Discover the biggest creatures to have roamed the Earth, past and present, from the outright biggest - such as the colossal blue whale and the dinosaur Argentinosaurus “The clear organization and bite-sized chunks of information make this quite accessible to young lovers of animals past and present....an appealing collection for readers who like superlatives.”― Kirkus Reviews “Even the most enthusiastic animal or dinosaur fan will find much new to wonder about in this well-illustrated informational book about weird and wonderful big beasts. Divided into three major sections― ‘Forests and Plains,’ ‘Rivers and Seas,’ and ‘Giants of Today’―….A solid purchase with broad appeal.”― School Library Journal In addition to the largest animals on Earth, discover species that grew to monstrous sizes compared to others of their kind, such as the giant kangaroos of Australia, otters the size of wolves, and Argentavis, a giant bird with a wingspan almost as long as a bus! You'll meet the giants of the jungle, desert, swamp, sea, ice, and sky through vibrantly illustrated scenes of them in their natural habitats, and compare the size of these humongous creatures to humans. A gatefold spread unfolds to reveal a line-up of all the giants featured in the book, to scale, while a visual timeline shows when they roamed the Earth. Gr 1-3-Even the most enthusiastic animal or dinosaur fan will find much new to wonder about in this well-illustrated informational book about weird and wonderful big beasts. Divided into three major sections- "Forests and Plains," "Rivers and Seas," and "Giants of Today"-this book covers dozens of creatures, ranging from millions of years ago to the present time. Mammals, reptiles, birds, insects, and undersea creatures from every continent are included. Each page has a small graphic showing a silhouette of the animal alongside two humans-one adult and one child-which provides a great visual clue about the truly colossal size of the animal and helps clarify the text and offer more context. On a large foldout page showing a time line of life on Earth is every animal drawn to scale, and includes four humans to show relative size. The nomenclature "MYA" (millions of years ago) and "YA" (years ago) used throughout is not explicitly defined, although some readers may infer it from the text. Includes a table of contents and an index. A single scientist is depicted with dark brown skin; all other humans are shown in silhouette. VERDICT A solid purchase with broad appeal.-Sue Morganα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. "Even the most enthusiastic animal or dinosaur fan will find much new to wonder about in this well-illustrated informational book about weird and wonderful big beasts. Divided into three major sections-- 'Forests and Plains, ' 'Rivers and Seas, ' and 'Giants of Today'--....A solid purchase with broad appeal."-- School Library Journal "The clear organization and bite-sized chunks of information make this quite accessible to young lovers of animals past and present....an appealing collection for readers who like superlatives."-- Kirkus Reviews Clive Gifford is the author of more than 150 children's books including Eye Benders , winner of the Royal Society Young People's Book Prize, Royal Society-nominated Out of This World and Cool Technology which won the School Library Association Information Book Award. His book, The Colours of History , won the Blue Peter Book Awards' Best Book With Facts. He has travelled through 70 countries, run a computer games company and taken part in all manner of sports from parachuting and gliding to Ultimate Frisbee. Clive's official website can be found at www.clivegifford.co.uk Howard Gray loved to draw when he was growing up, and was always captivated by animals and nature. He pursued art throughout school but went on to study zoology at university, eventually completing a PhD on dolphins! Now, Howard has returned to his dream career of becoming an illustrator and has worked on many fiction and non-fiction projects. These days, he lives with his family in the picturesque city of Durham, UK.