D is for Dinosaur on a literary mapping journey

Welcome to Day Four of the A to Z April Blog Challenge. This year I’m wandering through children’s books with maps.

Who doesn’t like dinosaurs and love to learn where they once roamed the earth? One of my classroom favorites is:

Where to Look for a Dinosaur

by Bernard Most (author and illustrator)

The simple witty text and bright illustrations of friendly dinosaurs makes this a perfect book for budding paleontologists and it could spark some ideas for traveling dinosaur lovers.

Did you know that more dinosaurs have been found in China than anywhere else?

Or  when you hear “Remember the Alamo,” you should also remember the Alamosaurus which is a large plant eater that lived in Texas.

 

 

When you open a book and see end-papers with a map like these you know you are in for a treat:

Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo

by William Joyce (author and illustrator)

The Lazardo family meet a dinosaur when they are vacationing in Africa. They bring him home to Pimlico Hills because, why not? They name him Bob after an uncle he resembles and he proves to be great company. Who wouldn’t enjoy spending time with a dinosaur who can play cards as well as the trumpet and can do the hokey pokey? Best of all, he’s just what the Pimlico Pirates baseball team needs. Unfortunately, his exuberance backfires and the chief of police declares him a menace. But, as in all good books, there’s a happy ending for Bob, the Pirates, and the family Lazardo. I love the vintage look of the richly colored illustrations (the book is set in the 1920s) and that these amazing adventures just seem so normal!

 

If you travel to Abilene, Texas make sure you stop by to see this statue of Dinosaur Bob snacking on an old VW Beetle. It was built by artist Bob Wade as a tribute to “Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures With the Family Lazardo.” It’s on my list of place to go and things to see.

For your enjoyment here is the Reading Rainbow episode of Dinosaur Bob and the Adventures of the Family Lazardo.