Dinosaurs: Profiles from a Lost World

by Riley Black, Riccardo Frapiccini (Illustrations)

Who isn’t fascinated by dinosaurs? These strange reptiles have awed us ever since their fossils were first identified as the bones of creatures from the distant past. For millions of years, dinosaurs ruled the prehistoric world. And now, millions of years after their mass extinction, they continue to rule our imaginations. But how did dinosaurs live, what did they eat, how did they move about, and what were the differences between their families?  Fossil expert and consultant to the Jurassic World movie franchise Riley Black answers all these questions and more for 72 specific dinosaurs. There’s also an introduction to the different prehistoric periods of dinosaur development, and a guide to the various groups of dinosaurs. The astonishing illustrations are by Riccardo Frapiccini, who has combined his photographic, engineering and drawing skills to produce original pictures of the lost species as though they were face-to-face with the reader. The latest research offered in a lively manner that will appeal to young and old alike, this book is for everyone who is fascinated by dinosaurs. And that’s all of us.

Genres: Palaeontology, Nonfiction, Science

224 pages, Hardcover

Published November 15, 2022

About the author

Riley Black has been heralded as “one of our premier gifted young science writers” and is the critically-acclaimed author of Skeleton Keys, My Beloved Brontosaurus, Written in Stone, and When Dinosaurs Ruled. An online columnist for Scientific American, Riley has become a widely-recognized expert on paleontology and has appeared on programs such as Science Friday, HuffingtonPost Live, and All Things Considered. Riley has also written on nerdy pop culture.

Reviews

[Simon Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very informative and beautifully illustrated book hopefully there will be a follow on

[Kyri Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this, particularly the illustrations. I would have been interested to know more about how the artist decided on the different eyes (most look mammalian or avian rather than reptilian) and the colors and degree of plumage. He occasionally got too referential to the real world (there's one in exactly the plumage of a Crested Caracara) but overall this is a fascinating book.

I really wish someone would make an equivalent volume for Oligocene, Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene mammals. I know the colors and coat wouldn't be as speculative, but I would buy it in a second. Surely we must have more mammalian fossils than we do dinosaurs but the mammals get short shrift when it comes to publications, especially for a general audience.

[Hydre Lana · Rating 4 out of 5]

✔️ POSITIVO

- El paleoarte de este libro es increíble. Muy increíble. Tiene una calidad, que parece que los dinosaurios y otros reptiles se vayan a salir de las páginas. Que estén vivos. Habéis visto qué pasada el Parasaurolophus de la portada? Dan ganas de adoptarlo.

-Dividido por períodos, para hacer más entendible quién vivió cuándo toca y no haya mezclas raras.

-Tapa dura. Para los que nos gusta tener este tipo de libros de paleontología en físico, es un plus.

❌ Negativo

- Que no hay segunda parte del libro.

-Que es muy caro comprarlo nuevo en la librería.

En definitiva, si te gustan los dinosaurios y el paleoarte éste es tu libro!

[Foggygirl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read.

[Taylor Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent illustrations and good descriptions of prehistory. However let down by poor editing.