It's a sight for ‘saur’ eyes as James and friends (and villains!) return for another dino-tastic adventure. Your favorite explorers are back to take on another big dino that made it to the big screen — the vicious Velociraptor!
In the last adventure the gang found themselves on the wrong side of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, but will this dig site be easier to map out? Thanks to Mommypenny, the kids take a trip down Silk Road and land in the sand dunes of Mongolia.
What is there to discover in the sand dunes? Will Bonehead throw a fossil in their adventure plans? And what do a monsoon and a camel have to do with solving the mystery before James has to be back for Show and Tell?
The Vicious Velociraptor Venture delivers at every turn, but it’s up to you to turn the pages to find out how the adventure plays out.
Lexile Measure: 510
Interest Level: Ages 5-13
Reedsy Review:
Based on book three in the series, I'm assuming The Vicious Velociraptor Venture (James Bone Graphic Novel #4) was directed to 7-10-year-olds. As much fun as I'm having reading the series with my daughter, I think Carole Marsh, the author, might want to extend the age limit.
From nearly the start, the kids and their puppy and their mini dino friends experienced a scary situation in the form of a sand whirlpool. Don't worry; everything worked out for them. Now the real adventure starts! The group discovers from Dr. Archie Ologist, the paleontologist, that the villagers have skedaddled due to a rain shadow. If you're unfamiliar with this term, Carole Marsh defines it at the bottom of page 7. Then, on the following page 8, we witness a frightening storm courtesy of the Lee Barrow (artist extraordinaire). In Twister (a 1996 blockbuster movie), we watched in awe as a cow got up in a cyclone. In The Vicious Velociraptor Venture, there are flying camels! This page made us chuckle.
This installment had much more explained than the previous graphic novel I read. In this story, the author defined more key terms. They also had a fact page, which we loved greatly!
I have not read book 1 or 2, so I wasn't familiar with Boneapart. I'm not sure why he was there or how he got there. Cute name, by the way!
Since there are currently making an Indiana Jones sequel, my daughter did understand that pop culture reference. She wondered if we'd see a rolling boulder; sadly, we did not.
My daughter was very interested in The Silk Road's board game-looking map. She wanted to play it. I don't know if the author has it for download on their site, but I'd suggest adding it if they don't.
Another great book, Carole Marsh and Lee Barrow!
–Kameron Brook, Reviewer, Reedsy