Dinosaurs: Marvels of God's Design (Download)

My kids are in the younger range but this was a fun and interesting read for mom! Enjoyed!

This is a beautiful book, filled with gorgeous pictures, illustrations, and diagrams, all devoted to filling the need for a scientific study on dinosaurs from a biblical viewpoint. Dr. Clarey provides sound guidance as he examines popular theories related to dinosaurs, stating in the preface that "all theories and hypotheses, no matter how popular, should be questioned, keeping in mind that popularity doesn't make it true." Although he is preaching to the choir with me as a reader, he reinforces the fact that one does not need to find a compromise between the Bible and actual science (that which is observable, testable, repeatable), but that anything related to history, evolution, and origins cannot be observed; we can make interpretations of the evidence, but without witnessing dinosaur nesting habits, for example, we cannot be dogmatic about what actually happened.

There is a high degree of emphasis on the biblical record throughout, not that I would expect anything less from a member of the ICR staff. The information is correlated well with the subjects addressed and provides an excellent framework for the Christian wanting to study dinosaurs without having to discount the typical evolutionary mindset that accompanies the topic.

While I greatly appreciated the content of this book, the price tag for the print version is high enough that I would have been hard-pressed to purchase it for myself. Maybe that is partly because I still remember being able to pick up decent-sized paperback novels for about $5 new. This book is printed in full-color with glossy pages, which adds a lot to the look and feel of the book. All that being said, is the book worth adding to your shelf? Certainly! But some families may find looking for a sale or bundle price would make the purchase more palatable to the pocketbook.

All in all, I would give this book a 5/5 rating.

Note: I received a free copy of this book through Cross Focused Reviews in exchange for my fair and honest appraisal. I was not obligated to provide a favorable review.

I wasn't sure about reading this book until I saw that Ken Ham had endorsed it and then I knew that it would be what I wanted: a book that is biased towards the literal account that God's Word gives of creation. The author of this book believes in a literal six-day Creation and in a literal global flood, and thus studies the dinosaurs with that viewpoint. I was especially intrigued upon opening the first pages of the book to see 1 Timothy 6:20-21 and 2 Peter 3:5-6, two verses warning about those who turn away from what God's Word says.

Dinosaurs Marvels of God's Design by Dr. Tim Clarey is a very fascinating book on Dinosaurs. Filled with many photographs of dinosaur fossils, and many artist renditions of dinosaurs, it is interesting even to little kids as I found when my little brothers all gathered around me while I was reading this book this past week, asking about the dinosaurs and being intrigued with the pictures. Where the Bible is silent on Dinosaurs, the author is very speculative and admits that it he is speculative. That probably seems odd, but what I mean by that is that, where the Bible does not expound upon certain things about Dinosaurs, Clarey is careful not to be dogmatic on certain things, like whether or not the dinosaurs were warm or cold blooded, whether or not Dinosaurs carefully looked after their young…etc. He speculates, but makes sure that you know that he is merely speculating as he has not observed the live dinosaurs in action himself. For instance, in one spot he is giving some speculative reasons as to why a certain dinosaur had a very thick skull, concluding with, "God designed these dinosaurs with an unusual thickened skull for possibly all these reasons, and/or just to glorify Him by demonstrating tremendous diversity." But his speculation was very interesting, and I must add that it is informed by certain observations that can be made by observing fossils and things. But on all topics, like how far back in time Dinosaurs existed he holds very firmly to interpreting what science discovers of Dinosaurs by means of what God has said about His creation in His Word.

I loved it when giving the modern estimates of how old certain dinosaurs fossils are sometimes he says things like "Secular Dated: such and such millions of years ago" (I'm paraphrasing of course). Clarey uses a lot of repetition mainly when he is refuting the views of unbiblical scientists, he'll repeat statements about scientists have trouble with Marine fossils being mixed up with Dinosaurs but that Creationists don't have a problem with it because they believe in a global flood which is an excellent explanation as to how those creatures could have gotten mixed together. The repetitions like that are fine as they hammers these possible explanations into one's head, biasing one still more towards bias towards the Bibles account of the age of the earth, which I think is a good thing, and it is also good if you are using the book as a reference book rather than just reading it straight through.

All in all, I loved the book because it was biased, and the author had presuppositions, Biblical presuppositions.
The author is unapologetically biased towards the account of Creation given by the Ultimate Witness of Creation : God, the Creator Himself.

In compliance with FTC guidelines, I state that Master Books has provided me with a free review copy of this book through Cross Focused Reviews (My review did not have to be favorable). Lots of thanks to the publisher and Cross Focused Reviews!

*I received this book for review*

Dinosaurs: Marvels of God’s Design by Dr. Tim Clarey is a thorough book about dinosaurs. Written from a Creationist perspective, the book provides good background information on a wide array of dinos, including the Sauropodomorpha (“lizard-footed”) and the Marginocephalia (“fringed heads”). I loved looking at the charts, photos of fossils, and pictures showcasing what different dinosaurs looked like. And I also enjoyed reading about the dinosaur hunters and archaeologists that Clarey featured. The book is very informative, and not only educates the reader about what various dinosaurs were like, but also talks about where people have found the footprints they left behind. If you’re a dinosaur enthusiast looking for a nice dino-themed book for your personal library (or coffee table!), Dinosaurs: Marvels of God’s Design is a fun book to own.