Elspeth Lorraine

I’m always on the lookout for longer, informational STEM/STEAM picture books because I think they are an excellent tool for all ages, including me, who doesn’t know much science. Side note, did you know that publisher’s nowadays are looking for picture books to be about 500 words? Think about that. Imagine trying to tell a whole story with so few words. Now imagine you are trying to get the entire history of the Iguanodon written in 500 words. I don’t want to! Luckily you don’t have to either and neither did Sean. This picture book is labeled as an informational picture book which means plenty of words, fantastic backmatter and some exciting illustrations. 

Sean takes us through the discovery of the Iguanodon, thinking it was one creature, doing more digging, thinking it was something else entirely, and trying again and again to figure out what ancient dinosaurs looked like. He uses the case of the  iguanodon’s bones specifically for his theme: “Science is a process”. The focus here is on the scientists, amateur fossil finders, museum workers, and the paleontologists etc… but also the paleoartists. The people who studied the bones and used their imaginations to create again and again what the iguanodon might have looked like. Each time we think we know the answer to something, we learn more information and have to reorganize. 

Bits and Pieces: FINALLY I got the full method about the art in a picture book. The art is half the book, so anytime I read “This art was made with paint” or whatever I want to freak out. Good art takes time and the illustrators deserve the space to share their process. Allow me to share the best explanation I’ve seen yet: “To create the art for this book, the artist drew with HB and 2N Staedler graphite pencils on 400-weight Strathmore bristol board. The line art was scanned into a Mac mini, and he added digital watercolor and pastel using Adobe Photoshop on a Wacom Cintiq 32 tablet. Additional texture in the form of physical watercolor, washes and paint splatters was also scanned into Photoshop and incorporated into the art. The artist is not entirely sure what to call all this but “digital collage” sort of makes sense.” Hooray! A full explanation! 

This book is sent in Adobe Caslon, a revival of an eighteenth-century typeface created by William Caslon, which is similar to typefaces used in scientific publications during the early days of paleontology. In 1990, Caslon’s original type was dug up and reconstructed by Carol Twombly.

Not Sure About: Not a thing. Excellent book on the scientific process and this particular dinosaur. 

Favorite Part: My cat Clark really loved this book. He sat on it a bunch and made me turn the pages so he could sit on new spots. As far as I’m concerned there’s no higher compliment. 

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