David Sheldon

Barnum Brown doesn't hunt dinosaurs, he searches for dinosaur bones. While this picture book has a great title, it is not as exciting as it sounds. Each page is extremely text heavy, not about dinosaurs but about Barnum Brown's life. The hand-drawn pictures in the book have a muted color palate and take up entire pages, but they mostly show Barnum looking at dinosaur bones rather than teaching about dinosaurs themselves. The pictures can be confusing for children; in some pages they insert show more Barnum's world into the dinosaur world which gives the impression that dinosaurs and humans existed simultaneously. This is not a book about dinosaurs, rather it is a book about Barnum Brown himself. The book is recommended for children wanting to learn more about careers with dinosaurs. Recommended for ages 6-8. show less

William Beebe seems to have lived the life that I wanted as I was growing. To some degree, he lived the life that I want to live still. This was a great book about an important figure in the history of ecology, and yet he would probably be relagated to obscurity were it not for brilliant work like this. I really think that this is an exceptional children's biography and both the text and illustrations were very well done. I'd love to see some other work from David Sheldon as it seems that he show more has quite a gift to share with the rest of us. show less

This biography is very informative and concise. I learned a lot from reading it. It was a real pleasure to follow Barnum Brown's exploits as he made his discoveries. Also, the loose peppering of odd facts, like that he would wear bizarre outfits to further his appeal as a showman really helped with the overall appeal of the book. It was a strong biographical account and the illustrations are pleasant and cheerfully presented. Overall, a true delight of a story.

A brief summary:
Barnum Brown grew up exploring his family's land and finding fossils of ancient sea creatures. His love for fossils and more specifically dinosaurs continued to grow and he eventually went on to become a paleontologist. Barnum went on to work at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City with the goal of finding a dinosaur fossil to put on display. He went searching in the western U.S. and Canada and soon began sending his amazing fossil finds to the American show more Museum of Natural History. Meanwhile, other museums in the U.S. were collecting dinosaur fossils, which made Barnum work even more expediently to find a fossil that no one had found before. One day, hot and exhausted from his efforts, Barnum uncovered a new discovery: the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Everyone was amazed by Barnum's discovery and years later he uncovered a second more complete fossil of the T. Rex. About two years later, Barnum found himself in a friendly competition with a team of "dinosaur hunters" hired by the Canadian government to find the next new dinosaur fossil. It was during this "Second Great Dinosaur Rush" that Barnum found the Saurolophus, a dinosaur that lived over seventy-five million years ago. For his amazing work, Barnum was later named the Head Curator of Paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History. His name can still be found on display with his amazing fossils that he once affectionately called his "children."

My personal reaction:
I think this book could be very powerful for a young learner to read because it tells the story of a young child whose dreams became a reality through hard work and perseverance. Many young learners take interest in dinosaurs and I think this book does a good job of showing how one "dinosaur hunter" in particular was able to pursue his passion to uncovering the amazing fossils that we still have on display today.

A couple of uses:
- As you read this book aloud with the class, compile a list of the dinosaurs that are mentioned, such as the Apatosaurus, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops. Then have groups of students research more on each and then come together as class to compile and share information.
- After reading Fossil by Claire Ewart, read this book as a class to discover more about one paleontologist who took a major role in uncovering the fossils we still have today. Encourage students to research other paleontologists who have helped to uncover the fossils that have been found all over the world.

Genre:
Informational - biography

Media:
India ink, gouache, and acrylic paint show less