What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs?

If you've ever tried to find a picture book about dinosaurs that wasn't filled with references to Darwinism, you'll understand why I was so delighted to discover What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs?, a book totally devoid of the theory of evolution.

Written by Ken Ham (founder of Answers in Genesis) and Dr. John Morris (of Institute for Creation Research), this unique volume explores the world of dinosaurs from a biblical perspective. As the book opens, we meet Tracker John - an explorer type - and Dino Jr. (or D.J.), a friendly little psittacosaurus, who talk about how scientists study dinosaurs (through bones, which are often incomplete, and fossils). They point out that sometimes scientists make mistakes in studying dinosaurs. For example, the dinosaur originally called the Brontosaurus had to be renamed to Apatosaurus because "the scientist who found his skeleton put the wrong head on it!"

Next, they examine when dinosaurs lived. They tell us some scientists think dinosaurs were around long before humans were on the earth, but that creation scientists disagree. Dinosaurs, they say, must have been created at the same time as other animals, which means they were around when Adam and Eve were on earth. They mention the "Behemoth" written about in the book of Job, and say dinosaurs must have been around during that time, also, since dinosaurs fit the description and no other animal we know of does. Tracker John and D.J. also say dinosaurs must have been on Noah's ark - probably in the form of babies - and were around after the Flood. In fact, they say, the Flood explains perfectly why there are so many dinosaur fossils all around the world.

How did the dinosaurs die out? Tracker John and D.J. admit no one knows for sure, but some people think conditions after the Flood just weren't good for dinosaurs. It may have been too cold, for example, or they may not have been able to find enough food. It may even be that tales of knights fighting dragons are really true stories of men killing dinosaurs; perhaps dinosaurs were hunted to extinction.

What I Like: I appreciate that this book not only includes biblical ideas about dinosaurs (which are, when you get right down to it, at least as believable as the ideas put forth by evolutionary scientists...and to those who believe in the unfailing word of the Bible, much more believable), but also includes some foundations of faith, such as a description of what sin is and what the consequences of it are, all backed up with biblical references. The authors have managed to provide a lot of excellent information in a kid-friendly way. The book is well written and never gets nasty about opposing views. The illustrations by Jonathan Chong are professional and engaging.

What I Dislike: Nothing.

Overall Rating: Excellent.

Age Appeal: According to the publisher, 4 to 8, but my 3 year old loves it.

Publisher Info: Master Books, 1990; ISBN: 0890511594; hardback; $10.99

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Special Info: Answers in Gensis has a section devoted to kids, including activities and videos.