Dinosaurs

While not the best popular science book you will ever read, the Lost Dinosaurs of Egypt is a worthwhile story about dinosaurs lost and found. The book follows two storylines. In the first which lasts from 1910 to the early 1950s Ernst Stromer, a German paleontologist travels to Egypt and discovers a number of new dinosaurs. The two world wars then throw a monkey wrench into his career, eventually leading to the loss of the specimins he found.

The second story is less interesting and a bit bloated. It covers a group of American and Egyptian paleontologist who return to the area that Stromer explored and end up finding a new dinosaur of their own. The problem is that this story is padded with extra detail about the desert and geology that seems to be there to make the book longer. The story in itself just isn't as interesting as the complicated and tragic turns of fate that Stromer faced.

The book does emphasize the luck, determination and skill required to be a paleontologist, which was interesting to read.