From Publishers Weekly
Readers eager to hop aboard Ms. Frizzle's bus for another junket will not be disappointed by this latest expedition. It's visitor's day at school and the students have turned the classroom into Dinosaur Land, but the impulsive teacher nevertheless announces a dinosaur dig, and the class piles onto the magic school bus. At the site, paleontologists have uncovered the bones of some Maiasaura dinosaurs, but are disappointed that they haven't found any nests. With a characteristic gleam in her eye, Ms. Frizzle asks, "Want to look for some Maiasaura nests, kids?"--and the bus becomes a time machine transporting the class back millions of years. They make stops in the Late Triassic Period, the Late Jurassic Period, the Late Cretaceous Period and, finally, the Cretaceous Period, where they discover a Maiasaura nesting ground. In exploring each era, the students examine various dinosaur species' habits and habitats, diets and physical characteristics. As always, Cole's text and Degen's art are fastidiously researched and exuberantly presented on creatively crowded pages. Ages 6-9.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 1-3-Preparations for Visitors Day in Room 101 come to a sudden halt when Ms. Frizzle receives an invitation to a dinosaur dig. With a twist of a dial, the Magic School Bus becomes a time machine hurtling through prehistory, stopping at various points in the Mesozoic Era so the class can observe flora and fauna, shoot a video, make smart remarks, and generate the usual blizzard of written reports. Readers may be confused to read on one page that reptiles are cold-blooded and that dinosaurs were a kind of a reptile, and on the next that some may have been warm-blooded; otherwise, Cole mixes up-to-date facts and general statements with virtuoso skill, stirring in plenty of jokes, small subplots, and flights of fancy. One gruesome scene aside, Degen's full-color illustrations enhance both the humor and the information, featuring maps, charts, actual-size drawings of fossil teeth, plenty of dinos in action, and Ms. Frizzle's famous, ever-startling wardrobe. Climb aboard-there's never a dull moment with "the Friz" at the wheel!-John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Ages 5-9. Fans of Ms. Frizzle and her way-out field trips are in for another bumpy but adventuresome ride. What starts out as a supposed visit to a dinosaur dig to unearth Maiasaurus nests turns into a hair-raising time-travel journey through the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. Every page is brimming with the latest dino facts and theories, plus plenty of wisecracking dialogue from Ms. Frizzle's band of students. Watercolor, pen, and gouache paintings by Degan are requisite, and he delivers his usual entertaining, energetic illustrations. Cole and Degan are a can't-miss team when it comes to making science a good time, no matter what the subject. With the Magic School Bus TV show scheduled for this fall, expect even more Frizzle fanatics. Denia Hester
About the Author
Bruce Degen is the bestselling author and illustrator of the beloved, perennial favorite Jamberry and numerous award-winning books for children. He is also the illustrator of the highly-acclaimed Magic School Bus series by Joanna Cole.
Joanna Cole has been creating books about the Magic School Bus for more than twenty years. She is a recipient of many awards, most recently the National Endowment for the Arts Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education. She lives in Key West, with her husband.
