I DREAMT I WAS A DINOSAUR

Blackstone uses her old standby style of inconsistent rhyming verse to describe the beasts a young boy met when he dreamt he was a dinosaur. The animals are anthropomorphized with names, and little is to be learned about them from the text itself, which lacks a storyline: “Here is Sammy Stegosaurus / Busy foraging for food. / He likes Kay Camarasaurus, / But she’s in a grumpy mood.” While not all the dinosaurs are identified within the text, there is picture dictionary in the back with a pronunciation key and a few facts about each prehistoric beast. Beaton’s illustrations are what make this stand out from others on the shelf. They are a collection of materials: Felt makes up the dinosaurs and backgrounds, with antique fabrics, sequins, beads, buttons and bric-a-brac lending details. Children will take pleasure in identifying the various materials, as well as the textural element their inclusion adds to the pictures. Enjoyable for the illustrations, not for the mediocre text. (Picture book. 2-4)