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HOW DID WE FIND OUT ABOUT DINOSAURS?

Name: HOW DID WE FIND OUT ABOUT DINOSAURS?
Author: Isaac Asimov
ISBN: 0380595842

by Isaac Asimov ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 18, 1973

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This is the fourth volume in Asimov's "How Did We Find Out. . ." series which aims at reader participation in the process of discovery, but there is nothing in his lackluster survey of fossil finds and dinosaur features to stimulate any kind of mental activity. The first half of the book, which doesn't mention dinosaurs, skims through some landmarks in natural history from the 1500's on (Gesner — "the first man to draw pictures of fossils," Bonnet's disaster theory to reconcile fossils with the Bible, Linnaeus' system of classification, Darwin's theory of evolution) and might have better been entitled "How We Found Out the Earth Wasn't Created in Six Days." The pages on dinosaurs themselves, after the usual mention of Mary Anning who found the first ichthyosaur and plesiosaur remains, is simply a rundown on the size, names, build and eating habits of a few of the better known species — and as such surely superfluous.

Pub Date: Oct. 18, 1973

ISBN: 0380595842

Page Count: -

Publisher: Walker

Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1973

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE RETURN OF THE BLACK WIDOWERS
by Isaac Asimov & edited by Charles Ardai

- BOOK REVIEW
MAGIC
by Isaac Asimov

- BOOK REVIEW
GOLD
by Isaac Asimov

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.