Rating: 
Summary: Great
Review: I first heard of Dinotopia when I saw a Dinotopia calender on display. Much later I bought the book. I just loved. It's a good story (the best of the three, IMHO), but the real gems are the illustrations. Nothing compares. Absolutely fantastic.
Rating:
Summary: Great Pictures!
Review: Dinosaurs? Wolly Mamoths? two strangers from a faraway land? = A REALY GREAT BOOK!! When two strangers arrive in Dinotopia a land where humans and Dinosaurs live in peace it leads to one big adventure!
Rating:
Summary: A Very Interesting & Special Fantasy Adventure
Review: Well,I know that this book is mostly for children but I can`t stop liking it,as I am a great admirer of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals. There has been books before where humans and dinosaurs meet,but no one as special as this one.
What would the world have looked like if the dinosaurs were still alive?
Would we have used Brontosaurus as a beast of burden?
The little 5-foot long Protoceratops as a pet?
Or T-rex as the main attraction on zoos?
It is always an interesting thought. Some of the dinosaurs does not just seem to be like pets or beasts of burden for the humans,they are often very helpfull and intelligent beeings. Even the nasty Velociraptor can be domesticated here.
Well,I`ll give you a short description of the plot here:
Arthur Denison and his son Will are stranded on a mysterious island in the late 19th century. They find a little,strange animal (which later appears to be a protoceratops)which have been hurt. When they approach it,they are suddenly surrounded by gigantic creatures of many shapes and colors - DINOSAURS!
And then,a human appears to calm down the animals. They are now taken to a house were normal people live.
Then,they experience different adventures on the island,among them a flight in the mountains on giant pterosaurs,here called "dragons",a ride on giant ostrich dinosaurs,and a confrontation with Tyrannosaurus rex!
Over all,my thoughts about this book is that it is very great. The illustrations are of high quality and invalueable to the ones that likes dinosaurs. I am currently writing a story named "The Forgotten Island",were an expedition are sent to explore an island were dinosaurs are still alive. That story is quite inspired by this one,although the dinosaurs are not accompanied by humans in my story. I especially like the fact that he has included many not so well known dinosaurs in Dinotopia - for example the enormous ostrich dinosaur with 8-foot arms named Deinocheirus. Or the pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus.
Over all,this is a great book that receives all appreciation it can get as a wonderfull fantasy adventure.
I have heard that it is going to be visualized into a massive TV movie in the year of 2002 - over six hours!It will be really interesting to see what it looks like. As James Gurney has been their concept artist,I don`t think it`ll bee bad. I am currently looking a lot forward to it. While waiting,don`t forget to read the book.
Rating:
Summary: Buy it now.. for fans of Dinos, Fantasy, Really Good Art
Review: This book was casually picked off the shelf at a friends house and right away I realized how amazing it was. In my opinion the only really great part of the book - what sets it apart from other sci-fi/fantasy - are the illustrations. The book tells about an island where dinasour and man still live in harmony, as well as (later in the series) revealling the history of the place which shows that it is compiled from many different cultures and someone's strange attempt to mimick dinasours with machines.But again, the story - in my eyes - is completely secondary. It only is there to give Mr.Gurney a chance to do what he is really good at, which is the illustrations. The story says that here is a fantastical island with architecture and fashion and climate zones from around the world and throughout history so the author/illustrator makes up these cities, towns and lonely outposts accordingly. Every page is illustrated, and on one page you will see yourself looking at a bustling city that really reminds you of Rome and the next page you have travelled through a rainforest, through a mideval-like festival and to a secluded castle propped atop a steep snowy mountain, right out of any good Chinese film. The illustrations are just breathtaking. Sometimes a little thumbnail color pencil job, showith a city from afar and sometimes a full, double page oil or watercolor painting showing a beautiful panoramic veiw, I found the book really inspiring because of these great works of art that can be found on every page. Anyone who is into dreaming up imaginary worlds or drawing fun landscapes should definately get this book, and perhaps even the sequels. The fact that the author used to work for National Geographic drawing reproductions of ancient cultures (you know, those *really* cool pictures that you could look at for hours?) should give you an idea of just what to expect from every page of this great book. eliStagedoor.tripod.com
Rating:
Summary: A MUST HAVE FOR ANY LIBRARY-CHILDREN AND ADULT!!
Review: I found out about the dinotopia books by chance. I am suprised at how many children and adults dont know about this book. This book and the sequel book are absolutely fantastic! I read it to my older son, who was 6 at the time in one day! He now reads it in installments to his brother and sister. A true classic that needs to be up there with Tom Sawyer, Treasure Island and such!
I can say I will still be reading this again when Im 80!
Trust Me You Will Not Be Disapointed In This Story!
Makes a great gift for any Dinosaur Lover!
Rating:
Summary: A National Geographic from another dimension
Review: Who needs Jurassic Park when you have this book??? This is the story of a man and his son shipwrecked on an island inhabited by Dinosaurs and the humans who live peacefully with them. This lavishly illustrated book gives us an insight into this world, with diagrams of flora, fauna, landscapes, musical instruments, machines, dwellings and so much more. There is even a complete written language. Dinotopia is like a fantastical edition of National Geographic, with so much detail that you could spend hours getting lost in it. The first of a series, this book has something to interest everyone, Dinosaur fans and those who wouldn't know a triceratops from a tyrannosaurus alike.
Rating:
Summary: Great for kids and adults too!
Review: I enjoyed this book when I read it when I was 8 or 10 the illustrations dazzeled me and as almost all young boys go through a period of intrest with dinoasaurs I was captivated to see a structured society of humans and dinosaurs. However when I read the book again as a 14 year old I was amazed at the bits of information I didn't appreciate as a child. The idea that because dinosaurs lived for millions of years and humans just a blink of an eye in evolutionary retrospect, that the dinosaurs had already tackled the most difficult philosophical problems, writing greatly before humans emerged. Even the science and technology that continues through the book is enjoyed even more as my understanding has progressed since the first time I read this wonderful book. "'What hour is it?' I asked, reaching instinctively for my pocket watch. Malik took a step back. 'Time for Kentrosaurus to hatch. Time to plant the millet. Time for the magnolia buds to open. Professor Denison, I'm afraid you persist in thinking of time as numbers. You think of meaningless units of time - weeks, hours, minutes - based on what? Movements of faraway planets? Of what use to us is that? Why not pay attention to the precise 30-year life cycle of the bamboo Guadua trinii or the exactly repeated mitotic cycle of the paramecium? The whole earth has a heartbeat.'" This is one of my favorite passages of Dinotopia. Such tidbits of science and philosophy are a highlight of this wonderfully entertaining book. Illustrations on every page to aid the wandering mind, this book is truly a gem.
Rating:
Summary: Great book to read with the kids!
Review: We have read this book at least 3 times to my son, who loved it. The illustrations are both beautiful and detailed, giving young explorers lots of things to look at, analyze and dream about. The story is both exciting and educational. Kids learn about cooperation and tolerance - something that all kids should learn. We didn't want this one to end!
Rating:
Summary: Pure magic.
Review: I read a few pages of this book at a friend's house, around when it first came out. I was captivated, entranced. I absolutely obsessed until my parents presented me with my own copy. The art is breathtaking, the storyline simple and meandering, but-told through the notes and sketches of a man's journal found in a dusty old library-fully believable.
Rating:
Summary: Scrumptiously Illustrated Fantasy For All!
Review: Having always been fascinated by those giants who roamed the planet eons ago, I had to have this one upon its initial publication. "Dinotopia's" tale of a land jointly inhabited by man and dinosaur is a truly captivating adventure. As fanciful as the premise is, the author logically develops the dinosaur characters based on the uniqueness of each respective species. Most are "good" and commune well with their fellow humans; but the T-Rex is still his usual grouchy self, much to the appreciation of us who were raised with the knowledge that the animal was one mean carnivore! By placing the setting in the 1800's, the book could have been written by Wells or Verne, which gives it the feel of a classic. And a classic, it is.
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