Dinosaur Time by Michael Foreman

Dinosaur Time by Michael Foreman
Buy Dinosaur Time by Michael Foreman at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: For Sharing
Reviewer: Keith Dudhnath
Summary: A fairly standard time-travel and dinosaurs book - great for dino fans, but lacking a spark for general reading. Not Foreman's best.
Buy? Maybe	Borrow? Maybe
Pages: 32	Date: July 2010
Publisher: Andersen Press
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-1849390477
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Tom's mum has just bought a new timer for the kitchen. It's not a toy, so she tells Tom not to touch it. However, there's a little blue light winking at him, so he can't really help himself. He reaches out and... finds himself whisked back in time.

Dinosaur fans will love Dinosaur Time. If you're lapping up everything remotely dinosaur-related, then this'll be the book for you - in fact, you'll just have seen the D-word and grabbed it with both hands. For those who have just a passing interest in dinosaurs, I'm afraid it's a little disappointing. Tom gets whisked back in time, runs away from dinosaurs, then remembers how to get home. There's a little twist in the tail, but by and large, there's nothing to separate it from every other time travelling tale involving dinosaurs. I don't mind simple, I don't mind rediscovering classic themes, but if you asked any kid to write a story about time travel, this is the story they'd write. Dinosaur Time should have more going for it.

Michael Foreman's illustrations are as lovely as ever. Tom's a sweet kid, the dinosaurs are appropriately scary and interesting without being terrifying, and the prehistoric world looks like a wonderful place to explore. I'd happily pore over his illustrations all the time. No complaints there at all.

I recently loved another dinosaur book by him - The Littlest Dinosaur and the Naughty Rock by Camilla Reid and Michael Foreman. He's done much, much better than Dinosaur Time, for example War Game by Michael Foreman and A Child's Garden: A Story Of Hope by Michael Foreman. When he's at the top of his game, his books are an absolute joy to read, but Dinosaur Time doesn't live up to the high standards he sets. Dino fans will ignore all that and love it anyway!

My thanks to the publishers for sending it to Bookbag.

The aforementioned The Littlest Dinosaur and the Naughty Rock by Camilla Reid and Michael Foreman is a great place to start for further reading. Stone Age Boy by Satoshi Kitamura is a time-travelling book that didn't do much for me when I first read it, but it's grown in my estimation over time. Tyrannosaurus Drip by Julia Donaldson and The Dirty Great Dinosaur by Martin Waddell and Leonie Lord are super for kids lapping up all things prehistoric.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Dinosaur Time by Michael Foreman at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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