The Fire of Stars: The Life and Brillance of the Woman Who Discovered What Stars Are Made of
By Kirsten W. Larson, Illustrated by Katherine Roy
A poetic picture book celebrating the life and scientific discoveries of the groundbreaking astronomer Cecilia Payne!
Astronomer and astrophysicist Cecilia Payne was the first person to discover what burns at the heart of stars. But she didn’t start out as the groundbreaking scientist she would eventually become. She started out as a girl full of curiosity, hoping one day to unlock the mysteries of the universe. 5-8 years
Maria’s Comet
by Deborah Hopkinson, Illustrated by Deborah Lanino
Maria longs to be an astronomer. She imagines all the strange worlds she can travel to by looking through her papa’s telescope. One night Maria gets her chance. For the first time, she sees the night sky stretching endlessly above her. Her dream of exploring constellations seems close enough to touch. This story is inspired by the life of Maria Mitchell, America’s first woman astronomer.
On A Beam Of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein
by Jennifer Berne
Travel along with Einstein on a journey full of curiosity, laughter, and scientific discovery. This is a moving story of the powerful difference imagination can make in any life.
The Girl Who Thought in Pictures
By Julia Finley Mosca, Illustrated by Daniel Rieley
When young Temple was diagnosed with autism, no one expected her to talk, let alone become one of the most powerful voices in modern science. Yet, the determined visual thinker did just that. Her unique mind allowed her to connect with animals in a special way, helping her invent groundbreaking improvements for farms around the globe. Inside, you’ll find a complete biography, fun facts, a colorful timeline of events, and even a note from Temple herself.
The Librarian Who Measured The Earth
by Kathryn Lasky
This is a colorfully illustrated biography of the Greek philosopher and scientist Eratosthenes. He compiled the first geography book. And accurately measured the globe’s circumference.
Who Was Marie Curie?
By Megan Stine, Illustrated by Ted Hammond
Born in Warsaw, Poland, on November 7, 1867, Marie Curie was forbidden to attend the male-only University of Warsaw, so she enrolled at the Sorbonne in Paris to study physics and mathematics. There she met a professor named Pierre Curie, and the two soon married, forming one of the most famous scientific partnerships in history. Together they discovered two elements and won a Nobel Prize in 1903. Later Marie won another Nobel award for chemistry in 1911. She died in Savoy, France, on July 4, 1934, a victim of many years of exposure to toxic radiation.
Rare Treasure: Mary Anning and Her Remarkable Discoveries
by Don Brown
Before the word “dinosaur” was ever coined, a young girl discovered a remarkable skeleton on the rocky beach at Lyme Regis in England. This discovery became her passion. She became one of the first commercial fossil collectors. Born in 1799, Mary Anning spent a lifetime teaching herself about fossils. She combed the rugged shore near her home and found a treasure trove of fossils. These long-extinct creatures excited early paleontologists.
Star Stuff: Carl Sagan and the Mysteries of the Cosmos
by Stephanie Roth Sisson
Young Carl Sagan went to the 1939 World’s Fair. His life was changed forever. From that day on he never stopped marveling at the universe. He sought to understand it better. Star Stuff follows Carl from his days star gazing from his Brooklyn apartment. Through his love of science fiction novels. To his work as an renowned scientist. Carl worked on the Voyager missions exploring the farthest reaches of space.
Life in the Ocean: The Story of Oceanographer Sylvia Earle
by Claire Nivola
Sylvia Earle first lost her heart to the ocean as a young girl. She discovered the wonders of the Gulf of Mexico. As an adult, she dives even deeper. She designs submersibles, swims with whales, and takes deep-water walks. Sylvia has dedicated her life to learning more about what she calls “the blue heart of the planet.”
Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World
By Rachel Ignotofsky
Women in Science highlights the contributions of fifty notable women to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) from the ancient to the modern world. This collection also contains infographics about relevant topics such as lab equipment, rates of women currently working in STEM fields, and an illustrated scientific glossary. The trailblazing women profiled include well-known figures like primatologist Jane Goodall, as well as lesser-known pioneers such as Katherine Johnson, the African-American physicist and mathematician who calculated the trajectory of the 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon.
Mesmerized: How Ben Franklin Solved the Mystery That Baffled All of France
by Mara Rockliff, Illustrated by Iacopo Bruno
American inventor Benjamin Franklin is upstaged by a compelling and enigmatic figure: Dr. Mesmer. In elaborately staged shows, Mesmer, wears a fancy coat of purple silk. He carries an iron wand. And he convinces the people of Paris that he controls a magic force. It can cure illness and thoughts. But Ben Franklin is not convinced. Will his practical scientific approach get to the bottom of the mysterious Mesmer’s tricks?
Barnum’s Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World
by Tracy Fern, Illustrated by Boris Kulikov
Barnum Brown’s parents named him after the circus icon P.T. Barnum. They hoped he would do something extraordinary. And he did! He worked as a paleontologist for the American Museum of Natural History. He discovered the first documented skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus Rex. And most of the dinosaurs on display there today.
The book descriptions used are primarily from the publishers.
If you like this Books For Kids: Scientists, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment below. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author
Young Carl Sagan looked up at the night sky and wondered, “What are stars?” A question he seemed to ask over and over.
His mother took him to the library for the answer. At first, the librarian misunderstood Carl and gave him a book about the stars in Hollywood. But when he finally had the right book in his hands, it was magic. Carl learned that our Sun is a star. And all stars are suns, but they are so far away that they look like little points of light.
Carl searched the night sky for the planets in our solar system. He wished that he could walk on the surface of Mars, like his hero, John Carter, in the books by Edgar Rice Burroughs. And Carl wondered: did life exist outside our solar system? In our galaxy? In other galaxies?
Mars — The Red Planet
When Carl was four years old, his parents took him to the 1939 New York World’s Fair, not far from his Bensonhurst, Brooklyn home. There Carl saw wonders of the future: a mechanical man, a moving map, and even an early television. The possibilities for science and technology seemed endless to him.
The interior of an early television at the 1939 World’s Fair
When Carl grew up, he never stopped asking questions about space and its mysteries. He became a scientist with a PhD. in astronomy and astrophysics. He participated in the Voyager program that sent two unmanned spacecrafts on a journey to distant parts of our solar system. Voyager I and Voyager II sent back pictures and information to Earth that helped us learn more about the planets in our solar system.
Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan taught us about space with his many books and his PBS television series, Cosmos: A Personal Voyage. He told us that, “The total number of stars in the Universe is larger than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the planet Earth.” This vastness inspired Carl’s curiosity as a child about planets and stars and galaxies that he later shared with all of us.
A wonderful book for children: Star Stuff: Carl Sagan and theMysteries of the Cosmos by Stephanie Roth Sisson tells the story of Carl Sagan full of curiosity and wonder who reached for the stars.
If you like this post, then please consider sharing it and leaving a comment. Thank you! Barbara Lowell, Children’s Author
