Another Review at MyShelf.Com

Acrocanthosaurus
The Bones of Contention
Russell Ferrell

Historical Dimensions
2011 /ISBN: 0615413366
Non-Fiction / paleontology
Amazon

Reviewed by Nicole Merritt

The True Story of Cephis Hall and Sid Love
The Arkansas Hillbilly and the Choctaw Indian
Who outsmarted the Corporation and Saved the Dinosaur

What makes this story interesting is that the author did not intend to write the story. While his son was on a vacation in Oklahoma, he visited Cephis Hall's rock shop with his children, because they were interested in rocks. During their visit, they engaged Mr. Hall in a conversation about his dinosaur adventure. He found the story so interesting that when he returned home to Dallas he told his father about it. And, of course, encouraged him to visit with Mr. Hall. So, the next weekend Russell Ferrell and his son returned to interview Cephis. They decided to make this a father and son project, but later, his son who was an engineer by trade, not a writer, bowed out and the details fell on Ferrell's shoulders. He pursued the story with interest for the next three years, gathering information about Cephis and Sid Love's adventure. Unfortunately, Sid Love passed away before he could get his perspective.

Cephis Hall's journey began in 1983 when a friend stopped by his house and told him of a discovery in a pit. He said it looked like a piece of petrified wood or gold. This immediately piqued Hall's interest and he returned to the pit to investigate. This was the beginning of a long and arduous journey to recover the dinosaur bone through overwhelming odds. The site was on corporate land and the struggle to claim the bone was a battle to the end.

It's a heartwarming, down-to-earth, true tale of two friends who pitted themselves against big business and won. If you liked Erin Brockovich, you'll like this one. Don't let the name throw you off; it's a hillbilly tale.

Reviewed 2012
© 2012 MyShelf.com