Dinosaur love story

Amorra Weddings: The Lovely Other Dinosaur

In a few days time, I need to have bottomed out all the little details of my wedding ceremony with my lovely husband to be for our meeting with the registrar. As civil ceremonies are notoriously short and sweet, we've decided to have a couple of readings to add a bit of 'us' to the ceremony and fill out the time (we also still need to choose our ceremony music, but as I'm not that keen on the A-team theme it's back to the drawing board for my husband to be on that one...).

One of my all time favourite readings is 'A Lovely Love Story' by Edward Monkton. Yes, a wedding reading by the same guy that writes about the Zen Dog (He knows not where he's going, For the Ocean will decide - it's not the destination...it's the glory of the ride) or the Pig of Happiness (he is so happy) seems strange, but it's such a lovely story and brings tears to my eyes everytime I read it. I love it so much and couldn't help but share it with you, so please enjoy:

A Lovely Love Story - By Edward Monkton

The fierce Dinosaur was trapped inside his cage of ice.
Although it was cold he was happy in there. It was, after all, his cage.

Then along came the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
The Lovely Other Dinosaur melted the Dinosaur’s cage with kind words and loving thoughts.

I like this Dinosaur thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
Although he is fierce he is also tender and he is funny.
He is also quite clever though I will not tell him this for now.

I like this Lovely Other Dinosaur, thought the Dinosaur.
She is beautiful and she is different and she smells so nice.
She is also a free spirit which is a quality I much admire in a dinosaur.

But he can be so distant and so peculiar at times, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
He is also overly fond of things.
Are all Dinosaurs so overly fond of things?

But her mind skips from here to there so quickly thought the Dinosaur.
She is also uncommonly keen on shopping.
Are all Lovely Other Dinosaurs so uncommonly keen on shopping?

I will forgive his peculiarity and his concern for things, thought the Lovely Other Dinosaur.
For they are part of what makes him a richly charactered individual.

I will forgive her skipping mind and her fondness for shopping, thought the Dinosaur.
For she fills our life with beautiful thoughts and wonderful surprises. Besides,
I am not unkeen on shopping either.

Now the Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur are old.
Look at them.
Together they stand on the hill telling each other stories and feeling the warmth of the sun on their backs.

And that, my friends, is how it is with love.
Let us all be Dinosaurs and Lovely Other Dinosaurs together.
For the sun is warm.
And the world is a beautiful place.

For more brilliant thoughts and Poems by the genius that is Edward Monkton, check out his website. *Might be worth making it a favourite as it's just that good.

http://www.edwardmonkton.com/

Thanks for reading,

Chelsea

A Lovely Love Story by Edward Monkton

Edward Monkton

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"Together they stand on the hill, telling each other stories and feeling the warmth of the sun on their backs. And that, my friends, is how it is with love." --Edward Monkton

Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennett. Ozzie and Harriet. Jay-Z and Beyonce. Great couples often find togetherness by embracing their individual differences. In this modern-day fable, Edward Monkton pens an irresistible love story about a fiercely funny but distant Dinosaur who falls in love with a forgetful but free-spirited (and shopping-savvy) Lovely Other Dinosaur.

* Monkton, perhaps better known as the U.K.'s top-selling living poet Giles Andreae

* This ode to love pairs Monkton's signature illustrations with simple yet profound prose.

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 15, 2004

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews

December 29, 2017

A Lovely Love Story illustrates the beauty of Goodreads. Because I would never have read this book at all were it not for the recommendation of my Goodreads friend DebsD. She had portions of it read at her wedding — and what greater recommendation is there than that?

I loved the story of the Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur so much. It’s hard not to identify with two besotted lovers growing old together. May that be true for all of us!

"He is also quite CLEVER though I will not tell him this for now." What a great little bugger of a book, made me feel good, lovely...5 🌟

......I mean, it's a cute book. For what they price it as, it's like golden toilet paper.

I could write and illustrated something like this and only charge you a nickle.

In case anyone is wondering, I'm not being sarcastic. Contact me if you're interested in a dino love story on a disposable napkin.

mf reviewed romance

Our wedding ceremony started with one of our sons reading this aloud. Our guests loved it - they recognised us!

family-home fiction love

Agoes

467 reviews32 followers

This books tells a story about two dinosaurs who kept on liking each other despite of their differences. The illustrations are cute but the story is not necessarily limited for children.

However, the gender stereotypes is unintentionally funny. It felt weird reading about female dinosaurs who liked to shop and male dinosaurs who tends to be distant. The dinosaurs also went on a picnic on a sunny day and eat sandwich with their hands, so I guess I shouldn't complain that much.

as a 25 year old grown woman, i read this book leisurely at a bookstore and ended up crying at the end. embarrassed??? yeah a little. but worth every tear.

I love his writing style. Sincere and to the point. I stood in Barnes and Noble reading it while grinning ear to ear. I knew immediately that I just had to buy it. I think it describes the way that everyone should fall in love. Everyone has quirks and fetishes for things that we may not appreciate at first... But there are some qualities about them that are so captivating that it makes us willing to adapt and eventually come to appreciate those differences. My favorite part is after they have fallen in love and have grown old together. "Now the Dinosaur and the Lovely Other Dinosaur are OLD... LOOK at them." It's followed by a simple picture of both of them with big grins, holding hands, and touching noses. The author tells us to just LOOK at them, because he does not need to explain with words how happy they have made each other over the years. The picture says a thousand words. This book may have been written for children, but it has touched my heart. I hope my Love Story looks like this one day.

Nayeli

285 reviews31 followers

I read this book in one sitting at a Barnes and Noble. It's really short and the drawings are cute, I thought it was a book for children but it really doesn't seem like it apart from the fact that the main characters are dinosaurs and the drawing style is childish. I liked it a lot at first because I thought they were going to keep the gender of the dinosaurs undisclosed and their characteristics wouldn't be so obvious. .. but no: the female dinosaur "smells nice" and likes shopping and the male dinosaur is "distant" and likes things a lot (electronics according to the drawing). I'm giving it two stars because it was just okay and I couldn't get past what I just mentioned, though it's a nice lesson on how we love other people despite our differences.

if i could have given this book 10 stars, i would have. A friend of mine gave me this for my birthday and it made me feel all fuzzy inside. Its a short little story which reminds us that even though everyone has different likes/dislikes its alright. Not only is it ok, but its WONDERFUL because thats what makes us all unique individuals. So once we learn that everyone is different, we can put aside those differences and learn to love each other :) even if some of us are fond of strange things..

This book is truly a lovely story about two Dino who fall in love while getting angry at each and forgiving each other at the same time. :)

It feels a bit cheating to put short/picture books on read lists, but I have indeed read it- forgot when it got on my radar, pretty sure I heard about it on reddit at some point? It's very short, but also very adorable. Good for a valentine's/anniversary gift or wedding centerpiece quotes.

Lovey dovey macaroni.
To all single dinosaurs out there... there is hope.
Every dinosaur deserves another dinosaur.

humour

Cute

I liked the story about the dinosaurs and how it well represented what it takes to have a lasting relationship, accepting the other person for who they are.

Just read it because George Mahood referred to it in his latest book. LOL

Thank you mama! Needed one last book to meet my goal for 2021. Only complaint...too cute.

Best friend read this aloud at my wedding. Love this book.

This short story is soooooo cute I love it!

Joanne

1,026 reviews144 followers

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

This is such a beautiful book! It's one of those sweet gift books you would find in the humour section of a bookshop, and it caught my eye. It's basically the story of two dinosaurs who meet and fall in love. There are aspects they find attractive in each other, and other aspects not so much, but the good outweighs the bad, and love blossoms.

I picked it up because I recognised the style on the cover. Edward Monkton, illustrator and writer, also wrote Love Monkey, which my cousin had as a reading at her wedding, when she and her husband swapped their own carved hearts. That was such a cute story, and so picking up A Lovely Love Story was a must.

It's just as beautiful! It's one of those books that would be perfect to your other half on Valentine's Day; a little quirk, a little funny, but a lot touching and full of cute!

Edward Monkton has a series of these cute little books, and I just want to find one for every person in my life now. Or just buy them all for myself!

My mum picked up this book when O.H. and I first moved in together, although she hadn't read it. It's a lovely little book that just distills how love is about enjoying the differences as well as sharing opinions and activities.

It feels hard to rate it, so I'll just give it 5 for being a lovely little love story.

I would give this book 10 stars if I could. This book was my Valentine's Day "card" and it is why Rich is my dinosaur :) And I am his lovely other dinosaur! (this is your cue, Aubrey, to throw up now.. .)

A book of love and accepting the other person for who
they are and loving them for who they are...I loved the book and love who gave it to me!! An easy read, and well worth it, I will read it again and again.....

David

22 reviews7 followers

A simple little book about dinosaurs in love reminds us that love is much about appreciating our differences as humans.

My fiancée bought me this book and read it to me on valentines day. I cried...it was really sweet. Jess and I are really like dinosaurs :-)

Liz

132 reviews5 followers

This is the most beautiful book I've ever read. It's so simple but is so adorable and perfect. Just everything about it is..wonderful. Read it. Love it.

Zuzana

190 reviews12 followers

I think this is now one of my favorites of all time!!! :)

Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews

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Why do children love dinosaurs and is it normal from the point of view of psychology

Life with children

Artem Sokolov

January 29, 2018 19:17

this topic. Afisha Daily figured out the reasons for this love with the help of scientists, a child psychologist and a boy obsessed with dinosaurs.

Most children become interested in dinosaurs between the ages of two and six, and many of them know more than a dozen scientific names of ancient animals and can talk about each one. Dinosaur fascination is so massive that even if your child is not into dinosaurs, you can easily name someone who is in love with them.

Experts call such behavior the term intense interest, or, in Russian, sustainable interest. According to scientists, such a psychological feature exists in about a third of modern children. Often their attention is also attracted by vehicles - cars, trains, planes.

I became interested in dinosaurs when I was 4 years old: my grandfather gave me a children's book about them. At first, before I learned to read, my parents read books to me. Then I myself began to look for information about them.

At first I collected dinosaur figurines, but it was always important to me that they were real dinosaurs. Now you can find a lot of figurines from manufacturers who themselves come up with what a dinosaur should be like - paws, scales, claws - but in fact they can’t even give a name. It is in China that such nonsense is often released. Now I have more than 200 dinosaur models in my collection.

I regularly go to the paleontological museum, I have been to dinoparks in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Istanbul, Prague. Since the age of 10, I have been studying in the paleontological circle at the Biological Museum. Timiryazev. I read various news on paleontology, I dream of going to the USA - there are many interesting museums there, there is even the largest and most complete T-rex skeleton, which was called "Dinosaur 13". A film was even made based on this find of the century, I met with director Tod Miller in Moscow.

Once in Sunday school I was scolded: they said that there were no dinosaurs, it's all fiction. I replied that if God could create a man, then it was no problem for him to create a dinosaur.

I think we like dinosaurs so much because they are very different and very beautiful. They can be explored from a very young age. In some parks, special excavation models are made, and it's interesting to sit and dig up bones, collect skeletons from them. I hope one day mankind will be able to restore the dinosaurs. Only they will behave more carefully, and not like in the movie "Jurassic World".

Children of past generations were also interested in dinosaurs, but in the modern world their involvement in the topic has changed. There were films about dinosaurs in the 80s and 90s, illustrated books on the topic have been released for a long time, but today you can see huge moving models of dinosaurs and even watch the work of real paleontologists (as, for example, in the Museum of Natural History in Los Angeles). Also in the modern world, scientists continue to regularly make discoveries: in 2016 alone, 30 previously unknown species of dinosaurs were discovered.

American paleontologist Kenneth Lacovara suggests that children are interested in dinosaurs because they want to earn authority among adults: “I don’t know how they remember so many names of dinosaurs, but it seems to me that this is the first opportunity for them to be an expert in any field . Adults can think of three or four dinosaur names, while children can easily name two dozen. It helps you feel strong."

Kelly Ken, a pediatric psychotherapist, also agrees with this theory. A study published in the journal Cognitive Development in 2008 states that sustained interest in a conceptual field such as dinosaurs promotes information processing skills, self-confidence and perseverance. The same study states that children with sustained interest tend to be more intelligent at an older age.

Cathy Johnson, a cognitive psychologist in Indiana, supports a colleague and states that conceptual interests form the basis for later learning. Gaining experience in any field is a manifestation of cognitive competence, which becomes a determining factor in self-esteem. A detailed knowledge of dinosaurs can make a child more confident when they take on a new topic, she says.

The school becomes the main enemy on the way to the development of a sustainable interest. Education alone does not cause kids to stop loving dinosaurs. And although school education gives a very average idea of the world around, in the first years of study it also opens up new horizons. “There are more things to do in life, and the child realizes that there are many other interesting things around,” says family psychologist Elisabeth Chatel.

In addition, when a child comes to school, he begins to realize that not everyone around admires his special knowledge. The attitude of adults towards children is also changing. If earlier relatives paid attention to children's interests and supported them in every possible way, then at school the emphasis is shifted to subjects common to all students, and parents are more interested in grades. Dependent on the opinions of adults, schoolchildren first gradually move away from the object of their interest, and then completely forget about it. At the same time, under the influence of peers, the child develops new stable interests. As psychologist Joyce Alexander notes, many children may suppress their own hobbies in order to build friendships with classmates. And scholar Randy Kullman says American schoolchildren often have a common passion for playing Minecraft or LEGO, which helps them make friends.

Although the vast majority of parents support about 92% of the sustainable interests of children, according to the book Planes, Trains, Automobiles — and Tea Sets: Extremely Intense Interests in Very Young Children, there are those who try to limit their passion and direct it in a different direction. There is a known case when parents forbade a boy to pretend to be a dinosaur, because parents of his peers complained about his excessive activity. Sometimes adults try to artificially instill certain interests in their child - playing musical instruments, playing sports, dancing or martial arts, reading books - however, according to scholar Randy Kullman, this approach does not bode well. “It’s better to let the child understand some process so that he can then return to it with interest on his own,” Kullman believes. In addition, he is sure that one should not worry about excessive passion for things that are not the most useful, from the point of view of parents, because one stable interest can very soon be replaced by another.

At the age of 3-4 years, the child develops a steady interest in identifying cause-and-effect relationships, he asks many questions “why?” And How?". Vehicles, for example, trains, planes, cars, are a very rich material for understanding the world of objects and space. Big, impressive cars that a person can drive is a puzzle that a child wants to solve by driving toy vehicles.

As for dinosaurs, I can assume that the child's steady interest in dinosaurs is connected with his internal psychological need to play scary at this age. Games with frightening impressions help to form one's own image, study one's emotions, and teach self-regulation (tension and relaxation). At this age, no less than dinosaurs, children like fairy tales about Baba Yaga, an evil wolf, aliens and other "horrors", because these stories and games help to find support in themselves, to be afraid in the safe space of a game or fairy tale.

Most parents are comfortable with the fact that the child has some kind of narrow interest, if this interest is gradually replaced by another. The parents of those children who have been fixated on one thing for years and are completely not interested in everything else are worried. If the narrowness of choice also applies to other areas of life: routes (walks only this way, a step to the left is a scandal), food (eats only certain foods), clothes (it is impossible to change clothes when the season changes), then parents usually turn to a psychologist for help.

If a child is diagnosed with autism, then he really has a fairly narrow range of interests. On the one hand, it makes life difficult. On the other hand, it can be a great motivation for learning. For example, in our Center for Curative Pedagogics, a boy was studying to read according to the metro scheme (he was a fan of the subway) and mastered reading much faster than his peers.

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Teeth clack: why do we love dinosaurs so much? | Nostalgia on 2x2

Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous is coming to Netflix on September 18th, and you're sure to be binge-watching. Why do you think? What is the reason for such a love for dinosaurs? Film critic Ivan Afanasiev survived the meteorite fall and tried to figure out why we are so drawn to these leather bastards with sharp teeth, including in movies, cartoons and games.

The history of dinosaurs as part of popular culture began in 1912, when Arthur Conan Doyle (yes, the same one who invented Sherlock Holmes) wrote the novel The Lost World, which was read by both old and young. The first dinosaur movie came out at 1914 - Getty the Dinosaur. After these two works, prehistoric lizards became a little more popular - they appeared, for example, in Buster Keaton's comedy "Three Ages" and in the famous "King Kong" in 1933.

The "Silver Age" of dinosaurs in cinema falls on the 1950s-1970s, when ten films like Journey to the Beginning of Time and the Soviet Planet of Storms were released every decade. Especially in this field, the Japanese were noted with their Godzilla and its variations. The "golden" era can be considered 1990-2000s - then more than fifty films were released, where in one way or another there were "terrible lizards" - not only "Jurassic Park", but also "Carnosaurus", which also grew into a trilogy.

And now the question is why do we still love dinosaurs so much?

They are scary

They really look scary and cool: huge size (at least the size of a person, or even a multi-storey building), clawed paws and sharp teeth. Just remember the most impressive moment of Jurassic World, when the heroes are chased by a huge genetically modified dinosaur the size of a Ferris wheel, and they are bitten by an even heftier whale-sized mosasaurus. Cool! By the way, this comes from childhood: remember how you, sitting on the floor with a book about prehistoric creatures, went nuts for the first time, imagining a tyrannosaurus rex.

They are cute

Despite their menacing nature, not all dinosaurs are actually that scary. There are, after all, diplodocuses, touching with their serene beauty and long neck, who are herbivores and calmly chew grass and eat leaves. Even the formidable Triceratops is still cute and does not want to eat anyone (although it can gore)! Just remember how many cartoons there are - from "The Land Before Time" to "The Good Dinosaur", and kids love them!

Here, by the way, there is one more point: using the example of herbivorous and carnivorous dinosaurs, it is easy for a child to demonstrate how our cruel world works, in which either you eat grass or you are being eaten.

There are many of them

Paleontologists say that the love of dinosaurs really comes from childhood - the study of unknown disappeared animals often becomes the first hobby of the child. After all, there are about two thousand varieties of dinosaurs, and many are radically different from each other - take at least an outlandish ichthyosaur that looks like a toothy dolphin.

And how fun it is to remember their names - you can play the game "say "jinfengopteryx" in two seconds without ever stuttering." There is something to brag to friends and parents!

They look like dragons

Since childhood, everyone loves fairy tales, and what monster comes to mind first when any fantasy comes to mind? Of course dragons! And who, if not some kind of hybrid of allosaurus and pterodactyl, is ideally like them? And in general - it's so unusual and mysterious. An extinct community of prehistoric reptiles that we will never see again (or help us Chris Pratt) - how cool! Even look at the titles of the films: "The Lost World", "An Extraordinary Journey to the Center of the Earth", "The Land Forgotten by Time" . .. Yes, even "Nymphomaniac Wild in Dinosaur Hell"!

They look like us

"What do you mean?" the reader will say. Well, yes, they are similar: after all, we are interested, in fact, in a dead prehistoric civilization, with its own society and laws. Dinosaurs died (it seems) from a meteorite that fell on Earth - and we, in turn, are drawn to what was lost a long time ago, trying to restore the distant past from fragments ... destroying the planet in the present, destroying the ecology and polluting the environment.

In fact, the death of dinosaurs is a metaphor for the future of mankind: let's continue in the same vein, and maybe in a couple of tens of millions of years, some bunches of pure energy will dig up the bones of strange creatures with pieces of iron with an apple logo in their hands.

Bottom line: Dinosaurs evoke some forgotten and sincere emotions in us, despite their outwardly formidable nature.