A little girl finds a lost dinosaur baby roaming the halls of a museum and is determined to give it a home in this sweet and charming picture book.

Penny feels certain that something is following her down the hall as she walks with her class through the Natural History Museum. She looks—nothing. She looks again—still nothing. She looks one more time and spies a verrrrry long neck and a verrrrry long tail on something that looks suspiciously like a baby brontosaurus!

Penny might be only five, but she knows dinosaurs are extinct. And yet, one seems to be following her. The little dino and Penny spend time together all over the museum, and when Penny doesn’t see a giant adult dinosaur lumbering around, she realizes Pip—as she’s named him—must be on his own. The only thing to do is to feed him some snacks and take him home with her…if she can figure out how.

About The Author

Photograph (c) Eric Rohmann

Candace Fleming

Candace Fleming is the acclaimed author of numerous books for children, including the Bulldozer books; Ben Franklin’s Almanac, an ALA Notable Book and an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, as well as Muncha! Muncha! Muncha!, and Sibert Medal honorees The Honeybee, and The Giant Squid. She lives in a suburb of Chicago.

About The Illustrator

Eric Rohmann

Eric Rohmann is the Caldecott Medal–winning illustrator of My Friend Rabbit and received a Caldecott Honor for Time Flies. He has both written and illustrated numerous books for children, including Bulldozer’s Big Day, Honeybee, and Bulldozer’s Christmas Dig, all written by Candace Fleming. He lives in Oak Park, Illinois. Find out more at EricRohmann.com.

Product Details

Publisher: Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books (June 13, 2023)
Length: 40 pages
ISBN13: 9781665913324
Ages: 4 - 8

Raves and Reviews

Deceptively simple and very appealing illustrations with just the right amount of detail partner perfectly with the gentle humor and suspense of the straightforward yet graceful text. Visible pencil strokes give the art an intimate, tender feel. Young readers and listeners are sure to appreciate Penny and Pip’s predicament, cheer them on from start to finish, and return to this story again and again. As our young heroes walk through the museum and into the future, one can only hope that more tales of this charming duo are soon to come!

– Kirkus, *STARRED REVIEW*, 5/1/23

Fleming showcases Penny’s precocious thinking while Rohmann’s digitally colored art is deftly outlined in velvety smooth black pencil strokes, giving a delicate texture to this endearing story. [...] An imaginative story that is sure to have young readers longing for their own extraordinary dinosaur adventure, while arranging their next trip to a museum. A must-have for every library’s picture book collection.

– School Library Journal, *STARRED REVIEW*, 9/30/23

Young readers will be thoroughly charmed by the text’s absolute faith in this future. Rohmann’s loose strokes of black colored pencil, digitally colored, position his characters against uncomplicated, mostly white backgrounds that keep the focus on their emotional connection. Like Pip, this openhearted invitation to imagination is a keeper.

– Horn Book Magazine, *STARRED REVIEW*, July/August 2023 Issue

Coupled with Rohmann’s pencil and digitally colored art, which conveys soft black lines and velvety textures, Fleming’s calm, reportorial tone creates a lovely, almost old-fashioned openheartedness. And the story’s resolution, which involves a smartly executed subterfuge in the museum gift shop, speaks to self-assured Penny’s steadfastness in applying clever logic to the fantastical.

– Publishers Weekly, 4/10/2023

The charming premise is delightfully carried out, with Penny as a kind, clever protagonist and Pip as a darling, daring accomplice. The attractive illustrations capture the vastness of museum halls along with the adorable intimacy of the burgeoning friendship, and they’re sure to have readers dreaming of their own dinosaur companions. A trip to a museum well worth taking.

– Booklist, 6/1/23

This sweet little picture book acts out a fantasy of dino companionship that many kiddos visiting a museum likely share.

– BCCB, 05/01/2023