I love Nathan Hale, but this book was very unexpected. It was quirky, but a little too weird for me. I do love his art style.

This was a bit weirder than I was expecting. It doesn't follow standard logic. If you can roll with weirdness give it a read but the average reader may struggle.

A quirky trilobite and his companion animal Amber – a walking whale from the Eocene – set out on a quest for fame and fortune after a run-in with a glamorous paleo-newscaster. Hale manages to build winning characters and humorous adventures galore around nuggets of reality – prehistoric creatures, mystical traditions and oddball facts. The black ink and blue washed comic panels are imbued with a strong seventies vibe. The simple color scheme helps to balance the plethora of invention and diversity of character. The final video battle showdown is narrated by a gnome and a porcupine, judged by an octopus, pterodactyl and cyborshark and features both the ghost of a sleeping flea and a massive ape god super-cluster. Add color to that and an actual alternate universe might open. By turns both wise and goofy, Hale lives up to the title page’s promise to ‘blow [our] minds’. Back matter separates fact from fiction and lists the rules Hale set himself during lockdown that resulted in this comic tour de force. Illustrations and text give hope sequels may be planned. Thanks to Amulet and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an unbiased review.

Wildly different from his Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales, this book was not what I expected at all. It was, however, enjoyable as a very unpredictable comedy caper. The main character, Bite, is a trilobite (yes, the extinct one) whose best friend Amber is an ambulocetus, a prehistoric walking whale (that looked more like an alligator to me). In an attempt to become rich and famous, they team up with paleo-journalist Tiffany Timber and end up in a news video competition.
The art is unique and distinctive, and the characters are wildly wacky. Younger readers may struggle to follow the story, but upper elementary students will enjoy the tongue-in-cheek humor as well as the puns and sight gags.

A fast, fun read. I read it to my son who said that his favorite part was the characters. We looked up his favorites to see what the animals were really like. Nathan Hale masterfully uses his characters to tell a weird and wonderful story using many of the things that like it or not are a huge part of our lives. Tablets, content creation, reality TV, and game shows.

I'm going to say this book was okay. I am used to Hale's history themed books, so this foray into biological science just fell flat for me. Yes, there were facts sprinkled in with the story, but it just didn't seem to flow as well as his other books.

When he's not writing madcap historical adventures, Nathan Hale writes some truly imaginative and very strange stories. A little fantastical, very funny, sort of random. This book is bait for the right reader.

My oldest loves Nathan hale and was so excited to read his newest book. He enjoyed it a lot, thank you netgalley for this ARc in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley for providing an advance Copy for review.

Fans of Nathan Hale will love his newest graphic novel series. He has moved his focus from history into natural history. Hale introduces readers to a host of truly wacky prehistoric (and some supernatural) characters. Middle grade readers will learn a little bit about these species while enjoying The slap-stick comedy.

Follow Trilobite and his sidekick Amber the ambulocetus as they try to become famous internet stars. They team up with wildly popular Tiffany Timber Paleo- Newscaster in a video-making battle royale. Will they win internet fame as they compete against a group of ancient creatures that don't play fair?

This will be a middle grade favorite for sure! I can't wait to see what is in store for Tiffany, Bite and Amber in the next book.

Nathan Hale, thank you for always giving even my most reluctant readers something to look forward to.

Seeing as most of the Nathan Hale books in our library are usually checked out, this new series is sure to be a hit as well! The adventures of Amber and Trilobite are fast moving, at times silly and gross but always entertaining.

Love Nathan Hale’s graphic novels. Excited for this series. Great characters and story. Illustrations consistent with authors other books.