of very short stories based upon day to day activities in the life of various dinosaurs. I'm sure some of this is based on fossil remains, but most of descriptions of their behavior must be pure speculation. The factual information was very well presented and at a level that puts this above the initial perception that is is a children's book. The latin names of the dinosaurs and their different classifications gets very complex and I found myself skipping over some of this.
A great book even if you only pick it up to look at the pictures. Somewhat spoiled if you actually read all the text. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for Goodreads.
A great book even if you only pick it up to look at the pictures. Somewhat spoiled if you actually read all the text. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for Goodreads.
July 8, 2013
Perhaps the most beautiful dinosaur book ever published.
This is not a book of facts and information dumps (though there are sections with plenty of them, not to mention fact-delivering captions) but instead a combination of art and prose that carries the reader straight into the Mesozoic. William Stout created hundreds of illustrations of dinosaurs feeding, fighting, mating, resting, itching, pooping, hatching, moving, and sleeping. Stout created quiet moments, as well as violent ones, using all manner of drawing and painting media to create his images. (One of the fun things about the book is that, those familiar with art history and famous illustrators from "The Golden Age" will notice Stout paid homage to artists in various pictures. Here's a Triceratops that evokes Harry Clarke. There is a Longisquama ala Hiroshige, an Arthur Rackham Chasmosaurus, and so on.)
The prose, too, is lovely. The late William Service wrote stories to accompany each illustration. It's easy to focus on Stout's pictures, but the words are lovely, too, and just as evocative. Service's words carry the illustrations beyond moments-in-time into paleontological short stories with characters and emotion. It's nature-writing at its best.
Maybe I'm gushing. This was my favorite book as a child, and I still know almost every page by heart. It was a huge part of my childhood, both in a fueling a young passion for all things prehistoric as well as artistic. Looking at it today, one can see that some of the images are out of date or inaccurate--none of the dinosaurs have feathers, most of them are very boney with their ribs showing, and a couple reconstructions were made with guesswork later proven to be wrong. (I'm sure Stout would admit as much, and his more recent dinosaur books and murals prove he has kept up with paleo-news.) But for this reader, the inaccuracies do not detract from the dynamic and exciting world that Stout and Service created.
This is not a book of facts and information dumps (though there are sections with plenty of them, not to mention fact-delivering captions) but instead a combination of art and prose that carries the reader straight into the Mesozoic. William Stout created hundreds of illustrations of dinosaurs feeding, fighting, mating, resting, itching, pooping, hatching, moving, and sleeping. Stout created quiet moments, as well as violent ones, using all manner of drawing and painting media to create his images. (One of the fun things about the book is that, those familiar with art history and famous illustrators from "The Golden Age" will notice Stout paid homage to artists in various pictures. Here's a Triceratops that evokes Harry Clarke. There is a Longisquama ala Hiroshige, an Arthur Rackham Chasmosaurus, and so on.)
The prose, too, is lovely. The late William Service wrote stories to accompany each illustration. It's easy to focus on Stout's pictures, but the words are lovely, too, and just as evocative. Service's words carry the illustrations beyond moments-in-time into paleontological short stories with characters and emotion. It's nature-writing at its best.
Maybe I'm gushing. This was my favorite book as a child, and I still know almost every page by heart. It was a huge part of my childhood, both in a fueling a young passion for all things prehistoric as well as artistic. Looking at it today, one can see that some of the images are out of date or inaccurate--none of the dinosaurs have feathers, most of them are very boney with their ribs showing, and a couple reconstructions were made with guesswork later proven to be wrong. (I'm sure Stout would admit as much, and his more recent dinosaur books and murals prove he has kept up with paleo-news.) But for this reader, the inaccuracies do not detract from the dynamic and exciting world that Stout and Service created.
March 15, 2009
I'm shelving this with the non-fiction because it seems to be meant to be informative, although this is really a collection of short stories about the lives of dinosaurs.
I received this as a gift as a child, back in my dinosaur-fanatic days. I loved it for the illustrations. Some of them were very beautiful in a way I'd never imagined dinosaurs to be. Others were violent and disgusting, while the drawings at the end seemed to be factual. Any dinosaur I could ever imagine was in this book. In fact, there were images of dinosaurs I could never imagine. There is a story entitled "Bathroom Habits" with accompanying illustration. Also another about mating season.
Is this appropriate for children? It really is more of an adult book. I never even read the stories until I was in middle school or high school, and some of the subject matter... well, see the above. Was I scarred for life? No. The illustrations are great and would inspire any young paleontologist. And the "Bathroom Habits" illustration gave me many good laughs over the years.
I received this as a gift as a child, back in my dinosaur-fanatic days. I loved it for the illustrations. Some of them were very beautiful in a way I'd never imagined dinosaurs to be. Others were violent and disgusting, while the drawings at the end seemed to be factual. Any dinosaur I could ever imagine was in this book. In fact, there were images of dinosaurs I could never imagine. There is a story entitled "Bathroom Habits" with accompanying illustration. Also another about mating season.
Is this appropriate for children? It really is more of an adult book. I never even read the stories until I was in middle school or high school, and some of the subject matter... well, see the above. Was I scarred for life? No. The illustrations are great and would inspire any young paleontologist. And the "Bathroom Habits" illustration gave me many good laughs over the years.
February 4, 2022
The illustrations are amazing.
The end that discusses modern day endangered species due to humans (particularly climate change) is especially sad given that the book was written in 1981, so we've had well over 30 years to avoid the tragic situation we're in now.
The end that discusses modern day endangered species due to humans (particularly climate change) is especially sad given that the book was written in 1981, so we've had well over 30 years to avoid the tragic situation we're in now.
skimmed
February 14, 2020This came in a lot I bought on eBay of beautifully illustrated books. It wasn’t one of the ones that inspired me to buy the lot, but it is beautifully illustrated. Published in 1981, it’s full of information sure to please any young dinosaur fan. I was going to read it, but didn’t get far past the brief foreword by Ray Bradbury before I realized I’m just not that interested in dinosaurs. So this will be moving on to a new home where someone will no doubt enjoy it more. I did enjoy flipping through.
March 28, 2019
Splendido libro, che tra storie e illustrazioni meravigliose fa rivivere i dinosauri! L'ho letto da bambino ed è uno di quelli che più ha influenzato la mia vita.
Want to read
March 12, 2011This looks like the neighbor's dinosaur book I drooled over as a kid...I must find out...
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews