________________ CM . . . . Volume XI Number 3 . . . . October 1, 2004

cover

Dinosaur Hunters: Uncovering the Hidden Remains of Canada's Ancient Giants. (Amazing Stories).

Lisa Murphy-Lamb.
Canmore, AB: Altitude Publishing (Distributed by Saunders Book Company), 2003.
115 pp., pbk., $9.95.
ISBN 1-55153-982-9.

Subject Headings:
Paleontology-Canada-Western-History-Anecdotes.
Paleontologists-Canada-Biography.

Grades 5-10 / Ages 10-15.

Review by Val Ken Lem.

***/4

excerpt:

Life on a dig was tough. It consisted of pitching a tent wherever the group stopped for the night, and eating not much more than beans and wild berries for days on end. Workdays were long and the rewards few and far between. But the thrill of finding a bone more than compensated for the hard work. For years to come, Charles, George, Charlie, and Levi [Sternberg] joined forces to hunt for dinosaur bones. They would be referred to as the Dream Team, and together they weathered some extreme conditions. Their collective fuel was the discovery of new bones.

 

In Dinosaur Hunters, educator Lisa Murphy-Lamb draws upon historical facts and adds fictionalized details to produce captivating stories about a handful of pioneer dinosaur hunters active in Canada and one modern Canadian paleontologist, Philip Currie.

     George Dawson and Joseph B. Tyrrell both overcame serious childhood illnesses and became incredibly productive surveyors, prospectors and explorers in the Canadian West. Dawson's discovery of hadrosaurian dinosaur bones in southern Saskatchewan in 1874 is recognized as a Canadian first. Ten years later, Tyrrell uncovered a large deposit of fossilized dinosaur bones near the future site of Drumheller, Alberta, while working for the Geological Survey of Canada.

     In keeping with the series theme, "Amazing Stories," Murphy-Lamb weaves interesting anecdotes into the text to enliven the brief biographies. She also delivers excellent historical facts and vocabulary-enriching descriptions of geological formations and the working methods and conditions. Particularly noteworthy is her description of measuring distances in paces: With a compass in one hand and a canvas bag on his side, [Joseph B. Tyrrell] embarked on daily, evenly paced walks. He had to record every 100 set of paces that he walked. To keep track, he placed a new stick in his pocket after every set of 100 steps. At the end of several hours, he counted the number of sticks in his trousers, wrote down how many sets of 100 he had walked, and started again.

     Although sub-titled "Uncovering the Hidden Remains of Canada's Ancient Giants," it would have been more correct to substitute North America for Canada since the author devotes a chapter to the Sternberg family's important work as dinosaur hunters in the United States. Two subsequent chapters detail the Sternberg's work for the federal government in southern Alberta during the 1910s, a period described as The Great Canadian Dinosaur Rush.

     Murphy-Lamb provides glimpses into the intense rivalry between noted American paleontologists Edward Cope and Othneil Marsh, and later between the Sternbergs and Phineas T. Barnum. The theme of rivalry continues in the final chapter, with a friendlier tone, as American Jack Horner and Philip Currie and his Canadian colleagues successfully search for fossil eggs and embryos in Montana and southern Alberta during the late 1990s.

     Seven black and white photographs are scattered throughout the book at appropriate places. Most are portraits, often set in the field. There is a two-page photo of the dinosaurs on display at the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller. A map of southern Alberta and Saskatchewan identifies places named in the book. Also included are a chart of the geological time scale, an appendix of Dinosaur Data containing facts about fourteen dinosaurs found in Canada, and a brief bibliography that will guide enthusiastic readers to delve more deeply into the history and lives of the people profiled in this book. There is no index.

     Given the subject matter and the accessible prose, Dinosaur Hunters will make for excellent recreational/supplemental reading.

Recommended.

Val Ken Lem, a catalogue librarian at Ryerson University, Toronto, was a dinosaur fanatic in his elementary school years.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.
Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364
Hosted by the University of Manitoba.
 

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