How High Can a Dinosaur Count?

Starred review from February 6, 2006
Fisher does for 1, 2, 3 in this clever volume what she did for ABC in Ellsworth's Extraordinary Electric Ears and Other Amazing Alphabet Anecdotes
. In this entertaining book of numbers, she demonstrates how figures can factor into everyday life, whether it be flipping flapjacks or licking lollipops. Fisher takes readers inside 15 miniature dioramas, where dogs "sip tea in the tub" and dinosaurs wait for a departing train. Her scenarios take readers' minds off math's complexity and instead focus on daily doings—a clever device especially for struggling young mathematicians. Fisher peppers her prose with alliteration ("The heavenly hats at Madame Millie's Millinery are brimming with blossoms, butterflies, and bows"). Her word choices are not of the plain-vanilla variety, either, and may well broaden readers' vocabulary: "Ichabod's ice cream flavors are enticing.... Tex takes scoops of toffee, tomato, and tangerine." The accompanying illustration depicts the boys with cones, all piled three-scoops high, they've purchased from a straw-hatted, bow-tie clad vendor in a cone-shaped stand. Fisher's artwork plays homage to Monty Python's Terry Gilliam, creating a collage-like medium that beckons readers to explore these pages on many levels, and the compositions give clues to the simple addition, subtraction and multiplication problems. For those craving even more math, the final pages offer solutions to the original problems posed as well as additional "math mysteries." Math made fun? Problem solved. Ages 5-9.

Starred review from February 1, 2006
Gr 1-4 -Anyone who thinks that a math-activity book can -t be fun hasn -t seen this one. The text for each of the 15 problems is presented on the left, using a large, clean font on a spectrum of soft pastel backgrounds. The problems are clearly explained, but lots of alliteration and some unexpected vocabulary make for interesting reading. The illustration on the right features Fisher -s unique photographic technique. Richly textured patterns and hand-drawn objects are cut out and arranged, then photographed in such a way as to create whimsical tableaux with a three-dimensional feel. The characters are charming, from Ogden the orderly man who lives in a watering can that he keeps spick and span, to Daphne, the sweet blue dragon who dines on daisies. At the back of the book, Fisher presents four more problems for each illustration, with solutions provided for all. Appropriate for group discussions and attractive to browsers, this creative combination of text and art is a first purchase for most collections." -Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ"

Copyright 2006 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2006
Gr. 1-3. Based on the jacket illustration of a green dinosaur, many kids will be surprised that this book is neither about dinosaurs nor a traditional story. Instead, the dino--like every other character featured here--appears in one of the book's 15 "math mysteries." Each confidence-boosting number puzzle combines a brief vignette and question with a full-page illustration containing additional information and visual hints. Fisher, illustrator of " Non"sense! (2004) and other titles, concocts age-appropriate problems, typically involving money, subtraction, or number identification ("[Dexter has] spotted every odd number from 1 to 20. Can you find them too?"), then extends each scenario with new questions collected at book's end. The mixed-media dioramas occasionally appear cluttered, and some children may wonder about the relevance of solving money-related problems that are so patently out-of-date (a handbag for 80 cents? Kate Spade would laugh). Still, the value of concrete math problems with a visual component is manifold, and this certainly deserves a place alongside Jon Scieszka's " Math Curse "(1995) and books by Stewart Murphy and Greg Tang.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)