If You Happen to Have a Dinosaur

This is cute, quirky and rather fun to read aloud book, yes I read it out loud a few times to get the feel for the rhythm of the book. That is a very important consideration when choosing a children's book, never buy one you can't easily read out loud or that isn't fun to read out loud.

The art is

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cute, bright and cheerful and rather retro and I liked the wide variety of dinosaurs used, the former teacher in me wishes the names of the dinosaurs were provided but that would pretty much bring the story to a screeching halt.

For young children I don't see this having a lot of repeat reading appeal but as a book to read aloud it could be a lot of fun.

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Really fun book about what to do with that dinosaur you happen to have lying around your house. Total hit with my 2 year old. (I got this as an Early Reviewer book).

This book reminded me of a story that I used to read to my son when he was little ( 20 years ago) called If the Dinosaurs Came to Town. The art work was reminiscent of the old cartons that you used to see of the Wonderful World of Disney TV show from back in the 60's and early 70's. The story was

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cute but I guess because it reminded me too much of of other works.

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"If You Happen to Have a Dinosaur" written by Linda Bailey and illustrated by Colin Jack is full of humorous uses for a dinosaur, such as having it open cans or mash potatoes. The pterodactyl kites are great use of dinosaur dynamics. This book is rated three stars because the illustrations fall

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short of what they could be. Some readers (adults) will appreciate the vintage picnic illustration, but it left me wondering if the family had been drinking because of their red noses. The stereotyped teacher and burglar also left me cold. Do burglars still wear masks? Overall, this is a fair book, but it won't be one of my favorites.

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The plot is "what can you do with a dinosaur?" and it doesn't go too much further than that. It was a cute book, with silly and ridiculous suggestions. The author is also opening herself up for multiple sequels, as it ends with "but what if you have..." and then a smattering of other animals.

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Overall I found that it would be a good read-aloud, and the pictures were large enough that a group could see it clearly. Speaking of illustrations, however, I found them to be a bit TOO cartoonish. I know, that's weird for a picture book, but they look identical to the characters of movies such as "Mars Needs Moms" and "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs". In addition, the front cover has a dinosaur picking up a little boy by his underwear. With a bright red naked butt. This might be funny to some kids, but I actually found it a little creepy since he's all splayed out. If I were looking for a book for storytime, I might not stop and actually open it up to give it a chance.

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Dinosaurs can be very useful things! They make great can openers, umbrellas, and even diving boards! "If You Happen To Have A Dinosaur" explores all kinds of imaginative uses for that dinosaur you might happen to have lying around your house. This is a wonderful story! Both kids and adults will

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enjoy the humor and the unique hidden talents of dinosaurs. This would make a great book for story time. The ending leaves it open for kids to create their own stories about what they could do with other animals, like a kangaroo. It could lead to a neat drawing project for younger ones or a short story project for older kids. A very well done and enjoyable story!

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The illustrations drew me to "If You Happen To Have A Dinosaur", and I was not disappointed in this fun read aloud. After reading this I can imagine every kid to want a dinosaur to help out with the fun and not so fun stuff. As a teacher I love the ending that leaves open the possibilities for

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writing prompts to continue the story.

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Cute illustrations (evocative faces!) with a sense of humour, and the kind of prose that reads like verse, and it tries to get kinds thinking at the end ("Now what could you do / with a kangaroo?), and the things I wanna complain about are minor and it's a beautiful day and why not be charitable

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here?

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The theme of this book seemed familiar, and I went off to the library to find a copy of Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff. The humour in Bailey's book is sharper, the art edgier and retro, reminding me of 1960's cartoons. I wasn't much taken by this new version of an old idea, but I showed it to

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some children of my acquaintance, and they burst into laughter about the baby's bare behind. I was outvoted.

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This is a cute kids' book about - as per the title - the varying uses of a dinosaur. I was happy to see that there were a variety of dinosaurs shown and many different uses. I liked the art a lot and enjoyed reading this to my baby.

In If You Happen to Have a Dinosaur by Linda Bailey, illustrated by Colin Jack, we are presented with a juxtaposition of the small town simple life and dinosaurs. Each page presents all the useful (and some not-so-useful) ways one can enlist a dinosaur for, usually to solve relatively pedestrian

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problems.

The illustrations within this book are definitely the reason to take this book home. Colin Jack steals the show with his delightful blend of prehistoric and retro-life (I haven't seen a television antenna for longer than I'd like to remember).

If your little one likes dinosaurs, then this is definitely a book to catch their interest. It's also not that bad a read for the kid at heart. I recommend it.

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This book makes me wish I had a dinosaur! It was silly and fun to read about all the great uses for a dino as a pet. The illustrations were creative, detailed and adorable. This version is the newly released board-book version of the book which was sturdy and I think parents and younger kids will

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really enjoy it.


The overall theme is a lot of fun, it is more of a picture book, with minimal text and the illustrations do a great job implying what the text is saying. I think dinosaur lovers will really enjoy this book (and parents as well, and parent dino lovers). We all should have dinosaur pets!

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A cute book, with colorful illustrations and fun ideas. I hesitate to rate it higher, though, because it doesn't feel quite as memorable as other dinosaur books. I'm not sure whether it needs rhymes, or whether I'm judging it unfairly in comparison to Mo Willems' original and brilliantly funny

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"Edwina, the Dinosaur Who Didn't Know She Was Extinct". It still isn't a bad addition to the library at my preschool, though.

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This is a cute board book that is a good read-along for toddler-age children or very early self readers. The illustrations are vibrant and the 'uses' illustrated are at times quite comedic. Enjoyable, but not supremely outstanding. Pick it up at the library.

What can you do with your dinosaur? All sorts of things!
This beautifully illustrated book appeals to children's imagination. Dinosaurs are useful for everything from babysitting to clearing snow, and I'm sure that kids reading this book will think up even more ways that a dinosaur could be used.

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The illustrations in this book are beautiful and full of emotion and excitement, it's a truly lovely book. A perfect read for imaginative kids, or anyone who is a fan of dinosaurs.

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This is a silly book about the different things you can do with a dinosaur, like use it as a can opener, an umbrella, or a kite. It's a cute story, but my toddler was not very interested in it even though he loves dinosaurs. I think maybe he didn't like the illustrations, though other kids might

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like them a lot.

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If You Happen to Have a Dinosaur was an adorable book full of silly witty comedy that my youngsters enjoyed on every page. They had so much fun identifying the dinosaurs and all of the things those dinosaurs would be useful for around the house and as pets. The quality and hard cardboard pages made

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it durable enough for my youngest 2 year old boy and yet the story was still fun enough to enjoy for my 5 year old.

I highly recommend it!

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I guess that a good review should be written by a member of the target readership—since this is a board book, that would be a challenge, however, I have the next best thing.
I have three little grandsons; two are very excited about dinosaurs and one that is more of a truck, trains & tractor kind

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of guy. On the day I received my copy of “What Would You Do with a Dinosaur?”, my triple-t grandson (age 3) was at the house. I opened the package and asked him if he would like to look at it. He paged through it and asked me to read it, so, of course, I did. Then I read it again; and again and yet again. Actually, I read it eight times in a row. The first couple of readings he simply listened to it—the next few readings were sprinkled with tentative questions (Do dinosaurs really do that? Are there dinosaurs around here? What is he doing in that picture?). By the time we had finished the eighth reading , he was laughing and examining the pictures very carefully. At nap time, he wanted to sleep with the book and after the nap we did some more cluster readings, but this time he added ideas as I read: I could ride a dinosaur—I could play hide & go seek with a dinosaur—do not let a dinosaur carry your milk to the table. Then he cut loose and got pretty silly: do not teach your dinosaur to dance because he will break the floor. Make the dinosaur use his indoor voice or he will wake the baby. Do not run races with a dinosaur because he could step on your toes.
I asked him, “Do you like dinosaurs now?”
“No,” he said very seriously, “but I like your book.”
So the three-year-old enjoyed the book and I saw a new side of this very concrete little kid.
The book is short and silly—it covers the dos & don’ts of dinosaur ownership in a humorous way and the artwork is fun for both the little people listening and the big ones reading to them. This is a fun book that is a great jumping off point for creative conversations and giggles.

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