With playful illustrations, If I Had a Dinosaur is a charming, witty, rhyming story celebrating the power of a child’s imagination. This little kid also wants a dinosaur after going through a list of other pets that just weren't good enough. It would be good for 1:1 reading too as there are some prediction opportunities where an illustration replaces a word. It allows for opportunities for the children to ask questions and consider what they would do in the same situation.

Inspired by the discovery of the biggest type of titanosaur ever discovered in Argentina in 2014, comes a tale of imagination, childhood spirit and all things dinosaurs! As another reviewer pointed out, this book is great except for the three small illustrations of Asian children that are unsettling. Looking again at this book, I'm reminded of the Cousin Chin-Kee character from American Born Chinese.It's a rhyming story and those are rarely appealing to me (this one is no different) because they always seem somewhat forced (unless it's Dr. Winner of the 'Best Preschool Book' prize with Made for Mums, If I Had a Dinosaur make a fantastic bedtime story! I really enjoy these "if I had a [blank]" books, and I ESPECIALLY like that my top three (this one, If I Had a Raptor, and If I Had a Gryphon) have little girls of color dreaming of non-traditional pets.

Also, only the yellow children have eyes that are slanted lines instead of the round dots sported by all the other people in the story. It would need lots of food to eat, a swimming pool to drink from, and a dino flap so it could come and go! This book would obviously be fantastic in a classroom as a spring board for lessons on pets/dinosaurs but also has some good linkage opportunities with self care, daily routines, nursery rhymes, creative problem solving and more - I think it would be a brilliant resource for any educator to have on their shelf! The bouncy rhyming text is jaunty and fun to read aloud; the simple, cheerful illustrations are cute and colorful, and filled with clever little details for sharper-eyed readers (see if you can find the fun nod to the Harry Potter universe); and it features a multi-racial cast, including a protagonist of color and her family.At the end of a day spent busily imagining, the girl trudges up to bed with her little plastic dinosaur. Gabby Dawnay's rhyming text and Alex Barrow's simple yet evocative illustrations combine beautifully. Maar tegelijk: het is één figurant, zonder actieve rol in het verhaal, waar je los over kijkt als je het boek leest op het ritme van de vlotte rijmende tekst.

In online images, the color of the Asian children seems less offensively yellow than it does in the printed book in front of me.Wonderfully characterised and atmospheric illustrations complement humorous rhyming text in a story that will appeal to young dinosaur-lovers.