The Bone Wars by Kathryn LAsky is a fascinating look at the cutthroat competition for fossil discovery in the Western United States in the 1800's. Told as the story of two young men from very different backgrounds, the history of private collectors and scholarly funded expeditions is tied together with the timeline of the European press into the West and the dislocation of the native peoples. Custer figures into the story quite prominently.

The characters are personable and the plot moves quickly. The details of how dinosaur fossils were found, preserved, and removed are fascinating!

This book was a big hit with 4-7th grade boys. I had to buy another copy so that interested girls had a chance to read it.