There is a sweet charm to this story. Frankie loves to visit the museum especially the dinosaurs but when she sees a sign that says "don't feed the fossil" and she is worried. This does not seem fair. She pulls her cheese sandwich out of her pocket and gives it to the huge diplodocus skeleton. On the way home she has a funny feeling. Late that night the diplodocus appears at her window. Frankie gives him some toast in the morning because surely he must be hungry after 152 million years. Then she spends a terrific day playing with her new friend. Everything is going well until a man arrives from the museum.
I did wonder about the cheese sandwich idea on the last pages. Children who love dinosaurs are often experts just like Frankie so I wonder if they might be a little affronted that the author includes something so silly as cheese, cheese and ham and ham sandwiches to label the dinosaurs. But then again it is good fun. I was rather thrilled to see my own favourite dinosaurs - the Muttaburrasaurus.
The wordless page adds a good layer of poignancy to the story and allows the reader to slow down.
There are some interesting (if not subtle) inclusions in the illustrations – the blind man with a guide dog on the train, and a museum visitor in a wheelchair. It is interesting that Jess used a boy’s name (Frankie) for his main character but of course she is a girl so it is good to see a book about a girl who loves dinosaurs. The dino-loving child is a girl from a single mother family who has found a way to share her knowledge and passion with others.
Jess McGeachin gives his fossil so much life and personality! The way he uses little dots for eyes and the 'puppy dog' mannerisms and expressions are perfect. Look for the humorous background details in the images (like the dino mailbox!).
I absolutely adored Jess McGeachin’s previous book Fly.
I listened to an interview with Jess McGeachin recently. I should not have been surprised to discover this:
"Jess draws quite literally from a day job at Melbourne Museum, where he’s lucky enough to help design exhibitions and occasionally get lost in the basement."
AND this "He has fond memories of visiting the old Melbourne Museum where his mum worked as a scientific illustrator, meticulously drawing strange sea-creatures in glass jars."
Frankie and the Fossil is a CBCA Picture Book Notable title for 2022. Take a look at a recent post about museums and then see if you can find any of these books in your school library. I do wish I had this wonderful dinosaur popup book with amazing paper art by Robert Sabuda.
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