Readers put themselves in the shoes of the protagonists, so why not encourage kids and teens to read about characters who are scientists, technology experts, engineers, artists, and mathematicians. Here is a recommended reading list of 2018 and 2019 picture books, middle grade novels, and young adult novels. Links to these book are posted below. Please mark as "want to read" on your Goodreads page. Happy reading!
If you are a U.S. teacher or librarian and you'd like to build your classroom collection, please enter the giveaway. Each author will mail one copy of their book to the winning teacher or librarian's school. Make sure you follow @bkshelfdetectiv on Twitter so I can contact you via DM if you win. Winner is listed in the Rafflecopter at bottom of this post.
If you are a U.S. teacher or librarian and you'd like to build your classroom collection, please enter the giveaway. Each author will mail one copy of their book to the winning teacher or librarian's school. Make sure you follow @bkshelfdetectiv on Twitter so I can contact you via DM if you win. Winner is listed in the Rafflecopter at bottom of this post.
Picture
Books
(Eifrig Publishing 02/19/2019)
From
the publisher, “In this charming STEM book, children will see
how the light of the full moon inspires Aliana to create a present for her
brother Gustavo, which will surprise the whole family.” Save on Goodreads by clicking here.
(Christy Ottaviano Book June,
2018)
From the publisher: “From Katherine's
early beginnings as a gifted student to her heroic accomplishments as a
prominent mathematician at NASA, Counting on Katherine is the story
of a groundbreaking American woman who not only calculated the course of moon
landings but, in turn, saved lives and made enormous contributions to history.” Save on Goodreads by clicking here.
Guitar
Genius: How Les Paul Engineered the Solid Body Electric Guitar and Rocked the
World by Kim Tomsic (author), Brett Helquist(illustrator)
(Chronicle Books 04/09/2019) Save on Goodreads by clicking here
A perseverance story
about Hall of Fame icon Les Paul and the struggles he faced to engineer many
inventions that transformed the music industry. From the publisher, "
Small
World by Ishta Mercurio
illustrated by Jen Corace
(Abrams Books
for Young Readers (July 2, 2019) Save on Goodreads by clicking here
From the publisher: “When Nanda is born, the whole of her world is the circle of
her mother’s arms. But as she grows, the world grows too. It expands
outward—from her family, to her friends, to the city, to the countryside. And
as it expands, so does Nanda’s wonder in the underlying shapes and structures
patterning it: cogs and wheels, fractals in snowflakes. Eventually, Nanda’s
studies lead her to become an astronaut and see the small, round shape of Earth
far away.”
Middle Grade Novels (ages 8-13)
The Splintered Light by Ginger Johnson
(Bloomsbury Children’s Books September 4,
2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “Ever since his
brother Luc's disappearance and his father's tragic death, Ishmael has lived a
monotonous existence helping his mother on their meager farm where everything
is colorless. Until one morning a ray of light fragments Ishmael's gray world
into something extraordinary: a spectrum of color he never knew existed.
Emboldened, Ishmael sets out to find answers hoping his long lost brother might
hold the key.”
(Random House Books
for Young Readers (May 1, 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “Lucy Callahan was struck by
lightning. She doesn't remember it, but it changed her life forever. The zap
gave her genius-level math skills, and ever since, Lucy has been homeschooled.
Now, at 12 years old, she's technically ready for college. She just has to pass
1 more test--middle school!”
The
11:11 Wish by Kim Tomsic
(Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
February 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
Wishes, magic, and dares abound when a 7th grade math whiz
tries to fit in at her new school by wishing on a magical cat clock only to
suffer catastrophic consequences! In this funny "be careful what you wish
for" story that features magic gone haywire, Megan Meyers turns to what
she knows best—STEM—and uses the scientific method to try and sort everything
out.
The
Science of Breakable Things by Tae Keller
(Random House,
March 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “How do you grow a
miracle?
For the record, this is not the question Mr. Neely is looking for when he says everyone in class must answer an important question using the scientific method. But Natalie's botanist mother is suffering from depression, so this is The Question that's important to Natalie. When Mr. Neely suggests that she enter an egg drop competition, Natalie has hope.”
For the record, this is not the question Mr. Neely is looking for when he says everyone in class must answer an important question using the scientific method. But Natalie's botanist mother is suffering from depression, so this is The Question that's important to Natalie. When Mr. Neely suggests that she enter an egg drop competition, Natalie has hope.”
Spin
the Golden Lightbulb by Jackie Yeager Book #1 in the Crimson
Five series
(Amberjack Publishing January 9, 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “It’s the year 2071 and eleven year-old
Kia Krumpet is determined to build her 67 inventions, but she won't have the
opportunity to unless she earns a spot at PIPS, the Piedmont Inventor’s Prep
School. Kia, who has trouble making friends at school, has dreamed of winning
the Piedmont Challenge and attending PIPS ever since she learned that her
Grandma Kitty won the very first Piedmont Challenge. After she and four of her
classmates are selected to compete for a spot at PIPS, they travel by aero-bus
to Camp Piedmont to solve a task against forty-nine other state teams to earn
their place at the best inventor's school in the country.
Tiny
Infinities by J.K. Diehl
(Chronicle Books, May 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
When Alice's dad moves out, leaving her with her troubled
mother, she does the only thing that feels right: she retreats to her family's
old Renaissance tent in the backyard, determined to live there until her dad
comes home. In an attempt to keep at least one part of her summer from
changing, Alice focuses on her quest to swim freestyle fast enough to get on
her swim team's record board. But summers contain multitudes, and soon Alice
meets an odd new friend, Harriet, whose obsession with the school's science
fair is equal only to her conviction that Alice's best stroke is backstroke,
not freestyle. Most unexpected of all is an unusual babysitting charge, Piper,
who is mute—until Alice hears her speak. A funny and honest middle-grade novel,
this sharply observed depiction of family, friendship, and Alice's
determination to prove herself—as a babysitter, as a friend, as a daughter, as
a person—rings loud and true. (For ages 10 and up).
Young Adult Novels (teen and up):
The
Deepest Roots by Miranda Asebedo
(HarperTeen September 2018) Save on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “Cottonwood Hollow, Kansas, is
a strange place. For the past century, every girl has been born with a special
talent, like the ability to Fix any object, Heal any wound, or Find what is
missing. Best friends Rome, Lux, and Mercy all have similar talents, but to
them, their abilities often feel like a curse. Rome may be able to Fix anything
she touches, but that won’t help her mom pay rent or make it any easier to
confide in Lux and Mercy about what’s going on at home. And Rome isn’t the only
one. Lux has been hiding bigger, more dangerous secrets.”
(Imprint September 2018) Mark as "want to read" on your Goodreads by clicking here.
From the publisher: “On her eighteenth birthday, Hayden inherits her childhood
home―on the condition that she uncover its dark secrets. Hayden tried to put
the past behind her, and it worked. She’s getting ready for college, living in
a Brooklyn apartment, and hanging out with her best friend and roommate Del.
But now it’s all catching up with her: her mother’s mysterious disappearance a
decade before, her father’s outlandish theories about a lost supernatural race,
and Hayden’s own dark dreams of strange symbols and rituals in the Colorado
woods where she grew up.”
The
Disasters by M.K. England
(HarperCollins, December 18,
2018) Save on your Goodreads page by clicking here.
From the publisher: “Hotshot pilot Nax Hall has a history of
making poor life choices. So it’s not exactly a surprise when he’s kicked out
of the elite Ellis Station Academy in less than twenty-four hours. But Nax’s
one-way trip back to Earth is cut short when a terrorist group attacks the
Academy. Nax and three other washouts escape—barely—but they’re also the sole
witnesses to the biggest crime in the history of space colonization. And the
perfect scapegoats. On the run and framed for atrocities they didn’t commit,
Nax and his fellow failures execute a dangerous heist to spread the truth about
what happened at the Academy.”
Want to follow these authors on Twitter? They are tagged in this tweet: https://twitter.com/bkshelfdetectiv/status/1068511797194309632
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