They don't make 'em like this anymore
Shout out to the girls Pangea, Gondwana, and Laurasia âđ˝đ A collection of non-fiction books that allow us a glimpse into Deep Time; from the Cambrian waters of the Paleozoic, the terrifying Age of Dinosaurs of the Mesozoic, up to the majestic megafauna of the early-Cenozoic.
recommendations, corrections, and discussions are welcome and encouraged!!! please!!!!
created by superllaine
last updated April, 2026
Comments
how did i not know this list existed 𼚠one of my great loves! may i suggest Other Minds by Peter Godfrey-Smith for consideration? itâs not 100% on deep time but iâd say a significant portion of it is.
why not, more deep time for all!! đ
Hahaha I love the name you picked for this list and also everything about it
I am to please and spread the good word âđ˝đââď¸
The emoji choice is top tier đ¤Ł
THANK YOU!! I'm sad I couldn't add đŚ but sacrifices must be made âđ˝đ
The sacrifice was not in vain đ
flabbergasted, the list will make me a dino person i can see it
Just as planned đ
idk if it'll fit with your description but the one and only dino book i read is Fossil Legends of the First Americans by Adrienne Mayor. a random find, but i enjoyed it!
Oooo I'll look into it, thank you!
This made me laugh đŚ
I'm so sad I couldn't add đŚ but the volcano and asteroid were a must đ
i'm reading otherlands rn and it's SO good, immediately eyeing everything else on this list
Ooooo might read that next!! The best thing about this list, personally, is that nobody is borrowing them in my digital library HAHAHA
omg i've been looking for books to learn about megafauna rather than strictly dinosaurs do you have any recs???
Just a disclaimer though, I haven't read most of these but definitely want to. This is pretty much everything I've been browsing to add to my TBR for the past few hours đĽ´
I was actually debating on whether to put megafauna books in here since they're post-dinosaurs, but still did live on Laurasia and Gondwana so I'll add them since you asked for some đ I'm eyeing some books, but I think some aren't on PB yet so I'll need the database to update
okay yay thank you!!
not to be an otherlands shill but otherlands does touch on them a bit! maybe not as in-depth as other books would be though, since it's got more of a holistic view on the environments in general
oooo maybe an intro would be better anyway since i know absolutely nothing
Hank Green and PBS Eons over on YouTube also has great resources on early Earth! They're pretty much the foundation of all my knowledge on the subject, and it definitely helped in terms of recognizing names and terms for these books.
Shout out to the Laurentide Ice SheetđŤśđŤśđŤś Queen of the Quarternary Glaciation đŤ
Nice list! I'm saving it for my colleagues, since they work in a science museum about dinosaurs. Oh, and I definetely need show them how they could make up a riddle with emojis for the children. "Let's see: what does this mean?" "The extinction of dinosaurs, Miss!" "How the Cretaceous period ended!!"
I hope this list is approved by them and I would love some recommendations!!
We are from Spain and we have great fossil collection in different parts of the country. In our region we have fossils from the Jurassic period and this museum has the best collection of dinosaur footprints in Europe: https://www.museojurasicoasturias.com/en/exposici%C3%B3n-permanente
Aaaah that's so cool! If there are any books on dinosaurs or early Earth that highlights Spain fossils, please let me know I'd love to add them in!
Noted! Now I have homework to do!
Great title and great books! Have to add a bunch to my tbr!
Thank you! If you have any recs for me, I'd love to add them and eventually check out!!!
I haven't read these yet but some books on paleontology from my tbr: The Monster's Bones by David Randall, How Fast Did T.rex Run by David Hone, and The Rise and Reign of the Mammals by Steve Brusatte. I really like The Dinosaur Artist by Paige Williams, but it's more focused on the fossil black market than what was going on in deep time. Yesterday I came across Notes from Deep Time by Helen Gordon, which might fit, but I think might be more focused on the Precambrian.
Will take note of them and check, thank you!! I know The Rise and Reign of Mammals, but thought I'd check it first on how much of the content might be considered deep time. I really liked The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs by the same author!
Awww I love this list so much. All of these topics are so interesting and I'm always looking to learn more so happy I have this list to reference!
Aaaaaa I'm glad you think so!! I love deep time and I watched a lot of PBS Eons before, so I thought I'd start reading up too!!
Thank you for this list, i literally live for topics like this. I wish every day Iâd gone into archaeology or something similar as a career! đŤ
omg same, it's not rlly a lucrative profession here but it's so fascinating and I love it so much 𼚠if you have any recs, please drop them here!!
This will probably bring back my toddler/elementary school dinosaur phase! đŚđŚđŚđŚđŚâ¤ď¸
it's not a phase, it's a lifestyle đââď¸
For real!!! Dino for life
