Although this is a meaty book for its age level and rather lengthy, my children were completely absorbed when I read this aloud to them.

' Stories in Stone presents the "World of Animal Fossils" and the story of the dinosaurs from the point of view of generally accepted scientific theories of today. Chapter 1 (A Rock Sandwich) covers introduces the idea of fossils, how they were formed, types of fossils, the scientific classification of animal species ("Why Dinosaur Names are Hard to Spell") and how scientists determine the age of fossils.

Chapter 2 (Buried at Sea) covers the oldest fossils that are believed to have come from ancient oceans (although they are found in very dry places today). This chapter also covers the theory that "about 180 million years ago, Earth had one huge continent ... surrounded by a large ocean".

Chapter 3 (Swimmers in the Sand) covers fossils of early fishes and sharks and ancient ocean mammals and reptiles.

Chapter 4 (The Terrible Lizards) covers the dinosaur world - including the first modern discoveries of dinosaur bones and the general scientific understanding of when and how the dinosaurs lived.

Chapter 5 (Furs and Feathers, Bones and Teeth) covers fossils of ancient birds, saber-toothed cats, mammoths and mastadons.

I've never had a great interest in fossils myself and always tended to skip over the relevant sections of animal books, but I have to admit that this book was well-written and quite interesting.