Book Summary: This book is a biography on the life of Waterhouse Hawkins, an artist whose work had a big influence on the early discoveries of dinosaur bones in both England in America. He worked hard to have his work accepted by the scientific community. He traveled to the United States to continue his work on some dinosaur bones that had been discovered there. Two years of hard work was destroyed by Boss Tweed.
My Impressions: This book is one of the few books written about the life of Waterhouse Hawkins, and may be one of the only books about his life written for younger ages. This book is a good source of information to consult when researching information about Waterhouse Hawkins and early dinosaur discoveries. The story of Hawkins life is an interesting one. Readers will enjoy reading about the process he used to construct his dinosaur models, how he won over England’s leading scientists, and the trouble he faced in America with Boss Tweed, who disapproved of his work. Selznick also did an excellent job with the illustrations, making them both accurate and visually appealing.
Professional Review: Gr 2-5 --A picture-book presentation about the efforts of Hawkins to erect the first life-sized models of dinosaurs on both sides of the Atlantic. A Victorian artist and sculptor, he was well respected in England, and his reputation insured his being invited to construct replicas of creatures no one had ever seen and to unveil them at the newly constructed Crystal Palace. Kerley's spirited text and Selznick's dramatic paintings bring Hawkins's efforts into clear focus, including his frustrating experience in New York City when Boss Tweed set vandals loose in his workshop. Both author and illustrator provide copious notes of biographical material delineating Hawkins's works, and Selznick's trips to Philadelphia to view a rare scrapbook that is the model for this book's design and to London to see the original Crystal Palace models. Painstakingly researched, written and illustrated with careful attention to detail, this book presents the fervor and spirit of a dedicated, little-known individual whine conceptions-however erroneous by today's discoveries-astounded the minds and stirred the imaginations of scientists then involved in the actual birth of paleontology. A distinguished book in every way.
Manning, P. (2001, March). [Review of the book The dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins, by B. Kerley]. School Library Journal, 47(10), 142. Retrieved from www.schoollibraryjournal.com
Library Uses: This would be a good book to use in a book talk of books relating to dinosaurs. Prior to reading the book for this class, I had never heard of Waterhouse Hawkins. Including this work about him in a book talk would help educate others on the work he did and the influence he had on what we know about dinosaurs today.
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