Sharks and Other Sea Monsters (Encyclopedia Prehistorica Series)
by Robert Sabuda and Matthew Reinhart
Talk about a book jumping out and biting you. You'll be checking your fingers for missing digits with this pop-up primer on marine dinosaurs and other underwater nasties.
Don't be fooled by the plain cover, which hides four fat inches of complex 3-D depictions of the ugliest, meanest critters ever to slither, scuttle or swim beneath prehistoric seas. They literally burst into view in rich, dazzling colors and minutely crafted paper.
Each page also features booklets tucked into the corners with yet more pop-ups and intriguing facts, whether on crocs, sharks and other modern monsters or yet more ancient icky-sauruses.
Tragically, I have to put this book away for a few years, since its paper wizardry is too intricate for little hands. An eye-popping battle between long-necked sea lizards of several species took a few minutes to untangle and tuck safely away. A skeletal Ichthyosaur nearly lost its tail getting refolded.
Nonetheless, this is the book to have to impress your budding marine biologists. Just have the harpoons handy.
Rating: *\*\*\*\
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