Publishers Weekly
04/21/2014
What started as a hunch—that the legend of the griffin began with people who had seen fossils of extinct animals—led self-taught scientist Mayor to trace the origins of a myth to a basis in fact. With the suspense of a detective story, the narrative details Mayor’s research process as she consults with experts, conducts fieldwork, and seeks out ancient documents, artifacts, and stories. Beyond the intriguing content of the book itself, Aronson and Mayor deliver an empowering message: that the world contains many yet-to-be-solved enigmas, and there’s more than one way to crack a (dinosaur) egg. Ages 10–up. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
Named a 2014 Eureka! Honor winner
“Focused through a single woman’s obsessive search, this book comes off as both a riveting historical mystery as well as a wonderful example of how a person’s passions might take them places they never imagined they might travel.”—Fuse #8, School Library Journal
With the suspense of a detective story, the narrative details Mayor's research process as she consults with experts, conducts fieldwork, and seeks out ancienct documents, articfatcts and stories. Beyond the intriguing content of the book itself, Aronson and Mayor deliver an empowering message: that the world contains many yet-to-be-solved enigmas, and there's more than one way to crack a (dinosaur) egg." —Publishers Weekly
School Library Journal
03/01/2014
Gr 5–8—Aronson has come together with folklorist/historian Mayor to create this intriguing account of how ancient people conceived of the griffin. How did the ancients come to dream up these amazing creatures? Were they the result of creative minds? Or was there something in the environment that led people to believe in these phenomena, such as how the mythical Cyclops and water monsters bear great resemblance to the bones of ancient dinosaurs? In this work, Aronson describes the journey that Mayor embarked upon to discover if there is a connection between the legend of the griffin and scientific fact. Over the course of eight well-written chapters, information about Mayor's life and research unfolds, letting readers travel to the many countries she visited to conduct her work. From a very young age, Mayor sought answers to the same questions that would inspire her later in life. A complementary blend of photography and ancient artwork aid the readers' perception of the myths and science that are shared in this book. A solid addition about mythology, art, and science for most collections.—Katy Charles, Virgil Elementary School, Cortland, NY
Kirkus Reviews
2014-02-26
Researchers have used fossils to understand much about the prehistoric world, but this work shows how a passionate woman with a curious mind studies them to understand how early peoples devised their myths and legends. Mayor's family heritage includes both a knack for storytelling and an interest in the natural world. She developed a love for the myths and legends of Greece and Rome, and her curiosity about the origins of the legendary part-lion, part-eagle griffin led her to seek answers. "[W]hat creature with four legs and a beak like a bird could have been so real to Greeks thousands of years ago?" Her search for fossils that could have inspired such an image led her to sites throughout Greece, ancient texts and even CIA maps of Central Asia. By following a series of clues, Mayor was able to connect the griffin image to fossil remnants of Protoceratops, making the case that ancient civilizations based their stories and legends on what they observed in the natural world. Supporting his text with Muller's illustrations and copious photographs, Aronson reveals Mayor's story as she searches for answers, demonstrating how one woman's curiosity and determination provided a new view of the origins of some of our oldest stories. The excellent list of suggestions for further reading will encourage readers to dig deeper on their own. Readers interested in mythology and paleontology will be intrigued. (glossary/index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)
