Our Favorite Science Book Picks (and a Printable List!)

We’ve thrown a lot of titles at you during our Science September for science-related informational texts. Because we know many of you, like us, love to have a list available when shopping or heading to the library, we’ve gathered those titles all in one place AND added lots more! You may click on the main list title below to get the Google Drive version (which you can print) or simply peruse the titles below. Titles are linked to our reviews, where applicable.

 Some Notes on our List

Please note that we haven’t read every book of every series. We’ve tried to select titles by reputable authors/illustrators/companies with whose work we have good experience, and we feel that this list represents some excellent books in terms of scientific integrity and book creation. You may find the occasional reference to evolutionary thought although those comments should be at a minimum. Still, we always encourage our readers to read discerningly!

Note, too, that we’ve included Dewey ranges for some of the more popular topics at the bottom of the list. Those are great starting points for browsing with your children; be sure to enlist the help of your local librarian if you have other topics in mind or don’t find what you’re looking for.

Picture Books Are For More Than Preschool

And, finally, we’d like to remind you that science picture books can have real depth and often provide a terrific window into a specialized topic. Don’t overlook picture books for your older-than-preschool children!!

RedeemedReader’s Science Nonfiction Favorites (click on title for printable list; applicable titles below linked to RR reviews)

Picture Books

Series

• Bishop, Nic. Nic Bishop… Books (preschool and up; snakes, spiders, butterflies, etc.)

• Boring, Mel. Fun with Nature (Take Along Guides) (preschool and up; various topics)

• Cole, Joanna. The Magic Schoolbus Series (elementary; varied topics)

• Micucci, Charles. Life and Times of… Series (preschool and up; ant, peanut, apple, corn, honeybee)

• Sill, Cathryn and and John Sill. About…. (Guides for Children). (preschool and up; mammals, marsupials, birds, fish, reptiles, hummingbirds, insects, etc.)

Single Titles

• Barton, Chris and Tony Persiani. The Day-Glo Brothers. (preschool and up; invention of neon paint)

• Beccaloni, George. Biggest Bugs Life-Size (preschool and up)

• Berne, Jennifer and Vladimir Radunsky. On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein. (preschool and up)

• Ehlert, Lois. Leaf Man, Waiting for Wings, and others. (preschool and up)

• Floca, Brian. Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11. (kindergarten and up)

• Florian, Douglas. Poetrees and other titles (poetry that includes facts; elementary and up)

• Jenkins, Martin. Can We Save the Tiger? (good for elementary; endangered species)

• Jenkins, Steve. Actual Size and Whose Tail is This? (good for preschool-2nd grade)

• Martin, Jacqueline Briggs and Mary Azarian. Snowflake Bentley. (kindergarten and up; snowflakes and the first man to photograph them)

• McCarthy, Meghan. Pop! The Invention of Bubblegum. (preschool and up)

• Morris, John, Ken Ham, and Jonathan Chang. What Really Happened to the Dinosaurs. (elementary and up)

• Rey, H. A. Find the Constellations and The Stars. (preschool and up)

• Salas, Laura Purdie. A Leaf Can Be… (preschool and up)

• Seeger, Laura Vaccaro. First the Egg. (preschool and up; life cycles)

• Sidman, Joyce and Rick Allen. Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. (elementary and up; nocturnal creatures in poetry and in factual sidebars)

• Sis, Peter. Starry Messenger. (Gallileo; preschool and up)

• Voake, Steve and Charlotte Voake. Insect Detective: Read and Wonder. (preschool and up)

Early Reader Level Books

• I Can Read Made By God books (sea creatures, forest animals, spiders/snakes/bees/bats, plants, birds, polar animals, jungle animals, Australian animals, pets, bugs, rainforest animals, farm animals)

• Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out-Science books (Level 1 and Level 2; multiple topics)

Experiments, General Science, and More

• Beauregard, Lynda and Der-Shing Helmer. Summer Camp Science Mysteries. (graphic novel format; middle grades)

• Cobb, Vicki and David Cain. Science Experiments You Can Eat. (elementary and up)

• Gray, Theodore and Nick Mann. The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe. (grown-up book, but accessible to kids).

• Hollihan, Kerrie. Isaac Newton and Physics for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities. (middle grades)

• Pohlen, Jerome. Albert Einstein and Relativity for Kids: His Life and Ideas with 21 Activities. (middle grades)

• VanCleave, Janice. 201 Awesome, Magical, Bizarre, and Incredible Experiments. (elementary and up)

• VanCleave, Janice. Earth Science for Every Kid: 101 Easy Experiments that Really Work (and other titles in the Science for Every Kid series by VanCleave)

• Yoder, Eric and Natalie Yoder. One Minute Mysteries: 65 Short Mysteries You Solve with Science! (elementary and up)

Literary Nonfiction/Science (longer, reads like a novel almost, but about a scientific topic)

• DeCristofano, Carolyn. A Black Hole is Not a Hole. (3rd grade and up; black holes/space)

• Hoose, Phillip. Moonbird. (about a particular species of bird)

• Murphy, Jim. The Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure. (middle grades and up)

• Sheinkin, Steve. Bomb: The Race to Build–and Steal–the World’s Most Powerful Weapon. (middle grades and up; WWII/atomic bomb)

Dewey Ranges for Popular Science Topics:

(keep in mind that there can be more than one range for similar topics; if you don’t see the type of books/subjects you’re interested in, ask the librarian for help!)

 520s/ 620s    Space

551               Storms/Natural Disasters

580s            Plants

595              Bugs

590s            Reptiles

610s            Human Body

630s            Domestic Animals