Dinosaur Explorers: Prehistoric Pioneers by Redcode and Albbie - OPTIONAL

Dinosaur Explorers: Prehistoric Pioneers by Redcode and Albbie, illustrated by Air Team, 175 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL. Papercut, 2011. $13.

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL.

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

In this manga style graphic novel, a group of explorers and scientists are trying to time travel in a machine of their own creation, but end up at the origins of the earth and encounter the very first prehistoric creatures. Part of the group works to repair the machine while three of them go into the prehistoric ocean to explore and collect samples. When the machine has enough energy they attempt to get home but end up in a more recent geological era and the adventure continues.  Each chapter is sandwiched with detailed information about the prehistoric creatures introduced in the story. 

I like that the story here is mixed with scientific information, making this a truly educational book.  The non-fiction portions do slow the book down considerably, and since many kids pick graphic novels for the pace, this could be a problem. I think this would be a good book for a classroom experience, where students are already actively learning about geological time periods. 

Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher