Dinotopia: Journey to Chandara

I wish I'd had these books as a child. Journey to Chandara is another wonderful book in the series, complete with illustrations, histories, alphabets, songs, cultures, and diverse characters. An absolute joy to turn each page.

Journey to Chandara is a brilliant instalment in the Dinotopia series and a wonderful story on its own. Beautiful full page paintings bring the story to life and the many diagrams make it fun for kids to read along. This book is sure to capture the heart of any child at any age and deserves a place on your bookshelf next to its two predecessors.

This book takes you on a charming voyage I didn't want to end. I actually spaced my reading over several weeks to prolong the experience. Much like other Dinotopia books it is packed with charming scenes and intriguing narrative. I also finally figured out the magic of the Dinotopia series; the combination of paintings and narrative triggers memories and day dreams that actually alter consciousness (like all good art should). The reading experience was the closest I've gotten to that dreamy state of mind I achieved as a kid reading books like Treasure Island or Robinson Crusoe. Additionally, this book contains Gurney's best paintings ever.

Journey to Chandara is, in my opinion, the best Dinotopia book written so far. It maintains the journalistic feeling of the first two books (A Land Apart From Time and World Beneath) while exploring new territory and characters. We travel to new cities, such as Bilgewater (built entirely out of ships), the nomadic Jorotongo, Thermana (mentioned, but not visited before), and the extremely exotic Chandara. We get new characters to intrigue us, such as the Liners and Spotters of Sauropolis and their eternal debate on life. The emperor of Chandara is quite a surprise too; he's certainly not what you would expect! One of the best things about Journey to Chandara is that James Gurney allowed fans to help. Fans were allowed to compile a list of cities and their locations, and their information was added to the updated map. Fans from the Official Message Board who visited James Gurney are also painted throughout the book. The art is as astounding as ever. The Hudson River Valley School art style has certainly crept into many of Jim's paintings (Bilgewater, Ruhmsburg, and other landscapes), as well as some distinct Norman Rockwell (mostly in Jorotongo). Many of the paintings are near photorealistic while others maintain the National Geographic diagram style that has worked so well for Gurney. My one problem with the book was the pacing. I sometimes felt that characters and places were introduced and left too quickly. True, this is what would happen on a journey across the island, but I wanted to stay with the characters longer and explore their cities just a little bit more. All in all, this book is a great addition to the saga of Arthur Denison in his explorations of the island. I would highly recommend this book to anyone of any age.

A wonderful story and a beautiful work of art...and a surprising place to find nuggets (reminders) about life's wisdoms. A great buy.

I've followed James Gurney's career throughout my own (Matt Gaser) and each book he creates just keeps getting better. The details in every illustration take you to a magical place. For me it's inspiring to dive into his books travel into the mind of Gurney through the world of Dinotopia and then sketch/paint and create worlds of my own. A wonderful addition for any one period. Looking forward to his next project???