From the time he was young Waterhouse Hawkins dreamed of showing the world what dinosaurs looked like. Fast forward to Victorian England, Mid-Century where Waterhouse has perfected his artisty and brought these animals to life in the hope all would be interested. He built the first life--sized replicas of dinosaurs, and highlighted them in exotic exhibits both in England and the United States. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were enthralled by his art work.

It was at a very fancy New Year's Eve dinner party wherein Waterhouse invited learned scientists to attend. An Iganandonon mold was made and inside were the seats of 21 guests.

Furthermore, it was at the Crystal Palace in England that Waterhouse showed his grand exhibit to forty thousand spectators.

He didn't stop with shows in Europe, he came to the United States and presented his replica of what he thought a Hadrosaurs looked like. This event occured at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia.

Then, in New York City's Central Park, He hired an assistant to help build the Paleozic Museum, a large structure of iron and glass with an incredible arched ceiling. It was the corrupt politician Boss Tweed who stopped this from occurring. Men broke into his wowrkshop, and with sledgehammers shattered the dinosours that would have been shown inside the Paleozic Museum, And today buried in Central Park are pieces of his beloved dinosaurs.

While he was ahead of his time, some of his renditions were later found to be inaccurate. But, his imagination and spirit was something to be proud of.

Again, it was in reading this book that Il learned of this fascinating man. Once again, a lushly illusrated book coupled with a creative author, brought knowledge to many who read these pages.

The illustrations in this book are incredible. Brian Selznick remains one of my favorite illustrators.

4.5 Stars ( )

Marvelous full color illustrated coffee table size about an artist who dedicated his life to educating the world about the world of the ancient dinosaurs despite many hardships. In Waterhouse's day, few had ever heard of the dinosaurs much less had any idea how they may have looked. He created models, painted murals, and brought them to life based on the bones that were being discovered. ( )

The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins is a book about a man from England named Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins who grew up with a love for art and animals. He was recruited by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert to build dinosaurs for their new art and science museum, the Crystal Palace. His work was admired and respected by all of England, even the leading scientists of the time. He was passionate about his work and went on to teach, illustrate, and lecture. Word of his success got back to America and they wanted him to build dinosaurs for them too. Production and construction began on the dinosaurs and museums. A corrupt politician halted progress on the museum calling it a waste of time, later hiring people to destroy all his work. He painted his dinosaurs instead before leaving to go back home. His work was meaningful and the world’s first encounter with these antient animals and is still visited today.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I had never heard of Waterhouse Hawkins before and the story was interesting and fun to read while also giving background and history of Hawkins’s life and contributions to science regarding dinosaurs. This would be a good book to incorporate into science or history lessons when the topic of dinosaurs come up or just to have in the class library for students to read during their free time. ( )

Top 100 Favorite because:

This picture book is larger than life, and that's only appropriate given who it is about. Everything from the typography, to the text chosen, colors and style of the artwork all highlights the extraordinary and hyperbolic life of Waterhouse Hawkins. Much like illustrator Brian Selznick states in his artist's note in the back matter, I had never heard of this man before now. I think the man himself would have been proud and excited to see what has been written and drawn about him and his dinosaurs.
Back matter includes: Author's notes, Illustrator's notes, and images of dinosaurs as Hawkins knew them compared with modern interpretations.
I also find it interesting a book illustrated by Brian Selznick is in my top 100. I know he's incredibly popular and award-winning, but I haven't either at at like his work, or only in some ways (the only other work I can think of is the cuteness of Baby Monkey, Private Eye). ( )

A passionate artist, Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, was determined to show the world what dinosaurs looked like. Using discovered bones as his guide, he created life size figures. His dinosaurs were even put on display at the now destroyed Crystal Palace in England. Even with the obstacles he faced along the way, he brought dinosaurs to life for all to see. I had never heard of Waterhouse Hawkins before I read this story. The illustrations are rich, and the story is engaging. I loved the author and illustrator’s notes at the end that delved deeper into the historical and scientific information presented in the text. This book skillfully combines art, history, and science into an extremely captivating read. ( )