Dinosaurs Don't Die facts for kids

Hawkins' Iguanadons come to life in Ann Coates' book.

Dinosaurs Don't Die is a children's book from 1970. It was written by Ann Coates and had pictures by John Vernon Lord. The story is about a young boy named Daniel. He lives near Sydenham Hill park in South London. This park is where the famous Crystal Palace was moved after the Great Exhibition.

At night, Daniel notices something amazing. Some of the big dinosaur models in the park come to life! These models are known as the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs. They were made by a sculptor named Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins. Daniel becomes friends with one of the dinosaurs, an Iguanodon. He names his new dinosaur friend "Rock".

The Iguanodon models made by Hawkins had a few mistakes. For example, the large thumb spike was shown as a horn on its nose. Also, the dinosaurs were shown walking on four legs, not two. The book includes these same old mistakes. Today, the book Dinosaurs Don't Die is no longer being printed.

Images for kids

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  First edition