Children’s author Melanie Larson from Simmie, Sask. has a new book on the shelves for kids with an interest in discovery, dinosaurs and the archeological history of southern Saskatchewan.
Titled The Day I Discovered a Dinosaur Bone?!, Larson’s new children’s book tells the story of a trio of brothers from the Saskatchewan badlands who go searching for dinosaur bones in their area.
“They go looking everywhere, in their backyard, at the beach, pretty much anywhere they can and finally they go to their grandparent’s ranch [and] find something really big and really heavy,” said Larson.
The colourful story involves a trip to visit a paleontologist to decide if the boys truly did dig up a real-life dinosaur bone, as well as plenty of daydreaming about what it would be like if dinosaurs were still around.
Larson also includes a collection of true facts about dinosaurs in Saskatchewan and a search page to find animals hiding throughout the book’s illustrations who actually evolved from dinosaurs.
“I’ve learned so much about dinosaurs [while writing this book], like how there are some dinosaurs that are only found in Saskatchewan and Canada’s first dinosaur was found in Saskatchewan, near Killdeer along the U.S. border,” said Larson. “And I thought it was really neat that a lot of the animals we see today are ancestors of dinosaurs, [like] chickens are direct descendants of the Tyrannosaurus rex.”
She even consulted with Saskatchewan paleontologist Hallie P. Street on the accuracy of her dinosaur representation, to make sure her story was as believable as possible.
Melanie Larson is also the author of several other Saskatchewan-set titles, including her breakout book Count Them: 50 Tractor Troubles. / (supplied)“I found something called a baculite when I was little, which is a kind of squid [and] now we live on a farm where we find so much petrified wood and the occasional small piece of bone,” said Larson. “So my boys always have their eyes on the ground, looking for cool stuff so I kind of based it on my own experience and my kids’ experience.”
Larson saw the story as a fun educational opportunity to explore more about Saskatchewan’s rich paleontological history, which she feels is a topic lots of prairie children have an interest in exploring.
“I tried to make the book fun and funny and educational, and kind of interactive,” said Larson.
The Day I Discovered a Dinosaur Bone?! is Larson’s fifth children’s book but the first about Saskatchewan archeology. As a self-published author from Saskatchewan, Larson’s other books all take on a rural setting that’s familiar to prairie families.
This includes her breakout title Count Them: 50 Tractor Troubles and her most recent book, The Day I Lost My Bear in Cypress Hills.
“I think they’re good for a reluctant reader, who maybe wouldn’t pick up a book,” said Larson. “And I love Saskatchewan [because] it's such an amazing place to live, so all my books are based in Saskatchewan so hopefully the world sees how amazing it is here.”
Larson’s new book The Day I Discovered a Dinosaur Bone?! is available to purchase locally at The Handmade Shoppe in Moose Jaw, as well as at Archer & King in Elbow and at several other locations across Saskatchewan.
Her titles can also be purchased from Amazon and Indigo, as well as through her website mlarsonbooks.com or by contacting her on her Facebook page.
