Dragon Bones: The Fantastic Fossil Discoveries of Mary Anning

Gr 2-5–Nineteenth-century paleontologist Mary Anning gets her moment in this new picture book biography. From her early days searching for buried treasures to put food on the table to finding her first major fossil at 13 to starting her own Fossil Depot, Marsh and Wicks illuminate the life of Anning with simplified, almost parablelike reverence. Never too busy, each page delicately sets the scene and captures the environment in which Anning was making her discoveries, for which she was often overlooked. While not the first children’s biography on Anning, this will captivate kids who are interested in dinosaurs but not necessarily ready for full-on science books about them. The back matter not only offers a concise biography of the scientist but also details on the fossils she discovered and tips for becoming a paleontologist.