Review by Booklist Review
In his latest picture book, Barner brings together two disparate orders of creatures, offering appealing images of dinosaurs coexisting peacefully with butterflies, as they did in fact do many millions of years ago. Combining pastels with cut and torn papers, Barner's collages introduce a bright and dynamic world, posing an array of dinosaurs (like a purplish Triceratops and a sky-blue Tyrannosaurus Rex) and prettily patterned butterflies against solid backgrounds of vibrant colors. Barner's text is also engaging, featuring two levels of information that address different degrees of comprehension and interest. The first conveys basic facts in a big typeface ( A huge asteroid CRASHED into Earth, forming clouds of steam and dust that blocked the sun ); the smaller typeface offers more detailed explanations (noting, for example, that fiery volcanic eruptions may have filled the sky with a thick layer of smoke and ash ). Barner also provides a helpful time line, illustrating the longevity that allowed butterflies to survive the extinction of dinosaurs and greet the arrival of humans.--Nolan, Abby Copyright 2009 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Barner revisits the weighty subjects of his popular Dinosaur Bones, looking at how butterflies coexisted with dinosaurs: "By spreading pollen from bloom to bloom, butterflies helped flowering plants flourish. Flowering plants made more air for dinosaurs to breathe and huge amounts of food for them to eat." Each double spread's format is the same: one sentence in colorful, blocky typeface sits amid the artist's bold cut-paper designs, the entire layout backed with a single, vivid hue. Additional facts in smaller type extend the narrative. The inviting, flashy interplay of the many colors, patterns and textures (e.g., painted butterfly wings are thinly edged in flower motifs) establishes an upbeat tone-except for the nearly monochromatic spread on dinosaur extinction. "But butterflies lived!" the next page reads, as two enormous specimens perch on flowers. An easy-to-read time line contextualizes the chronology of the first dinosaurs, flowers and butterflies (and even cats, dogs and humans) as a smattering of facts about seeds, insects or dinosaurs rounds out this aesthetic extension of a popular topic. Ages 4-8. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-This gently informative book describes the role butterflies played in helping dinosaurs and their environment flourish. The main text offers a simpler narrative than the supplementary and more detailed one in small type that appears below or next to it. A close-up of an electric blue dinosaur with a butterfly on its snout accompanies the revelation that, after living together on Earth for millions of years, "suddenly, their time together ended." A few of the predominant theories about the dinosaurs' extinction and explanations of the continuing survival of butterflies are put forth. A final spread adds fun factoids about dinosaur and insect life. Barner's illustrations are, as always, fantastically bright, eye-catching cut-paper collages. A useful, engaging, and illuminating book.-Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Barner exploits the popularity of dinosaurs and butterflies to introduce basic concepts about ecosystem relationships, extinction, and survival. The brightly colored, energetic paper-collage illustrations are the draw here, portraying friendly fauna frolicking in a verdant prehistoric paradise. The big scientific ideas may be lost on the intended audience, but the images are great to look at. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Barner goes prehistoric once again (Dinosaur Bones, 2001), but this time he pairs gigantic beasts with the tiniest of companionsbutterflies. Millions of years ago butterflies helped to pollinate plants, which in turn increased the dinosaurs' food supply and enriched the air with oxygen. The author tells this scientific story on two levels: Simple details appear in large, prominent type, while smaller, additional information reaches out to older readers, making it one of those "works on two levels" books that really does work. The attempt to explain extinctiona fate that butterflies luckily escapedflirts with oversimplification, but the bright, fiery asteroid crashing across the page will be popular with children (flaming rock never fails to captivate). Vibrant paper collage in highly saturated colors and playful perspectives add texture and layers to this unlikely symbiotic duo. The text reminds readers at the end that "the next time you see a fluttering butterfly or smell a flower...millions of years ago a T. rex may have done the same." Dino fanatics will revel in the personal connection. (timeline, appended facts) (Informational picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
