Introduction

                                    

                                          
I decided to write this book after spending months (on and off) looking for good books on dinosaurs and finding none. It is assumed that anyone who wants a book on dinosaurs must be a child between the ages of 3 and 7. This book is written for those among us who, although they have retained that childhood wonder and awe at these magnificent creatures, want to learn about them without being patronised. It is written for those who are sick of learning the same old facts they learnt when they were five, and who want to expand their knowledge. Finally, it is written for those who have recently discovered their love for dinosaurs, or are merely intrigued by such amazing animals.
                          
I would like to stress that I am not a Palaeontologist (the term given to a person who studies prehistoric life), nor do I have any qualifications that give me the right to write a book such as this. I am merely a sixteen year old boy, who's primarily a musician, but one who has been obsessed with dinosaurs for as long as he can remember, and has spent his life researching them. The information within this book starts at the ground up, and some may find it too basic, but my main aim is to deliver this information in a way that is not patronising and that does not assume that the reader is 6.
                          
Actually, that's not quite true. My main aim is to share my love of dinosaurs. These animals are so fantastic, so unbelievable, that they must surely be a product of our imagination. Yet they're not, they were real creatures. They really existed, on this planet. I can't quite express my wonder, my amazement, at that concept. These beings, who in my opinion are better, more exciting and more fascinating than anything we've made up, really existed.
                          
Then there's the diversity: whatever you want, there's a dinosaur that delivers it. You have everything from giant Sauropods like Diplodocus, to the veritable tanks that were Ankylosaurs, via Theropods like the infamous Tyrannosaurus Rex, Ceratopians like Triceratops, Stegosaurs and virtually anything else you can imagine. This is why I don't understand how you can't love dinosaurs: if you can feel love, the chances are there's a dinosaur that provides the thing you love.
                          
To conclude, over the next few years I plan to fill this book with everything I know about dinosaurs. I would just warn you, my mind is not an organised place so this book may be hard to follow at points, but I shall endeavour to correct that after I have the information down. If you've ever been interested in learning about dinosaurs, but been put off because it makes you feel immature, or because you can't find any books that any semi-intelligent person would read, this is the book for you.