Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

ディノサン [Dinosan] #5

Dinosaur Sanctuary, Vol. 5

Rate this book
RELATIONSHIPS ARE COMPLICATED—BOTH HUMAN AND DINO!

Suzume is getting to know ankylosaur section head Katase Shogo. They’re the same age, so they should get along, right? Wrong... Can Suzume keep from butting heads with him until it’s time for her to move on to ceratopsians? The humans aren’t the only ones with drama on their hands at Enoshima Dinoland, either! Centrosaurus sweethearts Umeko and Shoukichi are going through ordeals of their own...

200 pages, Paperback

First published December 8, 2023

15 people are currently reading
176 people want to read

About the author

Itaru Kinoshita

9 books33 followers

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
225 (42%)
4 stars
234 (44%)
3 stars
60 (11%)
2 stars
6 (1%)
1 star
0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
Profile Image for kristyn ˏˋ°•*⁀➷.
619 reviews169 followers
July 5, 2025
"the love you feel for dinosaurs is all yours, sakura-chan. i want you to value that feeling more."

who knew that a throw away line in a teen manga about dinosaurs would be some of the most solid advice i've ever heard.
Profile Image for mikaela (spinebreaker).
1,382 reviews61 followers
December 9, 2024
Continues to be an enjoyable and informative series. This one felt a little more fact-driven than the others, but I really liked seeing some of Shiranui's backstory toward the end.
Profile Image for Wordsworn.
301 reviews53 followers
November 20, 2024
DR. SHIRANUI REN, MY BELOVED~!!! This volume was great because I really enjoyed getting more backstory for him, to explain a bit why he is the way that he is. (Of course, I think he's wonderful the way that he is. X'D)





(..........I KNOW this manga isn't about romance at ALL, it's about THE DINOSAURS and I am LOVING that so much......but also.......am I the only one who could really ship Shiranui and Suzume? X'D I know there's a probably 10ish year age gap, but...that seems true for Kaidou too, who is probably the one she'll canonly end up with, IF she ends up with anyone, and the main cast are all definitely adults, so...anyone else...? X'D)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for James DeSantis.
Author 17 books1,205 followers
April 9, 2025
Dinosaurs Sanctuary Volume 5 continues to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me. This Volume shifts the focus more onto the dinosaurs themselves, starting with the humorous predicament of an overweight Triceratops. What begins as a lighthearted and amusing situation quickly takes a darker turn, introducing a compelling backstory that adds depth to the character of the doctor.

The narrative strikes a great balance between fun and serious moments, with the latter adding a layer of emotional weight that enhances the overall storytelling. As always, the art is stunning, helping to elevate the series to new heights. Overall, it's a great addition to the Dinosaurs Sanctuary series, offering a perfect mix of levity and substance that makes me want volume 6 like it was yesterday. Come on Library!
Profile Image for Julia.
1,090 reviews15 followers
December 4, 2024
In this latest installment of the series, the dinokeeping staff host a tackle a visiting school group, treat an overweight centrosaur, and diagnose a malignant tumor. Though this book addresses a potentially serious condition, the series remains mostly low-stakes fluff. The matter-of-fact treatment of dinosaurs' very existence plays out like an episode of Secrets of the Zoo, making the reader wish it were real. I'll definitely continue the series for its palate-cleansing properties.
191 reviews
September 2, 2025
This might be the best one yet. we finally get the plot conflict that I've been begging for, along with the typically perfect artwork and information delivered in a fun way. On top of that, the authors epilogue gives some fantastic background information, such as the story's origin (which i would actually love to see as an alternative series) and the titles origin

This series makes me wish I was a paleontologist
Profile Image for Morgan.
57 reviews1 follower
December 5, 2024
Worth the wait, but not with a cliffhanger! I can't wait for the next volume to see if Umeko makes it okay and she's able to get back to her boyfriend!
Profile Image for Blake the Book Eater.
1,280 reviews410 followers
July 14, 2025
The love for dinosaurs is so pure and wholesome from every character. I only wish the main character got as much development as some of the dinosaurs!
Profile Image for Loveland.
133 reviews3 followers
December 26, 2024
there is some crazy magic in the sauce here because every volume is a slam dunk
Profile Image for Sunread26.
1,404 reviews2 followers
December 31, 2024
Chronique complète :
https://sunread26.wordpress.com/2024/...

Extrait :
Enfin un nouveau tome de Dinosan (nom original de la série) ! J’aime beaucoup celle-ci pour les efforts apportés aux designs mais aussi au récit pour que ça colle avec les dernières découvertes. D’ailleurs, si on en revient à la réalité, les scientifiques seront bientôt capables de faire « revenir » une espèce disparue, mais pas les dinosaures, ils sont bien trop vieux et leurs ADN sont trop abîmés. Mais des espèces disparues récemment, ça reste envisageable.

L’aventure c’était plutôt mal terminée dans le tome précédent, Suzume ayant beaucoup de mal avec Shogo. Il faut dire que leurs caractères sont bien différents et Shogo a peut-être un peu tendance à sous-estimer la quantité d’informations à retenir au début. Mais au final, Suzume continue de faire de son mieux et réussie à enregistrer les informations. Sans même s’en rendre compte, son comportement va également finir par influencer un peu Shogo. Il se rendra enfin compte qu’il a lui-même des limites. Je trouve que le métier de soigneur est très bien représenté dans la série, même si les animaux dont ils s’occupent sont différents. La réalité du métier est bien là, même si je ne pense pas que les enfants soient accueillis dans les zoos pour des stages d’une journée et qu’ils soient ravis de ramasser des excréments. Faire en sorte d’attirer encore et toujours du public ne semble pas évident, ce n’est pas comme un cinéma qui change de films régulièrement, les animaux sont souvent toujours les même. Malheureusement, ils ne changent que lorsqu’ils décèdent ou bien un problème de santé comme Masaru et sa corne. Je suis une grande amatrice de la faune (disparue ou non), donc j’avoue qu’un parc zoologique c’est toujours très plaisant à visiter (même si certains coûtent assez cher). Même les parties les plus simples, comme une serre à papillon était un ravissement pour les yeux ! Je me demande s’ils ont des dinosaures volants ? Ou si, comme pour les marins, il y a plutôt des zoos spécialisés qui leur sont dédiés.

Le point qui peut paraître dommage pour cette adaptation (et d’autres), c’est que seul les dinosaures sont présents. La végétation est souvent celle que l’on a actuellement, ce qui fait qu’on oublie qu’elle était également différente d’aujourd’hui. Etant donné que les dinosaures, dans le cas présent, ont été retrouvés vivant sur une île, on aurait pu avoir la même excuse pour les végétaux et ainsi parler de certains d’entre eux (tout comme certains insectes, etc…). Cette explication ressemble plus à une facilité scénaristique, car les dinosaures auraient irrémédiablement évolués, même en étant isolés sur une île. C’est le cas pour certaines espèces qui remontent à cette période mais qui reste encore proche des dinosaures. L’île aurait juste finie par développer des espèces endémiques, comme l’Australie ou toute autre île d’ailleurs. Les interventions du professeur dinosaure sont toujours très enrichissantes et il met cette fois-ci le doigt sur un point important. Cela concerne les études et le fait de devoir parfois aller très loin pour parvenir à faire le métier de nos rêves. Par exemple, quand je rêvais encore que je pouvais devenir soigneuse animalier, il n’y avait en France que trois écoles pour ce cursus (et peut de places au final), encore plus sélectif que médecine ! La série évoque aussi d’autres lieux, différents, où les dinosaures ont aussi une place importante. Le braconnage est également bien présent, pour rappeler que l’humain cherchera toujours à avoir des trophées exotiques… Heureusement que les cornes ou autres parties, ne sont pas considérées comme des aphrodisiaques ou comme un met culturel (comme les tortues ou baleine en voie d’extinction qu’on préfère continuer de chasser, plutôt que de les préserver…).

[...]
Profile Image for Halcyon.
144 reviews2 followers
July 31, 2025
Are you just like me and very tired of the Jurrasic-park franchise slop we get? In which every movie seems to feel the need to introduce a bigger, badder and more fucked up looking creature until it barely resembles a dinosaur anymore? Creatures that wouldn't look out of place as filler beings for a King Kong movie back on Skull Island?
Are you also tired of seeing dinosaurs being portrayed as psychopatic, murder and rage filled monsters that feel the need to fight and slay anything that might come in their vicinity?
And are you fascinated by the idea of a prehistoric park in general? Do you like slice of life?

So then I got the manga receipe for you:

-A bunch of actually diverse and interesting human characters.
-A whole dose of slice of life.
-Cool paleo facts, which try to be up to date
-the concept of a behind-the-zoo-look show
-Really gorgeous, lush and detailed art!
-Finally dino's and other prehistoric animals!

Mix and stir and let stew for a bit and poof, there you have it! Dinosaur Sanctuary is your manga.
We follow Suzume, a young and enthousiastic dino keeper who goes to work for one of the smaller parks. There, she learns the ropes of being a dino keeper and together with the audicience learns and sees a whole bunch of prehistoric creatures, from the small Troodon Benkei to the much larger and elderly Tyrannosaur Hanako.
In between her adventures we also catch a glimpse of other human characters. This volume has the story of Sakura, a young girl who absolutely adores dinosaurs and wants to become a dino keeper. Her grandad thinks she's getting to old for this and should become more girly, citing that dino's are more for boys. She attends a career day at the park and learns that dino's are for everybody and that she should keep on chasing her dream. (Something that we should tell people in reallife, sadly dino's seem to be associated with being a boy's thing for when they are like 3-7 or 8 max. Take a deep dive one afternoon in the subject and everybody can learn how cool and fascinating or outright bizarre they could be!) We also slowly learn some backstories from the other workers at the dino zoo and how they bond with eachother or why they do their job. (Bonus: no awfull fanservice with the female characters here!)
The animals themselves are also portrayed as accurate as possible for the time being and shown with different personalities. We have the earlier mentioned Hanako, the elderly T-rex, who despite her size and breed, is not a murderous killing machine but quite gentle. We have Benkei, a really smart Troodon who's an outsider from his own species and was raised by humans for the most part. There's Masaru, a triceratops who lost a horn and loafs like a cat. In a whole other park there's a mosasaur called Sophie, a Globidens specialized in eating shell fish and seems quite gentle despite her size.

I can go on and on, but seriously, read this if you enjoy slice of life, prehistoric stuff, pretty art and that shows how a dino zoo could have been operated.
Profile Image for 寿理 宮本.
2,487 reviews17 followers
May 25, 2025
I do like dinosaurs, still, but lately I've found that the more in-depth the discussion of them gets, the more I start to tune it out. That feels weird, for something I presumably like, but then I thought about if someone talked this in-depth about cats: the specifics of their breeds and digestive systems and how their bottoms need to be cleaned when they're newborns or they can't learn how to poop, etc.

Look, I just want to see and pet them, more than that goes in one ear and out the other.

So that becomes the perfect metric by which Sakura is definitely an ideal future dinosaur keeper, that she demonstrates such enthusiasm even for Poop Duty is a clear sign that she would do a fantastic job! Also, "dinosaurs are for boys"? Since when is ANY animal such a gendered thing? Are cats only for girls? Are dogs only for boys? Are horses only for girls? Heck, cowboys must've been so confused, being COWboys (vs. BULLboys), and men still comprise the majority of dairy farmers (do you get milk from MALE cattle?).

The rest of the book is here and there. It starts with a follow-up from the prior volume when Katase has been giving Suzume a hard time because she isn't as disciplined as he is—by which I mean he has exceedingly high standards that someone who has only relatively recently started being a keeper would be able to meet. He only realises his error when doing data entry and coming across a visitor survey that explains how Suzume stopped to help an elderly lady around the park, explaining her tardiness for him when he refused to let her explain herself.

The other major story is about two Centrosauruses and trying to get them to mate, but both have problems inhibiting the process: the male is overweight, and the female turns out to have bone cancer. This leads into Shiranui having a flashback to what the creator describes as the original idea of Dinosaur Sanctuary: a habitat where dinosaurs live freely vs. in a zoo but a bit less Jurassic Park and more wildlife preserve. I can see how the idea is neat but doesn't lend itself as easily to a long-running series (as Kinoshita describes in the bonus section), so it's nice to have even a short segment about it.

Also, dinosaur prosthesis? Neat!

Recommended for dinosaur lovers, but... maybe less so than the other volumes, for the fact of the dinosaur killed by poachers. :(
Profile Image for Becky B.
9,399 reviews186 followers
January 11, 2026
Suzume is trying to make the best of working with prickly Katase Shogo. But when one of the female Centrosaurus is diagnosed with a tumor in her leg, it definitely distracts Suzume and it has the vet wondering if he has chosen the best course of treatment or if his past is influencing him.

The vet’s past takes us to a more Jurassic World-type of zoo in Australia that’s open terrain with multiple species all together in a big area. The author shares he hopes he can get Suzume to travel to other zoos in the future, and I love that idea. Katase is not an easy person to work with but Suzume is unflappable and kind as ever. I found it very interesting that the dino with a cancer tumor plot was inspired by a find in a fossil.

Notes on content:
Language: A couple minor swears
Sexual content: None for humans. They are trying to get the Centrosaurus dinos to breed so they are talking about that a bit. It’s all technical and nothing worse than you’d see on a behind the scenes at a zoo show.
Violence: A past poaching incident in which the whole head of a dino was taken is shown after the event on page and it is a bit gory. Another dino dies of injuries and predation. There’s discussions of amputating the cancerous leg of the current dino.
Ethnic diversity: Characters are Japanese, Australian, and mixed Japanese/Australian.
LGBTQ+ content: None specified.
Other: Zoo staff haunted by whether or not they made the best decisions after an animal dies.
Profile Image for Midnight.
493 reviews1 follower
January 22, 2026
Well, Katase was still a douche, but at least he apologized for it. After he was done bad-mouthing her to all the other male coworkers. What a piece of work.

At least in this one, she, Suzume, spends most of her time training under Karin. The two of them get along really well, and there's some good dinosaur information in here.

While I find it a little irritating that there are random characters thrown in for no other reason than they like to go to the park, it got me to thinking. Maybe Suzume isn't the main character; maybe the park is. In that case, it would make sense for it to have story lines from people who work there and visit there. If not...

This one is pretty serious and takes a depressing turn, so just be ready for that.

Ren seems to be getting nicer...ish, and actually tries to include Suzume in the happenings.

The story as a whole is progressing, and it's easy to get sucked up in the life of the animals. You can imagine yourself as one of the keepers and the daily choices that have to be made. The drawings are nice, and the little details that give the dinos personality are cute.

*Why hasn't she gone back to the lab to see the dinosaur she cared for if it had imprinted on her as its mother?
Profile Image for Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads).
3,420 reviews181 followers
October 3, 2024
Series: Dinosaur Sanctuary #5
Rating: 4 stars - It was really good

In this volume we finish Suzume’s time working with Katase and learning about how to take care of citipati. In the end of the previous volume we see Suzume and Katase at odds but we see her come back the next day ready to work and apologize for her actions. I think its great that we are seeing growth in her and that she is able to accept her mistakes and learn from them. Katase also learns to not judge people so quickly, which is good.

We then move onto Suzume working with Kirishima again. The ceratopsian couple are still being watched over in the hopes of them breeding. But things are not going as expected because Umeko is sick and it’s serious. I was not expecting to be so emotionally upset by a dinosaur in a manga but I am. I hate that I have to wait until the next volume to find out what will happen next with Umeko and her future.

Overall, this was a very emotional volume but I enjoyed it. I continue to like that we are getting more backstory for the other characters and that Suzume isn’t the main focus all the time.

TW: animal with cancer
1,462 reviews44 followers
December 6, 2025
I feel like I've been enjoying the odd volumes of this more than the even ones, for some reason. This continued the pattern.

The dour supervisor from the end of the previous tankōbon is fairly quickly dealt with in a reasonably satisfying way, although if I were the mangaka's editor I'd probably have said just skip this one altogether. But it was nice to see .

Suzume then goes on to her next supervisor, Karin, whom we've seen from the beginning and they have immediate rapport. The story about the kid who wants to become a dino-keeper was very sweet and had good advice.

Then we come to the meaty multi-chapter episode, which is the case of a dinosaur with an uptightness comes from. We also learn that he's...Australian? And has a Japanese mother (but his surname is Japanese)? Anyway, it was quite interesting to see his backstory and how it applies.
Profile Image for Matt Glaviano.
1,441 reviews24 followers
October 23, 2024
3.5

It's nearly Ammo Night at the DinoPark. Love is in the air and you know what that means, don't you?

Graphically mating dinosaurs.

Is it just me or is it getting hot in here?

I don't have a problem with mating dinos, mind you. It's just a little surprising to turn a page and - bam, dinos going at it.

And this is an experience that happens more than once. So, now you know.

Perhaps the magic of Dinosaur Sanctuary is wearing thin for me. While there were still some smiles, emotional moments, and lots of great dinosaur art, this volume didn't grab me the way the earlier ones have.

Perhaps it's because I didn't have a cute Triceratops key chain to snuggle with, as was included in a Japanese edition of this volume. They even used the key chain as a plot point, damn them, like I wasn't already in the throes of extreme jealousy. Did I look on Ebay to see if I could buy one? Do I really have to answer that question?
Profile Image for Meduss142.
391 reviews6 followers
December 31, 2025
¡Hola hola!🌻

A principios de año, os hablé de Dinosan, de Itaru Kinoshita. Una serie manga que sigue a Suzume Suma, una joven que acaba de empezar a trabajar en Dinoland Enoshima, un parque zoológico de dinosaurios que ha tenido mejores días.

🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖
En el tomo 5 de Dinosan, Suzume debe aprender a colaborar con Katase, el encargado de los anquilosaurios y parte de los terópodos.

Con su personalidad distante y estricta, es todo un desafío. También conoceremos capítulos que hablan del sobrepeso en dinos, si la pregunta de los dinosaurios son solo cosa de chicos tiene respuesta, como es una reserva de estos animales y si es posible operar sin riesgo a uno de ellos.
🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕🦖🦕

Sigo igual de encantada con esta serie, sus explicaciones, dibujos y ahora la ampliación de su mundo cara el plano internacional. ¡Ojalá la espera para el siguiente sea corta! 😆

Celebro que Arechi Manga siga apostando por este título😍
Profile Image for Norman Cook.
1,819 reviews23 followers
August 1, 2025
This series continues to be a cozy, enjoyable experience that lightens up my day. Volume 5 shows the dinokeepers hosting a school group and in the process inspiring some of the students (and thus the readers) to follow their dreams. Another storyline shows the crew dealing with an overweight dino who later develops a serious medical condition that requires a difficult decision. In the process, we see the backstory of the treating veterinarian. So, it's a mixture of humor, drama, and emotional character development. The artwork continues to be impressive with a blend of realism with a dash of cartoonishness. The educational essays by a professional paleontologist hit the right tone and level of information. This series is the next best thing to having real dinosaurs in our modern world.
Profile Image for The Book Dragon.
2,525 reviews38 followers
October 20, 2024
Suzume and Katase continue their work together and Suzume teaches Katase that life isn't always "by the book" and a little human compassion can go a long way.

Then we're taking care of a mating pair of Centrosauruses, with a different set of complications for each half of this couple. One that can be solved with diet and exercise, the other being serious enough to trigger a character flashback.

Also, there's a really cute school fieldtrip and I wholeheartedly share the sentiment of the little girl.
Profile Image for Sesana.
6,312 reviews329 followers
October 23, 2024
Mostly the cozy dinosaur zoo slice of life that I love so much. I have a particular soft spot for the chapter where dinokeeper Karin encourages a preteen girl who's starting to worry that dinosaurs are a boy thing. The last two chapters get much more serious, with one of the spotlight dinos experiencing a serious health crisis. I wish the health issues were resolved in this volume, but it looks like this is going to be a long story. I'm ok with that, because the story deserves the time to develop.
Profile Image for Megan.
185 reviews13 followers
June 27, 2025
This volume focuses primarily on side characters, fleshing out the perfectionist Katase, reluctant mentor Karin, and distant doctor Ren. Karin’s gentle interaction with a girl whose grandfather told her that dinosaurs are for boys leads to a moving, darker storyline about a dinosaur with cancer and Ren’s backstory. The behind-the-scenes bit about the Australian park being the first idea for this series was fascinating. While I see how the smaller scale (and a decade of experience) made the story click into place in Japan, the Australia section was great as well.
1,652 reviews4 followers
February 27, 2025
Not a bad volume, but less that I can specifically pick out as having enjoyed. I also anticipate losing the thread of the final 2-part story between this volume and the next.

Also, dinosaurs are entirely artificial beings in this setting (well, selectively bred and introduced into new environments). The Australian dinosaur preserve we see in this volume makes almost no sense on multiple levels, as does the idea of poaching.
Profile Image for Sarah.
406 reviews3 followers
December 6, 2024
Dinosaur Sanctuary is a 5 ⭐ series for me - every volume knocks it out of the (dino) park. Early in the series, I fell in love with the park-dinos and I am officially attached to them. I love seeing their lives and personalities evolve. I have no idea what the projected timeline is for Volume 6's English publication, but I will be (im)patiently waiting to read more.
Profile Image for Kandace.
31 reviews
January 6, 2026
I can’t help but to give these 5 stars.

As a female paleontologist, I very much resonated with the chapter about the little girl being told dinosaurs were for boys. In my college classes (and work experience), women in paleo isn’t as abundant as other scientific fields. Social media has connected me to many women in the field, though, and given me professional figures to look up to.
Profile Image for Megan.
1,725 reviews37 followers
July 28, 2025
I have really been enjoying this series and this volume didn't disappoint! Looking forward to continuing this series as I love these characters and of course the Dinosaurs!

Trigger warnings: death of animals, animal with cancer
Profile Image for Raechel.
1,162 reviews
December 31, 2025
The dino keepers and the dinosaurs are back as Suzume learns the ins and outs of the sanctuary. We see the future dino keepers stop by during a school visit. Then we learn about the health of the dinosaurs while they try to conceive. Such an amazing story!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.