When Dinosaurs Came with Everything

We are always on the quest for fun and unique books. It had been a dry spell this summer. Stacks and stacks checked out from the library and nothing truly worth writing about beyond Dr. Seuss books (which are fun and unique, but most people know this already). So when we found two great books in the same stack I couldn’t wait to declare “There are still great children’s books out there!”

Okay, maybe I could wait because it’s six weeks since I checked them out, they are due tonight and I have vowed not to renew them again in order to force me to finally write these reviews. Promise me you will then read them for yourselves so this wasn’t all for not. Promise? Thank you. Now, without further ado:

When Dinosaurs Came with Everything
Written by Elise Broach and Illustrated by David Small

Do you ever have those moments as a parent where you want to ring the neck of some marketing guru who has so diligently figured out a way to always make your kids say, “I need that!” “I want that!” “Oh! Can I have one!” “Let’s buy that!” when you are in the store, waiting in the aisle for the snails pace to quicken before they spot yet another useless piece of…well you get my drift. This book, When Dinosaurs Came with Everything reminds me of that very challenge we as parents all face.

The son is thrilled to find out that every errand results in a prize – his very own dinosaur! The mother is equally flabbergasted that these professionals: baker, doctor, grocer, etc. have the audacity to offer her child a real and very large dinosaur rather than something that would rot his teeth, scare the dog when it pops, or fill yet another toy box once it breaks five seconds after it arrives home.

Yet, like most mothers, she soon learns to view this tragic situation through her son’s eyes and finds a way to put these large reptiles to good use. This book is fun, it’s unique, it’s perspective is hilarious, and the illustrations are captivating. It’s short enough to get through at nap time without wanting to burn the book (because really, that is where Dr. Seuss fails, his books are a stinking 60 pages each…did he ever put his kids down for naps?) and even captivating enough to return to multiple times in a week.

Our next outstanding find was:

The Day Dirk Yeller Came to Town
Written by Mary Casanova, Pictures by Ard Hoyt

Adventurous! A mid-western town is faced with the threat of a large and burly outlaw named Dirk Yeller. Will it end in a duel? Will the young boy, intrigued by the town’s folk fear of the man, be able to muster the courage to sway Mr. Yeller from causing heaps of trouble? So many unanswered questions! Fun illustrations that nearly blow dust off the page as Dirk gallops in, you won’t want to miss this twist of tale and a lesson in courage to help out even the biggest of dudes in his time of desperation. Must be read with your most drawn-out Western drawl! “I’m fixin’ to find somethin’ to keep the jumping beans from jumpin!” and you don’t want to keep Dirk Yeller from waiting! Yehaw!