Tyrannosaurus WRECKS!
In this read-along picture book, a classroom full of young dinosaurs plays with toys, does art projects, and reads books. But each activity is another opportunity for the over-enthusiastic Tyrannosaurus Rex to wreak havoc. Parents and young children will love the call-and-response nature of the book, and young dinosaur fans will appreciate the listing (and pronunciation guide) for a dozen different dino species. The format is extra vertical in order to accommodate T. Rex's biggest messes.
Praise
"Punchy writing, an equally in-your-face palette, and OHora’s characteristically brash painting style make this as much a stompalong as a readaloud."
--Publishers Weekly
"Using brisk rhymes that incorporate different dinosaur types, Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen lays out one transgression after another. For instance, three friends are playing nicely on the floor with blocks: "Stegosaurus stacks. / Triceratops erects. / Gallimimus builds it up." Two seconds later, blocks go flying when: "Tyrannosaurus wrecks!" Pretty soon the other children are fed up, and we don't blame them. But our sympathies switch to Tyrannosaurus when he is banished by the other children, and we want to cheer when he sets about, if unsteadily, making amends. Zachariah Ohora's brightly colored, raw-feeling illustrations capture the bittersweet Darwinism of class dynamics in even the earliest school years."
-- Wall Street Journal
"Along with the pleasure of pronouncing those multisyllabic dino names, young audiences may find food for thought in the behavioral dynamics on display."
--Kirkus Reviews
"Warmly colored with childlike bodies and emotive faces, Ohora’s dinosaurs are among the cutest you will come across in children’s books."
--Booklist
"The brief rhyming text, which scans well, tells a story with child appeal. There is a good balance of two-to-three word sentences with large, uncluttered illustrations, making the book a good choice for reading aloud. In their simplicity, the brightly colored pictures have the look of children’s art, but they enhance the classroom setting appropriately with interesting details."
--School Library Journal
"The shapely dinos, whose rough charcoal-style outlines and strong colors vividly contrast with the white or sometimes black backgrounds, are chunky and friendly in an eight-crayon-box color scheme and snazzy Peanuts-reminiscent outfits."
--Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"Together the chanting rhythm, ragged lines, and setting of an un-chaperoned dinosaur class create a satisfyingly high-energy, primal read-aloud strongly reminiscent of Bob Shea’s 'Dinosaur vs.' series."
--The Horn Book Magazine
Honors
2014 Parent's Choice Picture Book Selection
2015 Please Touch Museum Book Award Honorable Mention
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Buy Now (board book)