Armoured Defence by Robert Irwin and Jack Wells

Robert Irwin Dinosaur Hunter 3. Random House Australia, 2013. ISBN: 9781742750910. 96p.
Recommended Reading Age 6-9. Themes: Palaeontology, Time-travel, Adventure, Dinosaurs. This third book in the Robert Irwin Dinosaur Hunter series takes Robert and his best mate Riley camping in the Canadian badlands in Alberta. Riley's Uncle Nate is a returned soldier who tells the boys stories about his time in Afghanistan on the car trip to the camp site. Robert doesn't listen however he is too busy daydreaming about his previous trips back in time to dinosaur territory.
While the boys are eating their vegemite sandwiches and playing around, Robert rubs his magic fossil and this takes them on another adventure. They travel back to the Late Cretaceous period, when thirty-five species of dinosaur roamed the badlands. Robert rescues a heavily armoured euoplocephalus trapped in vines. Of course it wouldn't be an adventure unless they were confronted with a fierce gorgosaurus looking for a tasty meal.
The story is embedded with factual information about the habitat and the dinosaurs' characteristics; Robert has a depth of knowledge to share. Additional information as a field guide is included at the end of the novel with a drawing of a euoplocephalus by Robert. Pronunciation keys help the reader tackle the different dinosaur names.
This is a fast-paced action adventure and is recommended for 6-9 year old readers. The Australia Zoo website has information about Robert Irwin and the other books in the series. Check Random House Australia's website for interviews with Robert Irwin, quizzes, videos and downloads as well.
Rhyllis Bignell