cover image The Search for Seismosaurus: The World's Longest Dinosaur

The Search for Seismosaurus: The World's Longest Dinosaur

J. Lynett Gillette. Dial Books, $14.99 (40pp) ISBN 978-0-8037-1358-1

The careful, laborious unraveling of a paleontological puzzle that would eventually lead to the discovery of Seismosaurus , the longest dinosaur, serves as the focus of this intriguing if not altogether fulfilling book. Gillette, a paleontologist involved in the excavation of the skeleton, charts the processes of organizing the dig (which began in 1985) and preparing and analyzing the find. Photos of the site and of various equipment developed to locate bones buried deep in the sandstone clarify the complicated mechanics involved in scientific research, but much of the information may be beyond the intended audience. The chief finds here are Hallett's ( The News About Dinosaurs ) stunning paintings of dinosaur life, which use earthy tones to suggest what Seismosaurus may have looked like. While the twists and turns of the excavation hint at an exciting conclusion, the book ends abruptly with Seismosaurus still not wholly uncovered and the anticlimactic suggestion that someday ``excavators may find the rest of the skeleton.'' Ages 6-10. (Mar.)