Prehistoric Life: The First Dog and The First Drawing

Researchers speculate on many aspects of early humans that we cannot know for sure. They take the available data and make educated leaps backwards to get a clearer picture of our beginnings, of what led us to where we are today.

How did the early humans forge a bond with the early wolves who were essentially feral. What prompted that first human to draw? And how did they know to even make a representation, let alone a likeness, of the world around them? The fact that someone did indeed take this radically new step is where history, as we know it, unfolds.

Here are two books by two author-illustrators I deeply respect and admire, speculating on these very ideas and presenting their thoughts in the most difficult format: Picture Books!


The First Dog

by Jan Brett


Interested in the history of Siberian Husky, and inspired by "Dark Caves, Bright Visions: Life in Ice Age Europe" exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, Jan Brett authored and illustrated The First Dog to tell the story of how the bond between animal and man long ago in the Pleistocene epoch must've resulted in the domestication of dogs.

Kip, the cave boy, is on his way back to his cave home. He avoids the mighty aurochs and the cave bears, and dodges the woolly rhinos and wild horse. He still has a long way to go, and still many hurdles to safety await in his path.

Along the way, a Paleowolf follows him and stays close to him, possibly attracted by the delicious meat snack the boy is carrying. At one point, it warns him and even saves the boy from danger. And, eventually, inevitably, the boy and the wolf establish a mutually beneficial relationship.

The repetitive format for the text, the continuous movement and action, the lurking dangers and the anticipation for the end of the boy's journey all make for a wonderful read. Of course, in addition, Jan Brett's illustrations are amazing as always, a visual treat.

[image source: Jan Brett website]



The First Drawing
by Mordicai Gerstein


Author's Note at the back of the book sums up the idea beautifully: "This story is my imagined version of how and why drawing was invented."

And the author adds, "... for someone who has drawn all his life, it has always seemed obvious that whoever invented drawing  must have been a child."

With playful tone, powerful words, and brilliant illustrations, the book tries to show what it must've been like for that first child who dared to draw. He sees galloping horses and elk on the cave walls by the light of the shimmering fire.

They call you "Child Who Sees What Isn't there."
How can you make them see what you see?

When the child does finally draw a woolly mammoth on the cave wall, his father aims his spear at it while the others huddle behind him, terrified. A perfectly plausible event, told ever so beautifully.

Drawing is magic - to make people see what you see in your head, even what isn't there in the real world, sometimes. And this imaginative tale captures all the magic and mystique surrounding this uniquely human endeavor.


[image source: Hachette Book Group]


[This post written especially for Saffron Tree's CROCUS 2014: Prehistoric Life and Ancient Civilization]

Picture Books on Prehistoric Life: All About Dinosaurs

Either one likes dinosaurs, or one could care less. All the names and sizes and categorization didn't pull me (or my older child) in to make a passionate follower of these Mesozoic megafauna.

However, the younger child didn't escape the strong magnetic force of the dinosaurs. And, once he gets interested in something, we all end up learning about it despite our strong disinclination.

There are tons of books about dinosaurs, many of them are beautifully illustrated children's picture books which can satisfy the curious young minds. The collection here is just a small percentage of  non-fiction dinosaur-related books for a gentle introduction, after which one can easily find in-depth volumes to satisfy the need.


Non-fiction + poetry is a brilliant marriage. So is writing + illustrating. And a handful of insanely talented author-illustrators have consistently made reading fun by bringing out poetry picture books on such seemingly prosaic topics such as space, trees, tide pools, deep oceans, and of course, prehistoric life.

Here are two of my favorite picture book creators in this highly specialized category- Kurt Cyrus and Douglas Florian - who have made our family sit back and enjoy just about every book they each have created so far.


Tadpole Rex 
by Kurt Cyrus

What has Tyrannosaurus Rex got to do with frogs? For one thing, they co-existed a long time ago. Whereas one died out the other is still living. But when they did coexist, the muddy footprint of a T-Rex created a puddle in which our tadpole Rex starts to grow.

Deep in the goop of a long-ago swamp, a whopping big dinosaur went for a stomp. Stomp! went the dinosaur. Squish! went the goop. Up came the bubbles-Bloop.Bloop.Bloop.

With catchy rhythm that is Cyrus' trademark, plus his brilliant illustrations, makes this a fun read aloud book.

Stuck in the footprint with nowhere to go,surrounded by giants, Rex lay low.Mud was his camouflage, mud was his friend.But Rex wouldn't wallow in mud in the end...For somewhere inside him, deep in his core,there slumbered an inner tyrannosaur.

The kid loved it so much that when he was making a frog life-cycle book in school, he decided to add an extra page showing "Inner T-Rex" stage of the frog development!


The Voyage of Turtle Rex
by Kurt Cyrus

Shared here - a favorite at home. The kid got it for his birthday a couple of years ago.

[image source: ]


Dinothesaurus
Prehistoric Poems and Paintings
by Douglas Florian

If there is a non-fiction book by Jenkins for any topic that might interest kids, there is an amusing  poetry book with amazing illustrations by Douglas Florian. Again, having read most of Florian's books, the kids has come to recognize the name and to expect a fun read no matter what the topic.

Twenty poems, each about a dinosaur, bringing out its special traits or distinguishing feature, plus glossary and information about museums and selected bibliography makes this a comprehensive book .

The poems are short and fun to read. Stegoceras - roof horn (not to be confused with Stegosaurus - roof lizard) is a crisp poem that focuses on this creatures distinctive dome-shaped head.

Thick head. Brick head. Hard head, too.Round head. Mound head. Odd head, you.Bone head. Stone head. Head like a dome.Bash head. Smash head. Then head home.

My favorite was the intro poem, The Age of Dinosaurs, setting up the scene.

The dinosaursFirst lived outdoorsDuring the time Triassic.While most died out,Some came aboutLater in the Jurassic.Then they evolved,As Earth revolved,In times known as Cretaceous.But now indoorsGreat dinosaursFill museum halls, spacious.

[image source: Simon & Schuster - view sample]



D is for Dinosaur: A Prehistoric Alphabet
by Todd Chapman

Sleeping Bear Press's Science Alphabet series with "A to Z Alphabet Books" has familiar format: short catchy verses, full-page color illustrations, plus a long, fact-filled sidebar that has worked successfully for many of the books in this series.

While the verses are a bit clunky in this book, the sidebar facts are interesting and thought-provoking. Questions like, "Could the Mesozoic swamps have been filled with the bellowing bugle of lovesick hadrosaurs?" accompany the factoid about dinosaurs with trumpet-like crests. When we read about duck-billed dinosaurs with built-in features for horn, it is interesting to speculate if it was to woo females and make mating calls, even if we can never be sure.




The Big Book of Dinosaurs 
By Dixon, Dougal

Kids have a lot of questions. Always. And, it is not always easy to answer them as parents. But, this book has some of the answers for dinosaur-related questions that can stumble an average adult.

From What is a dinosaur? to dino names and families, what the world was like during triassic/jurassic/cretaceous, separating myth from facts, including some possible illness and vulnerabilities of these seemingly invulnerable giants, and their extinction, the book presents nuggets in kid-friendly format with loads of pictures.




The Greatest Dinosaur Ever
by Brenda Z. Guiberson
illustrated by Gennardi Spirin

Which was the greatest dinosaur that ever lived?

Well, that depends on what we mean by "greatest". The book tries to answer this question in the voice of the dinos themselves, each one highlighting their salient and distinguishing features to claim the title.

I was the greatest. I was the tallest and the biggest herbivore. I had a long neck with the highest reaches into the trees. The earth shook when I walked. I, Sauroposeidon, was the greatest dinosaur of them all.



Dinosaur Bones
by Bob Barner

The gorgeous collage illustrations makes this an attractive read for the younger readers. A factual statement followed by a brief para of related information makes this a fine material for gentle introduction to the world of dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs had teeth to bite and jaws to chew.
The shape of jaws and teeth help scientists find out if a dinosaur was a meat or a plant eater.

The rhymes are catchy and upbeat, and the illustrations are bold and streamlined. The book has some data on size, weight and dietary preferences of the dinosaurs introduced in the pages.

They had bones with disks and bones with points,
bones for running with sockets and joints.

Dinosaurs Roar, Butterflies Soar!
by Bob Barner

Another dinosaur book by Barner, this time exploring the coexistence of butterflies and dinosaurs in prehistoric times.

Butterflies flit from flower to flower spreading pollen, helping more trees grow, which contributed to high levels of oxygen, helping the animals grow large and heavy, and then, suddenly, dinosaurs were no more. The book also mentions that while dinosaurs went extinct, we still have the butterflies.

The format is similar to Dinosaur Bones - large double-page spread with one large typeface main sentence, with a brief para in small print exploring the idea further with facts. The best feature is, of course, the artwork.



Dinosaur More! A First Book of Dinosaur Facts
by Henrietta Stickland
illustrated by Paul Stickland

The subtitle says it all - a first book of facts, not an in-depth look. A dozen dinos are introduced, one dinosaur per spread. Facts like what they ate, how big they were etc are shared. Besides the usual suspects, there's hypsilophodon, compsognathus, ornithomimus, and giganotosaurus.


[image source: unless otherwise indicated, cover images are from multcolib.org]

[This post written especially for Saffron Tree's CROCUS 2014: Prehistoric Life and Ancient Civilizations]

Non-fiction Picture Books on Prehistoric Life

Since early this year, the younger child has been interested in all things prehistoric. Starting with what "pre-historic" means. And after explaining it and introducing "pre" and "post" prefixes with examples, he has started outlining the "post-historic" world. I am guessing he means "post-historic" to be "futuristic" but for now, "post-historic" is entirely a figment of his creative extrapolation.

Meanwhile, we read a lot of non-fiction books, to learn about Prehistoric Life. We used the web to find more information as needed.

First step was to get a handle on the geological timeline as agreed by archaeologists and geologists and paleontologists. Once we got familiar with the various eras and time periods, from Precambrian to Quaternary, we were happy to explore life in those times.

[image source: Britannica Kids]

What do we know about the early life on earth - before we humans came, before we started recording our observations for posterity? There was a time when we thought we were the beginning of all things important. But, now we have enough research to show a rich and diverse world that thrived without us, that predates our existence.

How far back did the first life on earth begin? What was this life form? How did it get there? And how did we evolve from these seemingly bizarre creatures that have nothing to do with the level of sophistication and predominance we command today?

Paleontologists are still discovering bits and pieces of the jigsaw puzzle, and we have enough information to piece together an overall slightly-blurry picture, but, not enough to get a definitive crystal clear unequivocal picture of what happened so far on earth.



Prehistoric Life: The Definitive Visual History of Life on Earth 
by David Burnie


The book. Comprehensive. Filled with pictures. Short, crisp information. Much-loved at home. A perfect reference book. Index makes it easy to look up.

Shows not just animals but plant life as well and other early forms. The one book that the kid wanted to have in his bookshelf, his own copy, to refer to and read at pleasure.

Starting at about 3.8 billion years ago, we learn about the earliest-known form of life on Earth, a bacteria that still exists today, and we continue through mind-boggling millennia during which this-can't-be-possible type of life forms evolved, and we also learn about the massive extinctions that wiped out entire species, lost to us forever.

[image source: Google Books]



Prehistoric Actual Size
by Steve Jenkins


Take any fun non-fiction topic for learning that kids might be interested in, and there sure is bound to be a book by Steve Jenkins, filled with succinct kid-friendly information and gorgeous cut-paper collage illustrations.

Having read every one of Jenkins' books, the younger kid easily recognizes the format and pictures. And, I was thrilled when I heard him say that he wants to make books when he is older, just like Steve Jenkins.

Anyway, about the book: as the title says, prehistoric creatures are shown in actual size. So, a double-page spread showing the face of an eight-foot terror bird indicates that is its actual size. A foot long double-page spread of a partial millipede lets us extrapolate and gauge its 6 feet long body.

The kid liked this book so much that he had it on his wish-list for his recent birthday. And he got it. Much like last year, when he got Jenkins' Down, Down, Down for his birthday - a book that still thrills him to read when I put it back on his bookshelf for circulation.

[image source: Steve Jenkins Books]



Paleo Bugs: Survival of the Creepiest

by Timothy J. Bradley

As the subtitle states, some of the creepiest inhabitants of early Earth are showcased in this book.

Each page shows one creature with its name, how long ago it lived and some information about its possible lifestyle in its time.

Among the Sanctacaris, Meganeura, Calymene and suchlike, the kid zoomed in on a handful that impressed him, one of which is Pterygotus, a ferocious 9-foot long "sea scorpion". Possibly because Walking with... series showed their amazing adaptations.

[image source: amazon.com ]



Giant Sea Reptiles of the Dinosaur Age

by Caroline Arnold
illustrated by Laurie A. Caple

The prolific Ms.Arnold has written countless non-fiction picture books about animals. This book walks us through some of the ocean dwellers in prehistoric waters.

Starting with early sea reptiles like Nothosaurs (kid's favorite) to fish-like Ichthyosaurs to gigantic long-necked Plesiosaurs and the top predator, the Mosasaurs, the book is packed with child-friendly information.

The focus is on the Mesozoic aquatic reptiles, sharing whatever information is agreed-upon at the time of writing the book. While one creature's diet and reproduction is known, another's size and predatory habits are known.

Our favorite section was about Mary Anning, the fossil-finder.

[image source: Caroline Arnold Books]



Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure

by Marfe Ferguson Delano

A companion book to National Geographic's film of the same name, the book fascinated the kid who is partial to prehistoric sea monsters much more than land animals.

Enchodus, Styxosaurus, Caproberyx... we learn about a lot of the fantastic creatures of the time. The photo-like pictures are amazing.

The story starts by saying how Kansas, so far away from any body of water, came to have fossils of the prehistoric ocean creatures.

We are introduced to "Dolly" (Dolichorynchops osborni) and the book follows along her story and ends with how millions of years later when the sea is gone and the land is part of the vast plains of Kansas, paleontologists will find our Dolly and figure out her story.

[image source: amazon.com ]



Giant Shark: Megalodon, Prehistoric Super Predator

by Caroline Arnold
illustrated by Laurie A. Caple

Megalodon has held a certain fascination for the kid for a while and this book showcases its ferocity and its world.

Full of information - from its replaceable teeth and its babies, to theories about why the Megalodon disappeared, the book was a good read for all of us.

The only thing that bothered him about the book - at least the edition we borrowed from our library - is that on page 8, where we learn about ancient and modern sharks with a timeline showing when Megalodon lived, the text says "Invertebrates (animals without bones)". Is it animals without bones or animals without back bones?

[image source: Caroline Arnold Books]



Pterosaurs: Rulers of the Skies in the Dinosaur Age

by Caroline Arnold
illustrated by Laurie A. Caple

Another informative book by the same team, which shows the prehistoric skies criss-crossed by the flying giants.

Pterosaur fossils have been found in all continents and paleontologists are still trying to learn all they can about these magnificent avian creatures that went extinct with their terrestrial kin at the end of Mesozoic era.

As a result, the drawback of any such book is that the information is only current up to the time of publication. Naming schemes change, new fossil evidence uncovers or invalidates earlier conclusions.

However, this exceptional 40-page book takes us back to the times when Pterosaurs ruled the skies. The illustrations don't just show the details of each of the nearly two dozen creatures, but also lets us peek at what the world might have looked like at that time.

Although organized as a chapter book, this picture book with its large font and brilliant illustrations has a flowing narration that makes it an absorbing read. We learn about distinguishing features of each pterosaur, as well as its possible dietary preferences and behavior.

[image source: Caroline Arnold Books]



How Whales Walked into the Sea 
by Faith McNulty
illustrated by Ted Rand

Prehistoric sea creatures being the top favorite, Dorudon easily became a household name right along with Basilosaurus and Mosasaur and Pleisiosaur.

And, while digging deeper into Dorudon, we learnt about Ambulocetus ("ambulo" = walking, "cetus" = whale"); and came upon rhodocetus.

While searching for picture books on the topic, I came upon this absolutely wonderful book that combines scientific discoveries and facts with the story of how a four-legged mammalian creature eventually turned into a purely aquatic whale as we now know it.

Why was this so fascinating? Well, most cases we've encountered till then indicated that life originated in the oceans and finally walked out of the water to occupy the land. Whereas, this particular case shows that a land mammal walked into the ocean.

The author describes the adaptations in physique and diet for each of these stages in evolution that possibly resulted in the creature we know as whale now.

Each of the large, colorful, full-page illustration shows the ancestor of our whale with slow adaptations like shorter legs, broader feet, fusing of fingers/toes turning to flippers, broader jaw, wider tail for propelling and directing motion...

As with such books, the information is only current at the time of writing. Since its publication, through DNA studies, in addition to fossils, scientists believe the oldest known ancestor is not Mesonychid (as in this book), but is Anthracotheriidae.

This is a one-of-a-kind book, as it traces the incremental changes of just one species (whales as we now know them) while providing scientific discoveries/studies/evidence that led to this conclusion.

[image source: amazon]



National Geographic Prehistoric Mammals

by Alan Turner
illustrated by Mauricio Anton

Dinosaurs have fascinated one and all, and have been the poster-child for the prehistoric drama of life - their heft, their variety, their unchallenged reign, and their sudden extinction all adding to their enigma; and the small mammals that hid from the thundering lizards remained obscure.

This book showcases not just the well-known mammalian stars of the time, like Smilodon (sabre-toothed cat) and Mammoths (woolly, pygmy, imperial, Columbian, Jeffersonian...),  but also the massive rhino-like Indricotherium and elephantine sloth Megatherium among other megafauna.

The pictures are carefully constructed from available fossil evidence - these well-researched artist's rendition has to suffice for now as we have not enough evidence to state much about their looks and behavior for certain. The text does seem to suggest a lot of speculation, and the information is mostly superficial, but enough to get us interested in learning more about our mammalian roots.

[image source: amazon]



After the Dinosaurs: Mammoths and Fossil Mammals

(I Can Read Book 2)
by Charlotte Lewis Brown
illustrated by Phil Wilson

Perfect for Kindergarten through Lower Elementary Prehistory fans, this book introduces a variety of mammals and mammoths after the dinosaurs went extinct.

The pronunciation guide is handy and the information is presented in a child-relatable way. The detailed watercolor illustrations with each spread devoted to one animal makes it easy to flip through the pages and land on a particularly interesting one and read without feeling overwhelmed.

Browse Inside at Harper Collins

[image source: Harper Collins]


Mammoths on the Move
by Lisa Wheeler
illustrated by Kurt Cyrus

Two of my favorite people in the picture book world, not that they know me or anything, were teamed up to make this brilliant book.

Fourteen thousand years ago
the north was mostly ice and snow.
But woolly mammoths didn’t care-
these beasts had comfy coats of hair.

Thus starts this book with upbeat rhythm and catchy refrain that tell the story of these herds of woolly mammoths that traveled to warmer pastures over winter braving predators and slippery ice; only to reach there and turn back and do the trek all over again.

Crafted with wit and wordplay, the book is a pleasure to read aloud, foot-tapping optional. The illustrations are stunning, with snow and cold creeping from page to page, putting us right in the ice age, leaving us reaching for our woolly sweaters. Much like Mr.Cyrus did while creating these pictures, as the back flyleaf informs us.

Captured from various angles, especially low ones, the mammoths tower over us on the pages as they trek purposefully along, while also holding some comic postures with their trunks held high as they cross deep icy waters; their protective circle during a smilodon encounter and their jaunty motion are all rendered brilliantly to a story within a story, that Mr.Cyrus is well-known for.

[View more images at Kurt Cyrus website]

[image source: amazon]


Mammoths and Mastodons: Titans of the Ice Age

by Cheryl Bardoe

Relating the true story of how a well-preserved baby woolly mammoth was found by two Nenet brothers, Kosti and Edik, of northern Siberia, in 2007, the book intersperses the scientific process of studying the animal using modern technology with facts and relevant information as we learn more.

Baby Lyuba, the baby woolly mammoth, who died about 40,000 years ago, finally put an end to speculation and allowed us to know about these lumbering giants of the ice age. And, learning about them could help us keep our elephants from going extinct.

Colorful charts, diagrams, Proboscidean family tree, illustrations, and photographs, along with information boxes and glossary makes this an engaging read for the Upper Elementary kids.

[Activities based on the book]

[image source: amazon]

[This post written for Saffron Tree's CROCUS 2014: Prehistoric Life and Ancient Civilizaions]