Bluebonnet at Dinosaur Valley State Park
One of my most popular tales of my Texas travels is about my adventure at Dinosaur Valley State Park. Now this book came about following a trip MBC made with her family more than 30 years ago. They journeyed to Glen Rose, Texas for a day trip with their good friends, the Gilmores.
MBC remembers it as a very fun time of swimming and picnicking, and she remembers the excitement her sons and the Gilmore girls had over seeing the dinosaur tracks along the Paluxy River.
MBC had recently seen a museum exhibit featuring a fossil of a glyptodon. A glyptodon was a pre-historic mammal, cousin of the armadillo, that looked a lot like an armadillo, but boasted a large ball of spikes on the end of its tail. MBC named my new glyptodont friend Glyndon P. Glyptodon, but her son McCrae quickly nick-named him Spike.
As MBC began to create the storyline on that hot summer day at Dinosaur Valley State Park, she remembers that friend Ben Gilmore offered the idea of the glyptodon’s discovery by the footprints he left behind, picking up on the dinosaur tracks found at the park. That idea helped MBC quickly write the story.
“Bluebonnet at Dinosaur Valley State Park” was the first book of the Bluebonnet Armadillo Adventure series to be illustrated by Benjamin Vincent and published by Pelican Publishing Company. The first printing was 1990; a second printing followed in 1995.
Children continue to be fascinated with dinosaurs, just as MBC’s sons were. MBC has had many parents tell her that they visited Dinosaur Valley State Park because their children read her book and wanted to go. So if you haven’t visited this beautiful state park in Glen Rose, this summer would be a great time to go. Learn more about it at:http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/dinosaur-valley
As always, keep reading and writing!
Bluebonnet Armadillo
