Dinotopia Lost: A Novel (Dinotopia (HarperCollins))

Rating:
Summary: A notch or two above the original Dinotopia books.
Review: A few of the reviewers below slam "Dinotopia Lost" by Alan Dean Foster because they claim that the language is too difficult for children. But in doing so, they forget to look at its merits as, simply, a book.

This is an excellent novel that I, a college junior at time of writing, have read and reread numerous times. I personally feel that Foster managed to develop the characters of the Denisons to a level that even James Gurney, Dinotopia's creator, was unable to. He infuses the new characters with much three-dimensionality as well, especially the wild and wily pirate captain Brognar Blackstrap and his intellectual first mate, Priester Smiggens. And Tarqua, a character who shows up near the end of the book, is such a delight that if I tell you more about him I'll ruin some of the book's best moments.

Please, don't judge this as a "children's book." Judge it as a full-fledged novel, like I did.

Rating:
Summary: A notch or two above the original Dinotopia books.
Review: A few of the reviewers below slam "Dinotopia Lost" by Alan Dean Foster because they claim that the language is too difficult for children. But in doing so, they forget to look at its merits as, simply, a book.

This is an excellent novel that I, a college junior at time of writing, have read and reread numerous times. I personally feel that Foster managed to develop the characters of the Denisons to a level that even James Gurney, Dinotopia's creator, was unable to. He infuses the new characters with much three-dimensionality as well, especially the wild and wily pirate captain Brognar Blackstrap and his intellectual first mate, Priester Smiggens. And Tarqua, a character who shows up near the end of the book, is such a delight that if I tell you more about him I'll ruin some of the book's best moments.

Please, don't judge this as a "children's book." Judge it as a full-fledged novel, like I did.

Rating:
Summary: dinotopia is a lost cause.
Review: Dinoptopia lost was a short, rather boring book about a group of pirates who land on the shore of dinotopia. The plot is pointless and not enjoyable. Foster does not use much detail in describing the characters or the island, and the reader is left with a vague kind of hazy idea of what things are like. Illustrations would have been a big help. I did like the idea of the book (an islnad where dinosaurs and humans live together) but i think Foster could have done a better job with it.

Rating:
Summary: Best By Far
Review: Dinotopia Lost is an exceptionally written masterpiece, and anyone who says otherwise hasn't read it! The beginning dragged because it was setting the scene and characters, but Alan Foster made Dinotopia seem like an actual spot on the map. It was full of traps, pirates, kidnapping, rescue, amazing creatures, and everything else that is essential to a spectacular fantasy novel. This book is truly a work of art that should be enjoyed by all.

Rating:
Summary: A truly superb novel that will capture all!
Review: Having experienced this novel was a complete pleasure! The descriptive language used in the book allows even the vivid of an imagination to conjure spectacular images and indeed embarks the reader on a fantastic adventure. An escape from our everyday world with ideas that will surely get anyone thinking. When the marauding band of pirates threatens Dinotopia we find ourselves thinking, do all humans take interest only in the material values of the world?

Rating:
Summary: A little juvenile, but a good read
Review: I bought this book because it was written by Alan Dean Foster. I didn't know anything about Dinotopia when I started reading it. After I began reading it, I got the feeling that the Dinotopia series is aimed at a juvenile audience (teenagers maybe?), but I still enjoyed the book. When I first started it, I had trouble getting into it, but that went away as I read a little further. The premise is a little far-fetched (a utopian society inhabited by humans and intelligent dinosaurs), and in the first few chapters, Foster had an irritating habit of constantly reminding the reader that Will really wasn't afraid of heights (I only need to be told once, not every time he's not on solid ground), but eventually, he stopped doing that. The further I got into the book, the better it got.

Rating:
Summary: very good, and very exciting
Review: I rate this book low for lack of a better choice.

My 4th grader, who is a very capable reader, didn't finish it. She *loved* the other Dinotopia books, and was looking forward to reading this one. But we agree entirely with the review of Maria Brooks, who points out that the language in this particular one is a level up from the others in complexity. Consider the first page, which has words like "unnavigable", "proportionately", "brackish", "homogeneous", and "hue". Yes, these are words that I'd like my 4th grader to be familiar with, but when she doesn't know them, it really slows her down. And that's the first page out of three hundred! She had a wise teacher who said that if you pick up a book, and there are five words on the first page you don't know, then put it down for a year. So that's what we'll do with this one.

If your child can handle these words, then go for it. If plot and character development are as good as the others, it'll be great. So the one star is mainly for the inhomogeneity in reading level of the series, and the expectations for it by its fans that are not supported.

Rating:
Summary: Exceeded My Expectations
Review: I've read some of Alan Dean Foster's earlier works and found them to be well-written, but just not my type, I suppose. My friend and I are always exchanging good reads, and this came up in the conversation. I haven't read any of the other Dinotopia books, but I totally fell in love with this one. It has all of the elements of a good story: exotic settings, secret civilizations, kidnapping, rescue, pirates, and keen suspense. It took it a while to pick up at the beginning, but it just soared for the remaining pages. A page-turner to the end, this exceeded my expectations with flying colors.

Rating:
Summary: Dinotopia Lost:: A Review
Review: In the southern areas of the Indian Ocean, there exists an Atlantis, not solely for humans, but for what was previously thought extinct - dinosaurs. These unlikely companions co-exist in harmony, though not all of them, and have worked over the ages to build the grandest utopia ever. The peoples of this 'lost isle' have long since shed ideas such as money, violence, and self interest in favor of a better civilization. So when a group of murdering, pilfering, greedy - in short, the scum of the earth - pirates somehow land their ship amidst the dangerous coral reefs, the citizens of Dinotopia are in grave danger from the outside world. What follows is a standard adventure story, filled with multiple kidnappings, breathtaking chases, unexpected turncoats, and eye popping surprises. The reader is reeled in from the beginning, and given a mental thrill that stays long past the end of the page. Yet, with a few careful additions, Alan Dean Foster creates a tale that far surpasses any standard story.
Here, aside from providing entertainment, Alan Dean Foster also conveys a concept with a philosophical bent. Dinotopia is painted as heaven on earth, would this have been something we could have attained? Just as Dinotopia is the perfect society, the pirates represent humanity; which, from their actions, lead to the questions, do we destroy everything in sight if we cannot have it? Is our self interest so encompassing? Are we really as vile as those pirates are? There will be many who do not look beyond the veneer of an engrossing novel, but for those who do, Dinotopia Lost offers much re-reading value.

Rating:
Summary: this is a good Fantasy book
Review: This is a fantasy book. Why anyone would be upset that it carries a fantastical theme I cannot even begin to fathom. If anyone complains that the vocabulary is a bit rough than they should put the book down or pick up a dictionary. The only way that the wee ones ever learn english is by reading advanced words in context. I didn't just acquire a few hundred word with every birthday people, I read and learned them. This book is probably directed towards an older age than the others in the series but why does that make it bad!?!? You give it A star because it's made for an older audience than you expected? Your the ones that need to grow up.