2025 Releases
In the Rocndog Universe
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Rockin' Dog Studio's publishing imprint, Rocndog Books, introduces an exciting array of award-winning projects already in production. These titles are coming in 2025!
Paleontology: Two long-awaited second editions. Bones Rock! tells everything you need to know to work in the field, the lab, and in your mind. Suitable for kids of all ages—and written so that even adults can understand it. With a STEM-compliant study guide. Plus, IPPY Gold-medal-winner Rex Appeal2 reveals the inside scoop on the story of Sue and Stan—the most famous T. rex specimens ever—with 100 additional pages of updated and expanded content since the first edition more than 20 years ago. This is the book that inspired Todd Douglas Miller's Emmy®-winning documentary, Dinosaur 13.
Spies: The past foreshadowed the present when the first Cold War espionage case went to court in 1949. Judith Coplon caught the public's attention in one of the first "paparazzi" stories ever; her story also paved the way for illegal wiretaps, disputes over government overreach, and public divisions over political beliefs.
A culinary love letter: The daughter of a beloved baker revives her father’s famous recipes, and in the process discovers not only her family’s fierce love—but also its secrets.
Bones Rock!
Everything You Need To Know To Be A Paleontologist
Peter Larson & Kristin Donnan
From School Library Journal
Starred Review. In this practical guide, Larson shares his obvious passion for his work, discussing scientific methods and a wide variety of fossil-hunting techniques. The conversational style of the writing, filled with plenty of challenging questions and easy-to-follow analogies, effectively brings readers into this fascinating world. While most will probably never get the opportunity to prepare fossils in a lab, the basic instructions convey what it would be like if the chance should arise. The value of finding a mentor–someone with more experience who can make fossil finding more interesting (and safe) for young beginners–is stressed. Though Larson asserts that anyone can hunt fossils in one way or another, he also makes it clear that it can be hard and time-consuming work: "It takes about 25,000 hours of skilled preparation to clean a whole T. rex." Many of the examples used come from the author's own finds, and notable discoveries made by kids and teens are also highlighted. A teacher's guide is appended. Illustrations include high-quality color photographs and helpful diagrams and drawings. There's fascinating information here, and Larson's enthusiasm and sound advice give plenty of encouragement to young scientists.
Second Edition: This edition includes updated science, and the Teacher's / Independent Study Guide has been expanded by a STEM professional.
Publisher: Rocndog Books, an imprint of Rockin' Dog Studio, LLC
Museum / Science Center Distributor: Black Hills Institute
Global Distributor (to come)
Publication Date: Fall, 2025
Language: English
Page Count: 280 pages
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-7352228-3-7
Dimensions: 8x10 in.
BISAC: SCI054000 SCIENCE / Paleontology
JNF037050 JUVENILE NONFICTION / Science & Nature / Fossils
YAN050070 YOUNG ADULT NONFICTION / Science & Nature / Earth Sciences
EDU029030 EDUCATION / Teaching / Subjects / Science & Technology
Rex Appeal 2
The Real Story of Sue — Revised & Updated
Peter Larson & Kristin Donnan
From Library Journal
"Provides the personal, behind-the-scenes drama that only someone who lived it could provide. Highly recommended."
From The Denver Post
"Riveting. A highly readable adventure story. Tough, if not impossible, for fossil fans to put down."
“A riveting saga, tailor-made for the movies. Here is all the sweat and adventure of dinosaur collecting, along with fascinating scientific detective work that brings these old bones to life. Most of all, here is a gripping account of a horrific episode in American paleontology that should never be allowed to happen again.”
— Niles Eldredge, American Museum of Natural History
“Here at last is the story of the man who stood in the center of the unbelievable tornado of events surrounding Sue. A well-told saga worthy of the ancient Greeks, complete with the science behind the story.”
Dr. Philip J. Currie, Professor of Paleontology, University of Alberta in Edmonton
Second Edition (First Edition 2002 by Invisible Cities Press)
Publisher: Rocndog Books, an imprint of Rockin' Dog Studio, LLC
Museum / Science Center Distributor: Black Hills Institute
Global Distributor: (to come)
Publication Date: 2024 (wide distribution Fall 2025)
Language: English
Page Count: 480
Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-7352228-2-0
eBook ISBN: (to come)
Dimensions: 6.375 x 9.25 in.
BISAC: SCI054000 SCIENCE / Paleontology
LAW070000 LAW / Natural Resources
BIO015000 BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Science & Technology
Rex Appeal2 won a Gold Medal in Science in the 2024 IPPY Awards.
The Spy Who Seduced America
Lies and Betrayal in the Heat of the Cold War
The Judith Coplon Story
Marcia Mitchell & Thomas Mitchell
From Library Journal
At the height of the Cold War in 1949, Judith Coplon was arrested and charged with spying for the Soviets. Despite having to endure two trials whose results were inconclusive, followed by two different appeals court rulings, and finally a decision by the Supreme Court in 1952 not to hear the case, Coplon remained under the shadow of further legal action until the government dropped its charges in 1967. This fascinating case, the first spying trial of the Cold War, is recounted in sprightly fashion by the husband-and-wife team of Marcia and Thomas Mitchell. At the outset, Marcia believed Coplon innocent, while her husband, who spent 17 years as an FBI agent, was equally certain of Coplon's guilt. The narrative records the day-to-day court proceedings as well as the general anti-Communist hysteria of the period. The FBI used questionable tactics, such as illegal wiretaps, to obtain its evidence, which ultimately led to difficulties in the courts. As it turns out, information that recently became available from the Venona Project (the National Security Agency's program to decrypt Soviet KGB and GRU messages) shows conclusively that Coplon was indeed a Soviet agent. Despite Coplon's guilt, her case revealed how the FBI exceeded its legal limitations in the search for spies. This is an important study that sheds light not only on Cold War spying but also on the FBI's counterespionage activities in the late 1940s. For most collections.
Second Edition (First Edition 2002 by Invisible Cities Press)
Publisher: Rocndog Books, an imprint of Rockin' Dog Studio, LLC
Distributor: (to come)
Publication Date: July 22, 2025
Language: English
Page Count: 420
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-7352228-5-1
eBook ISBN: 978-1-7352228-6-8
Dimensions: 6x9 in.
BISAC: POL036000 POLITICAL SCIENCE / Intelligence & Espionage
A Baker's Daughter
Recipes & Memories From a Family Bakery
Marcy Brenner & Kristin Donnan
What happens when a devoted daughter begins to revive her famous-baker-dad’s recipes, and instead uncovers a hidden family history? In this case, a narrative cookbook—about people. Marcy Brenner’s devotion to her dad, Max, is evident from the first line to the last, but her journey of discovery goes back in time, to long before she tasted her first Chocolate Top Cookie. As she teaches herself to bake like a pro—by decoding Max’s cryptic, commercial recipe cards—she follows the story of generations of bakers who used love as their primary ingredient.
Meanwhile, she delivers the goods for generations of Brenner’s Bakery fans who have been waiting for years for “kitchen-sized” recipes that would make their favorites come back to life. Her chapters have names like “Miss Charlotte,” and “Sisters.” The narrative format also intermingles dozens of recipes with moving stories of Marcy’s parents’ deep Southern humanity, her grandparents’ struggles—and a Jewish ancestry buried by fear.
"Whenever you needed a loaf of marble rye, a bagful of molasses cookies (my favorite) or a birthday cake for someone special, you went to Brenner's in Alexandria, Virginia. And it was easy to find excuses to stop there for all the in-between times too. Part cookbook, part ode to her father Max, Marcy Brenner weaves love, joy and warm aromas into one satisfying volume."
— Susan Stuck, Food writer and former Alexandria resident
Publisher: Rocndog Books, an imprint of Rockin' Dog Studio, LLC
Distributor: (to come)
Publication Date: Fall 2025
Language: English
Page Count: 300
Paperback ISBN: 978-7352228-4-4
Dimensions: 8.5 x 8.5 in.
BISAC: CKB004000 COOKING / Methods / Baking.
BIO029000 BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Culinary
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