I Am NOT a Dinosaur!

K-Gr 3—Young dino-enthusiasts will love this new title that uses short, rhyming sentences to introduce some nondinosaur prehistoric creatures, including saber-toothed cats, woolly mammoths, and pterosaurs. Each spread highlights a beast based on skeletons from the fossil collection of the American Museum of Natural History, giving a brief introduction to the animal and an illustration of the creature as it may have appeared in its natural habitat. The book tries to clarify for budding paleontologists the differences between dinosaurs and nondinosaurs from prehistory. The rhymes are whimsical yet still informative. Beautiful cut-paper collage artwork features each prehistoric animal, often with a young one in tow, on a plain, bright background, filling the space and drawing the eye. Back matter includes a bit more material about each creature, as well as a time line that shows when each existed in relation to the others. The author also explains the technical definition of a dinosaur, which is helpful for understanding why some are not considered dinosaurs.