I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Very cute illustrations, and informative picture book. There is a lot of information about non dinosaur animals as well as dinosaurs. This is a lot of information for small children to ingest. It's definitely better for a child reading on their own rather than a read aloud.

That’s No Dino! (Or Is It?): What Makes a Dinosaur a Dinosaur By Helaine Becker and illustrated by Marie-Ève Tremblay

I’m currently taking a psychology class in which one of the very first pages of my textbook used the phrase “instead of looking at what it IS, let’s first discuss what it is NOT.”

This adorable, funny book about (not) dinosaurs, is such a unique exploration of that type of analysis. Did you know that the name of the creature “Teraterpeton” means “Wonderful Creeping Thing”? I laughed out loud when I read that. Come on, that’s just perfect. But, because its stance wasn’t upright, it wasn’t a dino.

I have some grade 2s who love creatures who I know will enjoy poring over this one.

Recommended ages 6-9

There's certainly no shortage of dinosaur books out there for kids, ranging from simple picture and name combinations to complex explorations of each species. This may well be the first I've encountered with a central focus on defining dinosaurs. While that could be achieved with a simple paragraph, Becker knows that isn't going to reach anyone. Instead she takes each qualifier, and shows us a creature that proves the rule. Thus, we have a couple of animals that resemble or have been listed as dinosaurs but which don't meet the classification requirements. It's not afraid to use scientific terms, though anything with any complexity is carefully defined. A solid choice for young dinosaur enthusiasts.

thoroughly enjoyed by my 5.5-year old daughter and i. we learned so many new things (thank goodness for the pronunciation support) and the information / illustrations / layout were clear and attention-grabbing.

i found the 'was it a dino?' checklist on each page a bit hard to follow. there was just something off about it, but maybe it's just me. dinosaurs were never my thing growing up, and they haven't been my daughter's, so this is a learning curve for us both ;)

great nonfiction read for children and adults alike and i could see it being an amazing resource for a teacher.

A nice book for children who love facts about prehistoric animals. There is quite a lot of text so would be most suitable for the over 5 age group.

More About Non-Dino Prehistoric Creatures

The book’s subtitle made me think it would be more about the different species of dinosaurs than it was. The bulk of the book is actually about prehistoric animals that were NOT dinosaurs. The author uses these example animals to point out key characteristics that true dinosaurs must have, like a backbone and grasping hands. Each animal is given a two-page spread that points out specific details on the illustration and provides a couple of paragraphs of description. The drawings are simple but easily show distinctions. As the author goes through the different animals, she builds a list of what makes a dinosaur a dinosaur. This was a little confusing at times, as some lines were a double negative, coming across as saying in the animal was not something when it actually was but the red X in front of the line made it so the entire line was negated. Since the title has the child-attention-grabbing word “dino” in it, I wish the author spent more time on actual dinosaurs, but after she talked about the first actual dinosaur—the velociraptor—she only discussed dinosaurs in general or in groups, like the saurischians. This book is certainly meant for older primary school children, perhaps fourth and fifth graders. If you have a dino-loving child in that age range, she or he will probably still find this book interesting as it does touch on what makes a dinosaur... and what doesn't.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. If you have a little one who loves dinosaurs, they will enjoy learning about other animals that are similar to dinosaurs.

The publisher's blurb is so much better that the usual! The planning of the material shows great understanding of how to gain interest and provide information useful to a reader of any age. The illustrations are simplified but elegant and provide the perfect vehicle for the material. I recommend this book for people from 7-97 and should be in everyone's local library.
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Kids Can Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

Great intro into dinosaurs for those kids (and adults!) wanting to learn more. The information was easy to understand, funny, and useful for spotting 'not-dinos.' Bright and colorful, the illustrations were absolutely darling in this collection. Definitely will be one I pick up for my dinosaur-obsessed kiddo.

This book was SO FUN! My son is obsessed with dinosaurs and I loved that even though the book itself was too long for him to focus on in one sitting, I was able to learn a lot while reading it! How cool to learn that some animals we would think of as dinosaurs are not.

Great illustrations also. Very colorful and vibrant.

This is a cute book that discusses what makes a dinosaur a dinosaur. It goes through each creature and shows the checklist of what does or does not make it a true dinosaur. The illustrations are also adorable!

Very cute illustrations, and informative picture book. I wish it had either been less cute or less informative, This much information is going to be difficult to give to a child under 5, and these cute pictures, rather than realism, are hard to sell to a child of that age. Then again, many kids might LOVE correcting others that "Sacisaurus wasn't a real dinosaur!" SO for those reading every dinosaur book they can find, this will add to their knowledge base.

Reviewed via Ebook provided by NetGalley

Captivating, fun and informative! My nieces and I read this together and they loved the illustrations and fun facts about the dinosaurs (they weren't the only ones learning!). It's the perfect book to engage the kids through the easy and factual info as well as the colourful images. Perfect for circle or story time with kids!


Thank you Net Galley and Kids Can Press for kindly providing me with a copy for an honest review!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley!

The cover of this book is adorable. We loved all the vibrant colors.
This was a fun and easy read for my kiddos and I.
It's informative, and the illustrations were great!


I'd definitely purchase a copy and check out other books by the author.

What a gorgeous little read this was. It was short and so sweet Both myself and my children really enjoyed this real. It was a lovely story and I can’t wait to read it to my class when we return to school.

Couldn't finish it. It was wordy and had a very confusing layout. My 4 year old son wasn't impressed, but maybe a great book for an older audience

This is a very attractively designed, informative, and friendly book. The reader is challenged throughout the book to decide whether a certain type of prehistoric animal was or was not a dinosaur. The answer is then revealed and explained. As a result of reading the book, readers will have a clear idea of the characteristics of dinosaurs. Readers also learn that birds are the descents of dinosaurs. This is an attractive, informative book. Great for dinosaur fans!

For that Dinosaurs loving kid and I know one personally, there are many pre-historic animals that look like they may be a dinosaurs but for one reason or another, they are not. You learn some interesting things about our world and some new words as well. This is a fun book and is true that learning can be fun.

A special thank you to Kids Can Press and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for kindly providing me with a digital copy of this book for review.
I have a 5 year old dinosaur obsessed son. I know many people can say that but my child is just that little bit more extra than most. Being neuro-diverse he is prone to developing obsessions- and dinosaurs is definitely his thing. Ask him what he wants to be when he grows up and he says “ T-Rex”, and just to clarify, he does actually mean a t-Rex, not a palaeontologist, or someone who works in a museum, or writes books on dinosaurs- he wants to literally turn into a T-Rex. Parenting dilemma of whether I teach him he can be anything he puts his mind to, or introduce a dose of reality and get him to accept that changing species is not really an option! Anyway, the whole point of telling you this is to illustrate that we read A LOT of dinosaur books. We talk A LOT about dinosaurs. Dinosaurs are a big part of our lives. My son knows a good dinosaur book when he sees one, so he was thrilled to get the opportunity to read (or mummy to read) a copy of this book. He was instantly interested and excited by the artwork and listened intently to everything I read him. From my perspective, I always appreciate when a book breaks down the sounds of a dinosaurs name so it is easier to read. I have an English degree and I’m an avid reader, but those names do t just trip off your tongue do they! My son also liked the way the book slowly built up from starting with the one point of this is not a dinosaur because it isn’t....., to the end of the book it finishes with this is a dinosaur because it has all these elements which make it a dinosaur, and not another species. My son found it very informative, and I also learnt some interesting facts as well. Bearing in mind my child has a language delay, I asked him what he thought of the book and he said “ super good, thumbs up”. So I think that’s praise indeed and I can’t add any more to that really. Will look forward to seeing a hard copy of this book when it is released.

What a cool book! As a kindergarten teacher, I have seen my fair share of dinosaur books, but I have never seen a book quite like this. This colorful, easy-to-read book tackles the big question: What makes a dinosaur a dinosaur? Throughout my discussions with my 5 year olds, there definitely is some confusion around this question and I can see how That's No Dino would be a fantastic resource to promote inquiry.

Thanks to Netgalley and Kids Can Press for an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review. I definitely can't wait until June 1, 2021 to get my hands on a physical copy to add to my classroom library.