NOTHING SCARES A DINOSAUR

The protagonist of Nothing Fits a Dinosaur (2021) returns—as full of confidence and pizzazz as ever.

It’s bedtime, and the young narrator—who’s brown-skinned with curly dark hair—adheres to a reassuring routine that involves a bath, a story, and being tucked in by Momma. But once the child is alone in the dark, sounds and shadows begin to seem ominous. As a mechanical toy casts a terrifying silhouette, the protagonist repeats the titular mantra and boasts, “I can make one twice as tall!” The narrator then transforms into a large, orange dino resembling a T. rex and bravely confronts other threats—a monster, a “closet beast with fuzzy paws,” a spider, stormy weather—and even menaces the family cat. Alert readers will enjoy spotting the sassy feline sticking out a tongue when comeuppance arrives for its pursuer. But—spoiler alert—our hero backs down when, offstage, “Mommasaurus” finally roars, “GET IN BED! TURN OFF THE LIGHT!” and the narrator sensibly complies. Rhyming text (with a few dissimilar word pairs such as yawn/on) in an irresistible four-beat rhythm makes the pages fly by. The artwork is suffused in bright, saturated colors, and frequent shifts from close-up to mid-distance perspective help keep readers’ attention.

A humorous and relatable tale that will motivate readers to battle on to the end.