The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs - by Steve Brusatte (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"THE ULTIMATE DINOSAUR BIOGRAPHY," hails Scientific American: A thrilling new history of the age of dinosaurs, from one of our finest young scientists.

"A masterpiece of science writing." --Washington Post

A New York Times Bestseller - Goodreads Choice Awards Winner - A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Smithsonian, Science Friday, The Times (London), Popular Mechanics, Science News

"This is scientific storytelling at its most visceral, striding with the beasts through their Triassic dawn, Jurassic dominance, and abrupt demise in the Cretaceous." --Nature

The dinosaurs. Sixty-six million years ago, the Earth's most fearsome creatures vanished. Today they remain one of our planet's great mysteries. Now The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs reveals their extraordinary, 200-million-year-long story as never before.

In this captivating narrative of natural history (enlivened with more than seventy original illustrations and photographs), Steve Brusatte, a young American paleontologist who has emerged as one of the foremost stars of the field--naming fifteen new species and leading groundbreaking scientific studies and fieldwork--masterfully tells the complete, surprising, and new history of the dinosaurs, drawing on cutting-edge science to dramatically bring to life their lost world and illuminate their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy. Captivating and revelatory, The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs is a book for the ages.

Brusatte traces the evolution of dinosaurs from their inauspicious start as small shadow dwellers--themselves the beneficiaries of a mass extinction caused by volcanic eruptions at the beginning of the Triassic period--into the dominant array of species every wide-eyed child memorizes today, T. rex, Triceratops, Brontosaurus, and more. This gifted scientist and writer re-creates the dinosaurs' peak during the Jurassic and Cretaceous, when thousands of species thrived, and winged and feathered dinosaurs, the prehistoric ancestors of modern birds, emerged. The story continues to the end of the Cretaceous period, when a giant asteroid or comet struck the planet and nearly every dinosaur species (but not all) died out, in the most extraordinary extinction event in earth's history, one full of lessons for today as we confront a "sixth extinction."

Brusatte also recalls compelling stories from his globe-trotting expeditions during one of the most exciting eras in dinosaur research--which he calls "a new golden age of discovery"--and offers thrilling accounts of some of the remarkable findings he and his colleagues have made, including primitive human-sized tyrannosaurs; monstrous carnivores even larger than T. rex; and paradigm-shifting feathered raptors from China.

An electrifying scientific history that unearths the dinosaurs' epic saga, The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs will be a definitive and treasured account for decades to come.

Includes 75 images, world maps of the prehistoric earth, and a dinosaur family tree.

This definitive account explores the complete, surprising story of the dinosaurs:

• The Age of Dinosaurs: Follow the dinosaurs across 200 million years, from their Triassic dawn and Jurassic dominance to their abrupt demise in the Cretaceous.
• Mass Extinction Events: Uncover the science behind the volcanic eruptions that gave dinosaurs their start, and the giant asteroid that caused their cataclysmic extinction.
• The Living Legacy: Explore the startling connection between prehistoric ancestors and modern birds, revealing how the dinosaur story continues today.

From the Back Cover

GOODREADS CHOICE AWARDS WINNER

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

Smithsonian, The Times (London), Science Friday, Popular Mechanics, Science News, Library Journal, Booklist, Chicago Public Library

Sixty-six million years ago, the Earth's most fearsome creatures vanished. Today the dinosaurs remain one of our planet's great mysteries. Now The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs reveals their thrilling, 200-million-year-long story as never before.

American paleontologist Steve Brusatte masterfully brings to life the lost world of the dinosaurs, illuminating their enigmatic origins, spectacular flourishing, astonishing diversity, cataclysmic extinction, and startling living legacy. Equally drawing on his own groundbreaking findings and the cutting-edge research of the women and men who are revolutionizing our understanding of these astonishing creatures, Brusatte's captivating narrative--generously illustrated with original drawings and photographs--traces the evolution of dinosaurs from their inauspicious start as small shadow dwellers in the Triassic period into the dominant array of species that arose during the dinosaurs' peak.

In the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, thousands of species thrived, including T. rex, Triceratops, Brontosaurus, Velociraptor, and more, as well as winged and feathered dinosaurs, the prehistoric ancestors of modern birds. The story dramatically concludes at the end of the Cretaceous, when a giant asteroid or comet struck the planet and nearly every dinosaur species (but not all) died out, in the most extraordinary extinction event in Earth's history, one full of lessons for today as we confront a "sixth extinction."

Review Quotes

"Fascinating. ... Superbly illustrated with photos and art, this is popular-science writing at its best." - Booklist, starred review

"Steve Brusatte is doing some of the most exciting research on dinosaurs today, and he brings that excitement to The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs. Whether he's recounting remarkable fossil discoveries or explaining millions of years of evolutionary change, Brusatte shows just how much our understanding of dinosaurs has changed in just the past decade." - Carl Zimmer, author of Evolution: Making Sense of Life and Parasite Rex

"Steve Brusatte explains how these spectacular bygone animals shaped our present, and how they can inform our future. ... One of the world's leading millennial paleontologists. ... The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs is an expansive biography of this peerless group of species." - VICE/Motherboard

"The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs is a triumph, written by one of our young leaders of the field. Steve Brusatte brings new discoveries, a taste for a good yarn, and his infectious enthusiasm to the epic tales of paleontology. It is hard to read Brusatte and not love lost worlds." - Neil Shubin, bestselling author of Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body and Robert R. Bensley Distinguished Professor of Anatomy at the University of Chicago

"The ultimate dinosaur biography. ... Riveting." - Scientific American

"The Science Book of the Year." - Sunday Times (London)

"The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs is a biography of these magnificent lost beings and their world." - London Review of Books

"[A] Jurassic blockbuster. ... A gripping read in the best traditions of popular science. ... Infectiously ebullient." - The Observer (London)

"The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs may be the best book on dinosaurs ever written for a popular audience." - Inside Higher Ed

"Filled with vivid illustrations, historical accounts, and tales of paleontological expeditions, this book will change the way you think about dinosaurs." - Gizmodo

"Brusatte scores. ... This is science at first hand." - Literary Review

"This vivid book reanimates dinosaurs for a new generation. ... A lovely book. ... A fine piece of writing." - The Times (London)

"Takes readers on a tour of the new fossils and discoveries that are shedding light on the dinosaurs' evolutionary story. ... Full of adventures and humor." - Science

"If you ever loved a dinosaur, buy this book. ... Brusatte does for dinosaurs what E.O. Wilson did for ants and Carl Sagan for stars." - Washington Times

"Should not be missed. Highly recommended." - Library Journal, starred review

"Scintillating. ... Brusatte's mastery of his field, formidable explanatory powers and engaging style have combined to produce a masterpiece of science writing for the lay reader. I would add that you'll find Rise and Fall fascinating even if you don't give a damn about dinosaurs--but first, show me someone who doesn't give a damn about dinosaurs." - Washington Post

"A masterpiece of science writing." - Washington Post

"Tells the epic tale of the dinosaurs rise to dominance and extinction, taking us on a thrilling journey back in time." - National Geographic

"Brusatte's prose shows the excitement he feels about his subject, making the book more of a conversation than a dry tract. ... A great introduction for folks wanting to learn more about dinosaurs." - Shelf Awareness

"Captivating. ... First-rate science writing. ... Superb. ... Carefully crafted." - Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A must-have for fans of ancient reptiles and their lost world." - Kirkus Reviews

"If John McPhee's love affair with rocks in Annals of the Former World floats your boat... you're going to love The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs. Brusatte skillfully brings dead dino bones to life as he shares--no, gushes about--his personal journey as a young fossil hunter and the people he's met along the way. ... The geek in me loves the tsunami of fine details flooding the page, written in the breezy style of a rising star millennial scientist. ... The beauty of this book lies in the details... and in the stories of the scientists who dig them up. [The] emotional connection, and Brusatte's collection of personal stories and characters, make his book special." - New York Times Book Review

"A page-turner. ... Brusatte skillfully brings dead dino bones to life. ... The beauty of this book lies in the details, too, and in the stories of the scientists who dig them up." - New York Times Book Review

"A thrilling study. ... The best book on the subject since [the 1980s]. ... Brusatte writes with the authority of a man who ranks as one of the leading experts in his field." - Sunday Times (London)

"An absorbing historical saga. ... [A] completely winning blend of technical expertise and storytelling ability. ... Brusatte's recounting of the millions of years of dinosaur dominance makes for very nerdy, very thrilling reading." - Christian Science Monitor

"An absorbing historical saga. ... Brusatte tells this story with a comprehensive attention to detail. ... [He] skillfully combines interesting and amusing stories from his field experience with the broader story of dinosaurs ruling the Earth. ... The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs abounds with this completely winning blend of technical expertise and storytelling ability, following the story of its many subjects into dozens and dozens of subplots as dinosaurs colonized every inch of the land, moved out into the ocean, and even took to the sky. Brusatte's recounting of the millions of years of dinosaur dominance makes for very nerdy, very thrilling reading." - Christian Science Monitor

"An up-to-the-minute account of the long history and remarkable biology of these extraordinary animals." - RICHARD FORTEY, former senior paleontologist at London's Natural History Museum and author of Life, Trilobite!, and Earth

"Brusatte delivers a cutting-edge account of Earth's most awe-inspiring age--and does so with great skill, humor, and wonder. Captures the majesty of the creatures he studies, as well as their breathtaking evolutionary ride." - PETER BRANNEN, author of The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth's Past Mass Extinctions

"Unrelentingly kind in tone and generous in description. ... Mak[es] for one big adventure." - Paris Review (Staff Picks)

"Excellent. ... [Brusatte] writes with verve... zip and pizzazz. ... Lap it up, dinosaur fans!" - Current Biology

"Vivid. ... This is scientific storytelling at its most visceral, striding with the beasts through their Triassic dawn, Jurassic dominance and abrupt demise." - Nature