What do you think?
Rate this book
Ornithomimids, the Fastest Dinosaur
Describes the research and paleontological investigation that led to the identification and classification of ornithomimid dinosaurs
- GenresDinosaurs
40 pages, Library Binding
First published August 1, 1995
9 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
September 11, 2024
Precursors of awesomeness ( www.amazon.com/review/R3202MZFDBNRQL/... ): 5/5
Short version: If you want the best day-in-the-life dino books, get Bakker's "Step-into-Reading" books ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3484884728 ) & read them in conjunction with other, more recent books (E.g. Holtz's "Dinosaurs"). If you want the precursors of said books, get Lessem's "Special Dinosaurs" series, especially "Ornithomimids: The Fastest Dinosaur" (henceforth OT), & read it in conjunction with other, more recent books (E.g. Holtz's book, especially Chapter 18).
Long version: Read on.
As you may remember, I reviewed the best of Lessem's pre-2000 work ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3478204607 ) & the worst of his post-2000 work ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3478213840 ). I could review more of Lessem's post-2000 work (E.g. His "Meet the Dinosaurs" series, which is basically a poorly-organized & oversimplified version of his "Special Dinosaurs" series), but I'd rather review more of his pre-2000 work. More specifically, I'd rather review Lessem's "Special Dinosaurs" series in general & OT in particular, which remind me of Bakker's "Step-into-Reading" books.* In this review, I list the 3 main reasons why that is.
1) Like the 1st parts of Bakker's books, those of Lessem's are very well-written. The only major difference is that Lessem's stories are more moment-in-timey than day-in-the-lifey like Bakker's. Of the 3 I've read, OT's story is the longest & most fleshed out at 2 pages of text.
2) Like the 2nd parts of Bakker's books, those of Lessem's are very good at concentrating on the science behind the stories. The only major difference is that Lessem's explanations aren't divided into chapters like Bakker's. Of the 3 I've read, OT's explanations are the least weird in terms of text & writing.**
3) Like Bakker's books, Lessem's are very well-illustrated. I can't overstate how much I like looking at Braginetz's paleoart in general & her OT work in particular. My favorite examples are as follows:
-The Gallimimus on OT's cover, especially the 1 looking towards the reader. To paraphrase Vincent ( https://chasmosaurs.com/2020/08/04/vi... ), "the suitably staring, glassy eye conveys a great deal of character – in fact, [Braginetz] does seem to be especially good at eyes, an oft-overlooked aspect in making an extinct creature really appear alive."
-The multi-species scene on page 6 (which illustrates OT's story: http://web.archive.org/web/2020083007... ). To paraphrase Vincent (Google "Vintage Dinosaur Art: Album of Dinosaurs - Part 1"), it's "dominated by looming vegetation that dwarfs the tiny[...mammal...], drawing attention to the animal while also giving the foliage plenty of space in which to show off. This is also a wonderful piece for presenting the animal as part of a much larger ecosystem".
-The ornithomimid family portrait on pages 18-19 ( https://assets.atlasobscura.com/artic... ). To paraphrase Naish ( http://web.archive.org/web/2015061800... ), "the astonishing details and thoughtful patterns and hues applied to the animals look great and pleasingly naturalistic. I especially like the [bovid]-inspired skin patterns on [her Struthiomimus.]"
*The other books in said series are "Seismosaurus: The Longest Dinosaur", "Troodon: The Smartest Dinosaur", & "Utahraptor: The Deadliest Dinosaur". I picked OT partly because it's the best of the 3 I've read, & partly because ornithomimids don't get as much love as deinonychosaurs (which is reflected in the number of OT reviews vs. Troodon or Utahraptor reviews).
**1 weird bit in all 3 is the lack of evolution (I.e. They use the word "evolution" multiple times, but don't define it). Otherwise, OT's only weird bit is the concluding paragraph (See the Lessem quote, which contradicts what Lessem says throughout about ornithomimids only eating small animals & plants).
Quoting Lessem: "We may never know how fast Ornithomimus and its close cousins were. But if you are somehow transported back to dinosaur times, you had better hope that Ornithomimus isn't on the scene. If the dinosaur is there, hope that it doesn't look at you as lunch. Because even if you were as fast as the fastest human in the world, chances are you could never outrun an ornithomimid, the fastest dinosaur of all."
Short version: If you want the best day-in-the-life dino books, get Bakker's "Step-into-Reading" books ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3484884728 ) & read them in conjunction with other, more recent books (E.g. Holtz's "Dinosaurs"). If you want the precursors of said books, get Lessem's "Special Dinosaurs" series, especially "Ornithomimids: The Fastest Dinosaur" (henceforth OT), & read it in conjunction with other, more recent books (E.g. Holtz's book, especially Chapter 18).
Long version: Read on.
As you may remember, I reviewed the best of Lessem's pre-2000 work ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3478204607 ) & the worst of his post-2000 work ( www.goodreads.com/review/show/3478213840 ). I could review more of Lessem's post-2000 work (E.g. His "Meet the Dinosaurs" series, which is basically a poorly-organized & oversimplified version of his "Special Dinosaurs" series), but I'd rather review more of his pre-2000 work. More specifically, I'd rather review Lessem's "Special Dinosaurs" series in general & OT in particular, which remind me of Bakker's "Step-into-Reading" books.* In this review, I list the 3 main reasons why that is.
1) Like the 1st parts of Bakker's books, those of Lessem's are very well-written. The only major difference is that Lessem's stories are more moment-in-timey than day-in-the-lifey like Bakker's. Of the 3 I've read, OT's story is the longest & most fleshed out at 2 pages of text.
2) Like the 2nd parts of Bakker's books, those of Lessem's are very good at concentrating on the science behind the stories. The only major difference is that Lessem's explanations aren't divided into chapters like Bakker's. Of the 3 I've read, OT's explanations are the least weird in terms of text & writing.**
3) Like Bakker's books, Lessem's are very well-illustrated. I can't overstate how much I like looking at Braginetz's paleoart in general & her OT work in particular. My favorite examples are as follows:
-The Gallimimus on OT's cover, especially the 1 looking towards the reader. To paraphrase Vincent ( https://chasmosaurs.com/2020/08/04/vi... ), "the suitably staring, glassy eye conveys a great deal of character – in fact, [Braginetz] does seem to be especially good at eyes, an oft-overlooked aspect in making an extinct creature really appear alive."
-The multi-species scene on page 6 (which illustrates OT's story: http://web.archive.org/web/2020083007... ). To paraphrase Vincent (Google "Vintage Dinosaur Art: Album of Dinosaurs - Part 1"), it's "dominated by looming vegetation that dwarfs the tiny[...mammal...], drawing attention to the animal while also giving the foliage plenty of space in which to show off. This is also a wonderful piece for presenting the animal as part of a much larger ecosystem".
-The ornithomimid family portrait on pages 18-19 ( https://assets.atlasobscura.com/artic... ). To paraphrase Naish ( http://web.archive.org/web/2015061800... ), "the astonishing details and thoughtful patterns and hues applied to the animals look great and pleasingly naturalistic. I especially like the [bovid]-inspired skin patterns on [her Struthiomimus.]"
*The other books in said series are "Seismosaurus: The Longest Dinosaur", "Troodon: The Smartest Dinosaur", & "Utahraptor: The Deadliest Dinosaur". I picked OT partly because it's the best of the 3 I've read, & partly because ornithomimids don't get as much love as deinonychosaurs (which is reflected in the number of OT reviews vs. Troodon or Utahraptor reviews).
**1 weird bit in all 3 is the lack of evolution (I.e. They use the word "evolution" multiple times, but don't define it). Otherwise, OT's only weird bit is the concluding paragraph (See the Lessem quote, which contradicts what Lessem says throughout about ornithomimids only eating small animals & plants).
Quoting Lessem: "We may never know how fast Ornithomimus and its close cousins were. But if you are somehow transported back to dinosaur times, you had better hope that Ornithomimus isn't on the scene. If the dinosaur is there, hope that it doesn't look at you as lunch. Because even if you were as fast as the fastest human in the world, chances are you could never outrun an ornithomimid, the fastest dinosaur of all."
Displaying 1 of 1 review