Douglas Florian

Bibliography:

Florian, Douglas. 2009. Dinothesaurus: Prehistoric Poems and Paintings. New York: Atheneum Books. ISBN: 9781416979784

Review:

Douglas Florian has written a book of poetry about one topic that everyone loves- Dinosaurs! This book of 20 poems will delight students of all ages. The first poem titled: “The Age of Dinosaurs” serves as an introduction to the different periods of time that dinosaurs lived: Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous. The last poem, “The End of Dinosaurs”, explores the theories behind the dinosaurs demise. In between there are 18 poems about specific dinosaurs. Poems include the most commonly know dinosaurs such as the T-Rex and Triceratops to the more obscure such as the Baryonyx. Florian used rhyme and humor liberally throughout the book. Students will love reading these poems aloud. The poems are very concrete and will be understood by the youngest of readers. Each poem has a pronunciation guide (very helpful!) and the meaning of each dinosaurs name. Also included is a table of contents, a “glossarysaurs”, a list of dinosaur museums and fossil sites and a bibliography. Florian uses brown paper bags as the background and “gouache, collage, colored pencils, stencils, rubber stamps and “dinosaur dust” to illustrate the poems. Huge, full page spreads use muted colors and unexpected details to compliment the poems perfectly.

Poem Selection:

All of the poems are fantastic and fun. This is a great book to share with students who are interested in dinosaurs. Of course, most dinosaur books are in the nonfiction section 567 of the library. This book is perfect for sharing how poetry books can be about specific subjects that students love and introducing students to the poetry section of the library as well. Librarians and teachers could collaborate to have students do a research project on a specific dinosaur. Then share Dinothesaurus: Prehistoric Poems and Paintings as an introduction to the specific dinosaurs. Be sure to point out the glossary, bibliography and special features of the book and how they can aid students who are researching.

Triceratops
try-SAIR-a-tops (three-horned face)

Triceratops.
Try-scare-a-tops.
Try-wouldn't-want-to-dare-a-tops.
Triceratops.
Try-stare-a-tops.
Beware-and-please-take-care-a-tops.
Born with three great horns in place,
Triceratops was in your face.

http://floriancafe.blogspot.com/2009/04/4th-starred-review.html