Publishers Weekly
Chomp! Stomp! Whomp! Dinah is a wide-eyed, speckled baby dinosaur who wants to try everything, but finesse is not her strong point. She has stubby legs, an eager smile, and a matchless set of jaws. When two tiny creatures kiss each other at Dinah’s feet, Dinah wants to try, too. Her first victim gets a bite on the rear, the next one is flattened by her big dinosaur stompers, and the third gets... eaten. “Whoops,” says Dinah. “Not good.” Only when another baby dinosaur appears does Dinah find a playmate whose life she won’t endanger. “What’s kiss?” the other dinosaur asks, and the two explore affection—rather violently. Stein (Ol’ Mama Squirrel) draws Dinah with a simple, cookie-cutter outline, but her stricken expressions and forthright pursuit of love are plenty complex. Dinah’s swampy world features a sulfurous yellow sky and pint-size volcanoes that explode quietly in the distance. Kids will plunge into the whomping and chomping with glee, and they’ll understand a hero who means to be careful, but who ends up stomping all over things anyway. Ages 2–5. Agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
[Dinah's] attempts to do something that isn’t in her nature make for silly fun that’s likely to set preschoolers chomping and stomping around the room and maybe exchanging a few kisses of their own.
—The New York Times
Kids will plunge into the whomping and chomping with glee, and they’ll understand a hero who means to be careful, but who ends up stomping all over things anyway.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Preschool humor at its finest.
—The Horn Book
Infused with lively, attention-grabbing yellows and cheerful, stimulating oranges to match Dinah’s mood, the book is filled with thick black outlines and chunky lettering... The book’s dominating horizontal line, as we watch Dinah stomp along the horizon, makes for compelling page turns, also matching the great energy of the book. It’s big, loud fun for rowdy, raucous toddlers. Mwah!
—Bookpage
Newly hatched tots will delight in this affectionate, if totally silly story about lessons learned the hard way.
—East Bay Express - Books Inc. Kids
Stein makes great use of fun onomatopoeia to punctuate a prehistoric tale modern parents know all too well — children making earnest efforts to learn a new skill only to achieve hilariously disastrous results. ... [A] circle-time win for Stein, who’s proving to be a master at anthropomorphizing critters with perfectly overemphatic kid-like mannerisms.
—Booklist Online
School Library Journal - Audio
01/01/2014
PreS-K—With no sound effects, bells, or whistles, this production highlights the joy that can be found in someone simply reading a book with enthusiasm. Read with playful intonation by Jessica Almasy, the story of Dinah the Dinosaur's search for the perfect kiss technique will elicit belly laughs from toddlers and preschoolers. Every guttural "WHOMP," "CHOMP," and "STOMP" in Dinah's exploration of kissing will delight young listeners, but the recording must be paired with David Ezra Stein's illustrations for full comic effect. The tracks are identical, but with page turn signals on track two. This is a perfect choice for little dinosaur lovers and zealous smoochers.—Jennifer Verbrugge, Dakota County Library, Eagan, MN
School Library Journal
09/01/2013
PreS-K—Dinah, a baby dinosaur, is just out of her egg and ready to explore her green, swampy home. She learns to walk (stomp!) and to eat (chomp!), but the next thing Dinah sees (a kiss) she has to learn more about. She stomps all over looking for a special someone to kiss, making unsuccessful and funny attempts along the way. A fishlike creature gets a "whomp!" a dinosaur gets a "chomp!" and a reptilian critter gets a "stomp!" Realizing that she must pucker up politely to get her elusive kiss, Dinah finds her next would-be smooch, but she accidentally eats him. Finally, she befriends another baby dinosaur, and the two noisy buddies chomp, stomp, and whomp kisses to their hearts' content. Kids will love the cheeky but thoughtful expressions on Dinah's face, and the bottom-bitten dinosaur is sure to bring gleeful chuckles. Rendered in pen-and-ink, charcoal, watercolor, and crayon, the illustrations are bold, simple, and humorous. Dinah's big, goofy smile is sure to be reflected in the faces of her young admirers.—Alison Donnelly, Collinsville Memorial Public Library, IL
Kirkus Reviews
Chomping and stomping come naturally to an exuberant dinosaur hatchling. Kissing? That takes practice. Emerging from her egg at a run, Dinah STOMPS her fat legs and CHOMPS weeds with her sharp teeth. Kissing, though, turns out to be a challenge. After sending one hapless victim flying with a head butt and another inadvertently down the hatch ("Whoops," she says. "Not good"), she returns to the hatchery…just in time to welcome a new sib with kisses--the sort that involve chomping, stomping and delighted head butts ("WHOMP!"). Drawn in thick outlines with a huge grin, wide eyes and a mottled yellow hide, Dinah stumps her way through minimally detailed prehistoric landscapes populated with anxious-looking smaller creatures. Children who groove on wimpy little butterfly kisses had best look elsewhere. A kissing cousin to Bob Shea's Dinosaur vs.… series. (Picture book. 3-5)
