Patrick's Dinosaurs

Patrick's Dinosaurs

by Carol Carrick, Donald Carrick (Illustrator)

One Saturday while visiting the zoo, Hank tells his brother Patrick all about dinosaurs, and Patrick scares himself by imagining what it would be like if the great creatures were alive today.

Genres: Picture Books, Dinosaurs, Childrens, Fiction, School, Animals, Fantasy

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 19, 1983

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Visiting the zoo one day with his older brother Hank, the imaginative Patrick begins to see dinosaurs all around him as Hank describes various prehistoric creatures that far outweighed the modern-day animals they are looking at. On their bus-ride home, and even when they get into their apartment, Patrick continues to imagine dinosaurs all around. It is only when Hank assures him that these ancient giants when extinct millions of years before, that Patrick can relax...

A classic story about a young boy who enjoys frightening himself with his imaginings, Patrick's Dinosaurs taps into the childhood fascination with the amazing creatures of the prehistoric world, while also exploring the role that make-believe has in the lives of the young. As someone who, as a girl, would play games of make-believe in all sorts of unlikely places and situations - imagining myself into the past while walking in the woods, daydreaming that I was part of a great parade while walking on the city street, pretending I was a mermaid while swimming - I could identify fully with Patrick's preoccupation. The story from author Carol Carrick is engaging, and the accompanying artwork from Donald Carrick (the two are husband and wife) is slightly dated but still appealing. Recommended to all young day-dreamers and dinosaur lovers.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably a three star for me today, but I am giving it four stars because I'm sure my five-year-old self would have loved it. Patrick begins to imagine dinosaurs everywhere after he visits a zoo and his older brother compares animals today to dinosaurs. I enjoyed how Patrick's imaginings are both a lot of fun and deliciously frightening-on-purpose at times ;-) A fun way to compare the size of dinosaurs to everyday things like cars and houses.

[Mir · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gentle, rather old-fashioned day-in-the-life story of a small boy visiting a zoo with his older brother, who inadvertently frightens him with descriptions of how much bigger ans fiercer the dinosaurs were than the modern animals.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic!

Great story line, wonderful illustrations.
I’ll happily read this one on repeat to my grands.

Wish I knew of this when my kids were little! They would have LOVED!

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exciting book that takes readers into the vivid imagination of a young boy, Patrick, and his older brother, Hank, during their day out together at the zoo. While at the zoo, Hank explains to Patrick how big and scary dinosaurs were back then in comparison to the animals in the zoo nowadays. Frightened by their descriptions, Patrick begins seeing the dinosaurs appearing from his mind around the zoo. He thinks they are real as the dinosaurs continue to follow his brother and him all the way back to their home. His brother has to reassure him that they are extinct.
I LOVED this book! It reminds me of the books that I grew up reading. This book was very scary in parts though, especially the part with the T-rex peeking through Patrick's bedroom window- so it might not be suitable for all children. The imagery was beautiful and detailed. I loved how the artist drew dinosaurs into every day scenes. It made the story much more exciting. This would be a fantastic book for those kiddos who love dinosaurs!

[Colleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a terrific story book and what a terrific find for a young and fairly inattentive boy who all of the sudden found with this book that he has the patience to sit still for pretty lengthy paragraphs at points. You know, so long as there’s a chance dinosaurs might eat someone. This has some of the same “fantastical scenes amidst the city” vibe as the illustrations in Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and— at least as the adult reading it— some of the same fun throwback(— practically steampunk!) time period detail in the background as old picture books like Harry the Dirty Dog.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Two brothers go to the zoo, but instead of getting to enjoy the zoo for what it is, the younger brother has to listen to the older brother put all the animals down and talk about how big and great he thinks dinosaurs were. Then there's this weird part where you can't tell what's real or not as they seem to go back in time to when dinosaurs were alive. I just didn't really care for the story or pictures.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brothers Patrick and Hank go to the zoo together. Hank know more about dinosaurs than you can imagine. Which starts to freak Hank out because he starts seeing the dinosaurs that his brother is describing.

This is a very cute story with illustrations that bring the dinosaurs alive on the pages. The text and artwork are a perfect combo for a winning picture book.

[Katelyn Reagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Patrick's Dinosaurs is an imaginitive story where Patrick spends the whole day asking his brother questions about dinosaurs while they're at the zoo. He sees dinosaurs everywhere they go and his ordinary day turns into an adventure.

[Talea · Rating 3 out of 5]

My daughter usually loves anything and everything dinosaur related, but she almost lost interest in it. Probably because she already knew all the facts and she already has three big brothers that ‘know to much’.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 3 out of 5]

enjoyed it until the end when I think the author made a bad decision. she should have mentioned the dinosaur relatives alive today.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very dated now, but the story itself is still amusing. It would be interesting to see this with updated illustrations.

[Alexis Allinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

With wonderfully detailed illustrations this book is filled with the imaginary dinosaurs Patrick dreams up to go with his older brother Hank's well of knowledge.

[Nichole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book about run-away imagination.

[Kurt Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am unsure why this is a classic. It's kinda boring.

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful illustrations and a fun, albeit dated, celebration of dinosaurs and a child's imagination. This reminds me of something I would have read as a kid.

[Launna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the imagination, it just didn’t sing to me.

[Annie MacPherson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the wonder of it all, but the limited color palette drives me nuts! I'm sure it was a hit in the '80s, but it misses the mark for me today 🦖

[Team Wolfpack · Rating 5 out of 5]

My children adored this story and the illustrations. My oldest picked up on the razzing by the older brother :)

[Sasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was super cute. Like "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", but for a kid obsessed with dinosaurs.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young boy envisions dinosaurs on a trip to the zoo. A fun story to spark the imagination.

[JKR · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is fine, but the lumbering dinosaur illustrations are outdated.

[Sa Ho · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patrick's Dinosaurs is a exciting and factual book that I would definitely recommend to young readers. The book contains information about six of the world's many ancient creatures, and the best part was that it compared the dinosaurs to the living things in the zoo that we see today! The thrilling part kicks in when Patrick uses his vivid imagination to summon in the prehistoric dinosaurs. He then gets scared after he imagined the T-Rex that his brother told him about, which I thought was really cute. In the end, his brother reminds him that the dinosaurs died along time ago, and then Patrick became relieved, thus making his T-Rex disappear.
Overall this book was very fun to read, and I think the young readers would agree. Not only is it informational but it is all exciting and suspenseful in a sense. In my opinion, young children can learn to use their imagination more often from this book.

[Sawyer K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sawyer (3.5) was enthralled with this book. The descriptions helped him visualize how big the dinosaurs were. Only 4 stars instead of 5 because it's sort of scary. Some kids might like that, though.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

The eye-catching and informative Patrick's Dinosaurs is not only filled with interesting facts, but is fun to read, as well. In the story, Patrick is frightened of the dinosaurs that his older brother, Hank, talks about. So much so, that he thinks he sees them all around the zoo! I think children will easily relate to being scared of something and will sympathize with Patrick.

I love how the book throws in dinosaur facts subtly and compares them to the size of animals today. The only thing I would worry is that kids might be frightened of them after reading this book (although they, obviously, have no reason to be). The photo of the Diplodocus swimming under their boat while they row was even frightening for me!

Overall, this was a great informative book. I would suggest using this in a K-3 classroom when learning about dinosaurs.

[Lde212_06 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Patrick's Dinosaurs
Carol Carrick
Grade: 4
Content:
> Characteristics of different types of dinosaurs
> The extinction of dinosaurs


In 4th grade the topic of extinction is discussed in further detail with students. This book talks about different dinosaurs and their characteristics. At the end of the book, the main character receives confirmation from his brother that dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. The teacher can use this book to open up a discussion on the possibilities of what caused the dinosaurs to go extinct. Then they can begin to move away from the extinction of dinosaurs and discuss the extinction of other animals and the causes for their extinction.

[Dagmar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patrick and his big brother Hank go to the zoo. When Patrick sees an elephant, he says, "I'll bet that elephant is the biggest animal in the whole world." His brother tells him that "a brontasaurus was heavier than TEN elephants!" As Hank tells Patrick about prehistoric animals, they all come alive in Patrick's in Patrick's imagination. Stegasaurus, Triceratops, Tyrannosaurus Rex. Luckily, just before Patrick's imaginary Tyrannosaurus Rex does anything too dangerous, Hand assures him that dinosaurs have long been extinct.

This is a sweet book about a little boy with a vivid imagination. Great for young dinosaur lovers!

[Cara Kemnitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an example of the "blended" genre we discussed in class- where factual information is mixed with a story. Hank teaches his younger brother, Patrick about Dinosaurs using the context of a zoo (e.g., a brontosaurus weighed as much as ten elephants). The illustrations bring Patrick's imagination to life, as he envisions dinosaurs among them on the zoo trip and their walk throughout the city. It seems like a very captivating resource for teaching young children the sometimes dry content of informational texts.

[Shania Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Appropriate Grade Levels: (k - 2)

Hank sure knows a lot about dinosaurs! He's been telling his brother, Patrick, about them all day! Patrick, however, has an imagination that may just be a bit too wild.

This book is a great way to teach about imagination while also giving facts about dinosaurs. For any stubborn kids that refuse to read but love dinosaurs - this is definitely the ticket.

Classroom Uses:
1) Teaching about using your imagination
2) Using while teaching about dinosaurs
3) Writing prompt - Imagining if things that they spoke about came to life around them

[Jennie Park]

This is great story that displays a lot of creative imagination. It's a good book to read when talking about siblings, or learning from others that know about different subject areas. You can also tie in a lesson about families and introduce the lesson by opening up with this book. Patrick, the younger brother, asks many questions to Hank, the older brother about dinosaurs and as he is listening, Patrick imagines these dinosaurs being alive today. I think many boys will enjoy this book.