Monday, October 27, 2008

Dinosaurs in fantastic fiction


Dinosaurs in fantastic fiction : a thematic survey / Allen A. Debus ; with forewords by Donald F. Glut and Mark F. Berry. – Jefferson : McFarland & Co., c2006.

ix, 220 p. : ill. ; 27 cm.
ISBN: 9780786426720
Includes bibliographical references (p. 211-216) and index.
Contents: Verne's subterranean "museum" -- Lost and found: the mystique of lost worlds -- At war with dinosaurs -- Shadow of Gojira -- Time-relativistic dinosaurs: Bradbury's legacy -- Dino-trek -- Rise of the raptor -- Infiltration: living with dinosaurs.


1. Fantasy fiction – History and criticism. 2. Science fiction – History and criticism. 3. Dinosaurs in literature.

809.38762

Starting with the illustrated 1867 edition Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth dinosaur sculptor and affectionato Debus traces the fictional and pictorial human imaginings of the earth’s former dominant species up to 2005. He starts with the intrigue of the discovery of lost worlds. Then continues with imaginary journeys back through time to visit the giant lizards in their own era. He looks at dinosaurs from their mid-twentieth image as a stand-in for an attacking enemy power to the tales later in the century of their assimilation into human society or vise versa. He also describes their appearance as extra-terrestrials. Characteristic of McFarland publications this is a well footnoted and documented work with bibliography and index, and an excellent literature guide, an annotated list of “Dinosaur Stories and Other Noteworthy Paleo-fiction."

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