S672 Titanosaur (youth nonfiction book review)

Titanosaur: Discovering the World’s Largest Dinosaur (2019)

Written by: Dr. Jose Luis Carballido & Dr. Diego Pol

Illustrated by: Florencia Gigena

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Book type: Picture book

Ages: 5-7 years

Lexile level: 930

Summary

Titanosaur begins in Patagonia, Argentina where a gaucho (shepherd) and his sheepdog discover something unusual poking out of the dirt on the gaucho’s ranch. A few months pass, and the gaucho visits a museum in town. He observes a dinosaur skeleton display and mentions to someone at the front desk that he found a similar kind of bone on his ranch, but it was much bigger. The museum’s two paleontologists, Diego and Jose, speak with the gaucho and make arrangements to visit his ranch. Diego and Jose determine that the unusual object is, indeed, a dinosaur bone. They return with a team of people to dig up the bone. The bone they uncover is a seven foot, ten inch long femur bone, bigger than any other dinosaur bone the team has ever seen. Diego and Jose wonder if there are more dinosaur bones buried in the area. They assemble a larger team and conduct a dig of the area in which the femur was found. The team uncovers a massive tail vertebrae and hip bones, and all of the bones seem to fit together. Based on the size of the bones, Jose believes that they have found the skeleton of a titanosaur. Titanosaurs were large, plant-eating dinosaurs with long necks and small heads. They looked similar to the more commonly known brontosaurus. Estimated to have weighed seventy tons, the titanosaur found on the gaucho’s ranch is the biggest dinosaur ever found. In the end, the team uncovers more than 100 bones from seven different dinosaurs on the gaucho’s ranch. The bones are covered in plaster and burlap bandages to protect them while they are transported from the ranch to the museum. The team has camped out on the ranch for fifteen days to complete the dig, wrap the bones, and level the road. Back at the museum, Diego, Jose, and their colleagues realize that they have discovered a new species of titanosaur, and they call it Patagotitan mayorum. Replicas of the bones are made to be put on display at the museum. Once assembled, the titanosaur skeleton measures 122 feet long and just under 26.5 feet tall.  

Deciding where to dig

 

The gaucho talks to Diego & Jose

Jose next to the femur; Diego and Jose decide to keep digging

Commentary

Written by Diego and Jose, the paleontologists who led the dig, this book offers readers a professional perspective of the events. In addition to telling the story, the authors provide definitions of important vocabulary words such as gaucho, paleontologist, and femur. The illustrations are vivid and detailed, and the book also includes real-life photographs of the authors, their team, the dig site, the tools, and the bones. There is a brief letter to the readers at the end in which the authors emphasize their passion for traveling to new places and finding fossils. They express enjoyment at being able to share their adventures with young readers, and encourage interested readers to become a part of the future generation of paleontologists.

Teachers Will Appreciate

This book has been nominated for a 2021-2022 Young Hoosier Book Award in the Intermediate Books category. Teachers can download a free, librarian-created resource guide which includes discussion questions, read alikes, and a link to a book trailer as well as links to other relevant websites. 

Read Alikes

When Sue Found Sue (2019) by Toni Buzzeo

Paleontologist Sue Hendrickson has had a life-long passion for finding things. One day while standing alone with her dog, Sue spots what looks like a partial backbone sticking out of a large area of rock. She discovers what turns out to be the largest Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered. The skeleton, "Sue," remains on display today at Chicago's Field Museum.

Paleontology: The Study of Prehistoric Life (2012) by Susan H. Gray

Part of Scholastic's True Books series, this book educates readers about the basics of paleontology and what paleontologists learn from studying prehistoric plants and animals. Includes a variety of engaging sections including a historical timeline, high-interest topics, and ongoing work and future challenges in the field.

The Tiny Titanosaurs: Luis Chiappe's Dinosaur Nests (2007) by Natalie Lunis

Part of the Fossil Hunters series, this book explores the work of Luis Chiappe and his team as they travel to Argentina and become the first to discover both skin and bones from unhatched baby dinosaurs among a nesting site which held thousands of dinosaur eggs. The book includes attractive color photographs and a map.