DINOSAUR FARM by Frann Preston-Gannon

(I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher.)

Dinosaurs and farms! What a winning combination!  This book just made me smile the first time I saw it. Before sitting down to read it with my 6-yr-old, I read through it first on my own. It gave me an idea. I told my son that I had a new book for us to read together but he had to promise to keep his eyes closed. I told him to imagine the pictures in his mind.  I was curious to see what conclusions he would draw. Here's the fun little trick about this book. The text says NOTHING about dinosaurs! 

"First things first.
Your animals will be hungry, so you
must serve them breakfast."

My son pictured a farmer feeding chickens and cows.  This is the actual illustration:

After we read through the book with my son's eyes closed, I told him to open his eyes and we would read it again. He was so surprised to see all the dinosaurs!  The book takes you through an average farmer's day with the twist that dinosaurs live on the farm. The farmer cares for the animals and plants and even has to deal with messes like dinosaur poop left by the Triceratops!

  

The farmer also has an adorable pet dinosaur in place of a dog that appears on most pages. My son loved looking for him and seeing what he was doing. We also enjoyed trying to identify the dinosaurs on each of the pages. The illustrations were so adorable!

This book was a big hit in our little family.  We really enjoyed the combination of a traditional farmer's day with a very nontraditional farm. The illustrations were full of humor and fun and we loved the little details in each one.

BOTTOM LINE:  Recommended! An adorable book that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike!